All Forum Posts by: Xander Weidenbaum

I'm a real estate agent that specializes in working with investors in a second-home market in the Northeast US. Techvestor is one of my clients, and I've worked with them consistently from infancy (Autumn 2021) to present. As a model, Techvestor syndicates (uses investor funds) to acquire, fit-out and operate short-term rental properties for profit in select markets across the US. 

I came in direct contact with Sief when he was starting Techvestor. I did not known him at Scoutpads and have no direct knowledge of the model at Scoutpads, his role in it, or how it relates to Metallic Blue Development. However, I can say with certainty the following as it pertains to Techvestor in real time in my market: 

Their properties are real and are OWNED by Techvestor. Investments in Techvestor are backed by real property. This is not an arbitrage or management model. They do use leverage in acquisitions (like all real estate syndicators I'm aware of) but their properties are bought with retained cash equity of 20+%. 

From the moment these properties are bought, the work starts to turn them into STR's. Techvestor's project managers direct local contractors to make the STR-specific improvements they desire. On smaller projects, I have seen this turnaround time from acquisition to active on AirBnB in as little as 1 month.

Their team is engaged, right from the top. I work with a lot of smaller syndications/investment groups and have seen some where the principals try to take a 'hands-off' approach and let the machine run. When there is a kink or a matter that requires immediate attention, Sief himself as managing partner, addresses it immediately and works non-stop until it is corrected. I've witnessed this on many occasions.

The properties get rented. I am a real estate agent who sells in the locations where they own. I drive by. There are cars in the driveway at their properties on the weekends AND often during the weekdays. I help folks buy and sell STR's every day. I see tons of revenue figures from small and large STR investors in my market. Techvestor properties are positioned to be cash-flow positive. There is no doubt here.

I can understand the frustration of people who invested with Sief as their point of contact/face, and lost money with him under previous companies. Upon any further readings at depth, these syndicators like Metallic Blue Developers appear to have been operated and managed fraudulently by others (Brian Dozier et al). I don't know about those ventures. I wasn't there. I didn't invest. I didn't experience that financial loss. 

I have a relationship with Sief and candidly, he is an amazing salesperson. I can imagine him being fantastic at investor relations, and it makes sense to me that if he believed in a company (Metallic Blue Properties), he would have done a great job raising capital for it. That said, he is also a strong operator. I see how he views and values investor funds, talks about protecting those investor monies (walking away from deals I think are good but are admittedly more risky), and the consistency in this behavior from the time I have known him shows me that he is not someone who takes his role as syndicator lightly. This is probably heavily influenced by the past experiences at Scoutpads/MBP etc, and rightly so. Everything I've read about it sounds horrific. But nothing about it sounds like my experience working with the company Techvestor.

Sounds great. Looking forward to it 

I'm definitely interested in this if it ends up forming. 

Hey Tech,

Yes, so regulations will run by township and then by HOA (as applicable).

Henryville is a beautiful and convenient area but not STR friendly. It's partly located in Pocono Township and partly in Paradise Township. Pocono Twp does not allow STR's except in their residential zoning districts and Paradise is expected to pass, as of next meeting, a regulation also disallowing STR's in their residential zoning districts. Both of these townships, to my knowledge, do allow them in their commercial zoning districts and their ‘special recreation' type district(s). These districts make up a small portion of total zoning areas/properties tho.

Tannersville is primarily Pocono Twp so it's a no. That said, along Camelback Mountain Resort a lot of properties are in their recreation district and therefore allow STR's. Note, just south of Tannersville is Jackson Township, which does allow short term rentals w a permitting process throughout their township.

Long Pond is one of the ‘hottest' areas for STR's from an occupancy/return perspective along with Penn Estates in East Stroudsburg and Lake Harmony Estates in Lake Harmony. Long Pond (a lot of which is made up of Emerald Lakes HOA), is super popular for STR due to proximity to ‘Pocono Stuff,' plus easy access to highways and conveniences. Long Pond the town is split between two townships, Tunkhannock Township to the south and Tobyhanna Township to the north. Tunkhannock has a rental ordinance in place, which makes it more secure, in my opinion, though you're limited by the regulation as to advertisement of bedrooms in relation to septic size/septic permit. For example, you're allowed to advertise for 2 persons per legal septic-authorized bedroom plus an addtl 4 person. So a 4 bedroom home can be advertised to sleep 12.

Tobyhanna Township does NOT have an ordinance in place; however, they have multiple drafts of their proposed ordinance (you can find on their website - note: Tobyhanna Township and the town of Tobyhanna are two different places). So, eventually they are expected to pass their ordinance allowing short term rentals, but there is no ordinance on the books as of now. That said, they do not ‘crack down or disallow’ short term rentals, and instead defer to the many homeowners’ associations in the area to regulate as necessary. A bit less secure maybe than Tunkhannock Township, which has an ordinance on the books, but still an extremely popular area for short term rental investment as the housing stock is generally ‘vacation styled,’ many of the communities havd lakes amd/or other amenities and returns can be excellent in this area. 

Another area nearby to consider would be Coolbaugh Township, which has an ordinance in place allowing STR, and is made up of the towns of Pocono Summit and Tobyhanna.

Wishing you success going forward with your investment purchase - hope this served as a helpful jumping-off point. 

