All Forum Posts by: Wade Sikkink

Welcome! Always good to see other Huskers getting into the game.

We bought a building last year that had below market rents in place. We just raised all rents, across the board by about 19%.

Interesting link, thanks for sharing @Marcia Maynard also, thanks for the batman jokes....should have known those would be coming :-)

I would have the seller deal with the tenant before closing on the deal. Especially since the seller is going to carry a mortgage. Tell the seller he is responsible for getting rid of the tenant, then you will close. If you don't, you could end up with a lengthy, expensive mess to get rid of the tenant.

Good luck!

We are getting another company to come out and give us a bid.

Yes, there was a bat in an apartment and the tenant was pretty freaked out.

I know, in general, that bats are good, but not inside the building.

Here's a picture of the overall building and a close up of the soffitt where they are likely getting in.

The guy that came out said that they are going in and out at the gap with the brown discoloration. Their bodies rubbing as the go in and out discolors the soffitt.

Remember, real estate makes money 3 ways. Cash flow, debt pay down and appreciation. The monthly cash flow and ROI on that cash flow is one factor, but you can create a lot of value through mortgage payoff and appreciation (especially in SFR's).

What is an acceptable cash flow depends on you goals, time line and how all these factors come into play. Good luck!

Anyone have any experience with doing this? We had a tenant that had a bat in her apartment so we got a bat guy out there to check it out. He quoted us about 5 grand to bat proof the building and that comes with a 1 year guarantee. It seemed really expensive to me, but I don't have any experience with dealing with bats.

On my first multi unit deal I had no capital, but lived 2 blocks from the property and was willing to manage it. My partner lived an hour and a half away but had the capital to invest.

Our arrangement was that he would provide the capital to start the business (down payment and a start on operating capital). I would manage the property and run the day to day. Every year that the business was profitable I would earn an increased equity stake (profitability was the indicator of good management performance on my part). When we started I had a zero ownership. After the first year, I earned into a 5% stake. After the second year I was up to 10%. We agreed to a cap at some point but we never got there. I moved out of state and sold my interest to my partner.

This was a great way for me to get started when I had no capital but could do all the work. If you have the capital but need someone to do the work, maybe try something like I did. The key is that you have to really trust the guy and spell everything out in writing.

Good luck.

I'm not sure why it matter if the tenant knows you are the owner. Our tenants know and that way they know they can't push us around. We own the building, so our decisions are final.

We had a tenant that wanted to pay cash and get a receipt. Our lease clearly says that the rent is to be mailed to our PO box, so I told her to get a money order and mail it. She complained that it costs her money to do that. Oh well, welcome to being an adult and having to take care of your bills.