All Forum Posts by: Walt Payne

@Joe A.  There is no number that will be the same for everybody. Modest middle income lifestyle, for example, is very personal. 

You will also want enough growth in your portfolio to offset inflation, and account for college funds, the explosive growth of healthcare costs, etc. 

My personal take on this is a little different than the average person contemplating a retirement plan. The usual goal is 80% of what income was shortly before retirement. That idea suggests sitting around and waiting to die. To quote my great aunt at age 98 "I'm not sitting around in my rocker waiting for the grim reaper, if he wants me he will have to come find me!" I plan on traveling, and being very active. I am projecting needs of about 200% of my current income. And that is starting in a year or two. Not full retirement, but retirement from the rat race into REI at my own pace, doing the parts I enjoy. But growth is part of the plan, from now until the day I die.

@Mike G.  I was not talking about customizing the entire house. I would not do that at this level. I am considering the possibility of allowing them to select the appliances, based on a specific budget. I would also only purchase them within a short time of closing. 

@J Scott  That was one of the issues I was wondering about. I assume they should be the ones I would have put in myself, so that they see the level of appliances that the allowance buys them? There will be a pretty good margin on the flip, so I want to try to make it a bit of a custom build by allowing them to choose what they want to help sell it quickly.

I am considering a different strategy for a flip than how I usually do it. We are working on a flip that has an ARV of $125K, and I am planning on putting in stainless appliances. I was just wondering if anyone else does a system where they provide an allowance of $xxx for appliances, and the buyer can select them. I have no problem purchasing them, but I also know that appliances tend to be one of those personal preference things that might help if the buyer can select their own?

@Aly W.  I have not seen any great multi-family deals there whenever I have looked, but I only look for those occasionally. But SFRs can be bought at $40-60K with minor rehabs, and will rent for $700-$1000, all depending on the neighborhood.

@Will F.  Palm Bay is one of those "hot" areas, where everybody seems to want to be right now. There are still good deals, but not all of the cheap properties are in good areas. I would not consider it a big appreciation area, more a solid cash flow location, as long as you buy right.

@James B.  I wouldn't buy a franchise for it, but the idea was already on our website because it makes sense to me.

@Ryan S. Personal opinion here, but I would have lost interest at the word "condo". HOAs are too unpredictable. Your profit margin can quickly get eaten up, plus some, just by little things associated with an HOA.

The link below is for a free, 5 week online course on negotiating. I can not comment on how good it is, as I am enrolled in it myself. 

https://www.coursera.org/course/successfulnegotiation

@Mark Forest  we do HVAC filter changes on about a monthly basis, and inspect the property at that time. Not just damage of a tenant nature, but safety and repair issues not related to damage such as leaky faucets, damaged shingles or siding, etc.