I (and my team) handle a ton of short-term rental properties. Very familiar with this market. I'll shoot you a message. 

Very cool - thanks for sharing Keith

Hi Sylvester - congrats on your successful STR! A few things when shopping cash-out refi's:

1. Do you need the income from the property to qualify for the refinance? I.e. Do you have a sufficient debt-to-income ratio w your 'day job' to qualify to take on debt from the property? If you have a good debt to income ratio w/o the income from the rental...

2. Most lenders will lend at 75%-80% LTV on a non-owner-occupant single family residence for fixed rate cash-out around 4.00%(+/-) over 30 years; if you're a strong borrower, I find these loans are fairly easy to get. Once you get into multiple units, that LTV will decrease (65% on a 3-unit for example). The Pocono Mountains market has appreciated 45% in the past year so if you own the home outright and it's nice, you are likely in a good equity position to qualify on the EQUITY in the property alone and receive a nice chunk of change without the 'rental income' playing a factor in the valuation of your asset.

3. In my experience, appraisers are in high demand in our area and the 'best' ones work with the local banks. Some of the larger institutions - national banks like Chase/Wells, online lenders etc. - don't have access to the best appraisers because they don't join their pool. Getting a good appraiser and an accurate (that reflects current hot market conditions and not 'comps' for a year ago in dissimilar geographic areas) is key here. You want the maximum appraised value for your property. For this reason, I would suggest a local lender. 

4. Be aware of fees. Due to a change in FNMA guidelines, many 'direct lenders' have pricing overlays on investor loans currently and this has driven up the rates, fees, or both. I've done a cash-out refi this year and multiple investor acquisition loans past 12 months. The best 'deals' I've found (by far) have been w local lenders. 

5. Highly recommend Eliese Grella at Fidelity Bank out of the Lehigh Valley. I'm afraid my post will get tagged for sharing her contact (I have ZERO affiliation with her; I'm a real estate agent). I've worked w nearly every top lender in a 30 mile radius over the years and she's my current favorite in terms of pricing, ability to hold loans 'in house' if they're non-traditional and having a great appraisal pool. If I can drop contact, it's (484) 695-8889. Highly recommend - she's the truth. 

If you need anything else, feel free to DM me directly. In the same market as you, I've personally completed cash out refi's, resi acquisition loans, multiple property commercial umbrella loans, single commercial loans and have assisted tons of clients w the same. I'm into helping and seeing people succeed. Good luck. 

Yes, I am in the process of repurposing two properties for Airbnb use in the Poconos. That 70-90% occupancy (which seems crazy on the face of it) is what I'm generally hearing as reasonable occupancy. I also have a LOT of clients who are heavily involved in the airbnb game locally. I'm curious to see how occupancy rates fluctuate once we get past the worst of the pandemic - like 2022/23. I usually tell people to anticipate 12 days out of the month (or about 40% occupancy) as a worst-case scenario if their property is nice, properly priced and has good amenities. If the investment still make sense at those numbers for the work involved, it's gotta be a 'go'. 

Rebecca, those areas can definitely work well for long-term rentals. Are there a lot of short-term (nightly, vacation style rentals) they do in those areas? Maybe towards Back Mountain but not so much in Forty Fort, Avoca, Kingston, Hazleton etc. I'd imagine. I'd think it's too densely populated with not enough tourism demand, but maybe your experience there is different? 

Also, Angel, not sure how important tenant laws will be to you with short-term (Airbnb) rentals. Taxes in Monroe are definitely higher than most areas in Luzerne/Lackawanna counties, but the prices, economic drivers and styles of housing are also very different between the two. 

So yes, it varies by township and also HOA. The following townships, to my knowledge, currently have short-term rental ordinances in place that allow for short term rentals w permits (from east to west): Middle Smithfield, Jackson, Paradise, Barrett, Coolbaugh, Tunkhannock. Tobyhanna township is expected to pass one that will be 'rental friendly,' but to my knowledge has not been passed yet. Stroud township allows STR in two communities - Penn Estates and Blue Mountain Lake Estates - only. Lehman (Pike County/Bushkill), Smithfield, Eastburg Borough, Stroud Borough, Hamilton, Pocono, Chestnuthill and some others explicitly do not allow STR under 30 days continuous period. Then there are communities within the townships that may disallow - I.e. Country Club of the Poconos in Middle Smithfield and Timber Hill POA in Paradise.

This is my primary market and we've done a TON of short-term rental work particularly over the past 3+ years. Happy to help w more questions. Almost all townships have the short-term rental ordinance, as applicable, available on their website. In general, the areas that were 'traditionally vacation oriented' on top of the Pocono plateau (Coolbaugh, Tunkhannock, Tobyhanna) etc. have experienced the greatest growth in sales volume in 2020 due to a combo of more owners having second/vacation homes there so it's easier for them to bring their property to market, generally friendly STR rules and proximity to Pocono attractions (ski, hiking etc.). 

Also some spots that have commercial or special 'recreation' zoning (like the townhomes at Camelback) allow short term rental despite being in a township (Pocono) that doesn't allow it in their residential only zones. Folks that have STR's in the area are doing great with them... # of bedrooms and specialty features really help drive it. Good luck and happy house hunting!