All Forum Posts by: Zulu Black

Hello BG Community!

I'm in a somewhat dilemma here and I'm not sure which direction to take: Cash out Refinance or sell SFH. I have a SFH in NYC that's appraised for roughly 650k. I pay roughly $2200/month to an existing mortgage of 226k, 3.25%, 15 years remaining. I've been renting out the house to offset the mortgage at $3200, giving me cash flow about $700/month. Based on the current market, I was thinking about possibly getting myself another rental property while interest is low.

I asked a couple of local banks and they gave me a quote based on 650k appraised value to cash out at 400k, 3.375% 30 years. Estimate payment per month is about $2400/month. What do you guys think I should do? What are somethings I should think about? 

Thanks

I also purchased a couple of liens in Baltimore City, MD this year. It was definitely an interesting experience. What percentage would you say, you were able to foreclose on those properties?

Thanks everyone! I appreciate all the feedback. After inspecting it closely, it's the sleeper wood that's rotted but the tenants definitely ripped out the flooring to see what's the extent of the damage. For repair, since the flooring will be ripped out to see how far the rot goes. I'm probably going to rip out the entire floor and install a vapor barrier + LVP and paint the wood panels to white to brighten the basement. 

I am currently renting out my SFH to a family in NYC

that just had their house burned down last year. Their insurance is currently covering the rent and they are in the last month of their lease. I was notified for the first time by the tenant last night of wood rot in my basement and apparently some of the flooring "flip collapse". I went to check out the situation today and found that 2 of the joists indeed looks like they're rotting. I also found where the water is coming from.

My question is, can I file a claim to their insurance company that is currently paying the rent against their security? Because yes, it does seem like the joist are rotted and it does seem like the water is coming in from the boiler room but for them to tear up my flooring doesn't seem right to me. I'm not sure of my next step. I currently placed a sheet of wood over the area and notified the tenant to not go down to the basement and that I'm looking to fix it up soon.

My other question when do I have to do the repair by? Their lease ends in 3 weeks and is planning to move out at that time. Could I wait till they move out to fix the flooring or do I have to fix it now.

I am currently renting out my SFH to a family in NYC

that just had their house burned down last year. Their insurance is currently covering the rent and they are in the last month of their lease. I was notified for the first time by the tenant last night of wood rot in my basement and apparently some of the flooring "flip collapse". I went to check out the situation today and found that 2 of the joists indeed looks like they're rotting. I also found where the water is coming from. 

My question is, can I file a claim to their insurance company that is currently paying the rent against their security? Because yes, it does seem like the joist are rotted and it does seem like the water is coming in from the boiler room but for them to tear up my flooring doesn't seem right to me. I'm not sure of my next step. I currently placed a sheet of wood over the area and notified the tenant to not go down to the basement and that I'm looking to fix it up soon. 

My other question when do I have to do the repair by? They're lease ends in 3 weeks and is planning to move out at that time. Could I wait till they move out to fix the flooring or do I have to fix it now. 
 
 

Hello All,

This year, in July I started to enter the realm of real estate investing by renting out my SFH for $4k/month. I also have a full-time engineering job. I understand an individual may deduct up to $25,000 of real estate loss per year as long as their income <$100,000. However, my combined allowable deductible (property tax,depreciation, mortgage interest) already exceeds that amount.

I read this threshold doesn't apply if you're classified as a "real estate professional". Although my full time job is in engineering, I am in the process of starting an LLC with my partner. We're planning to invest into rental properties and I feel that I've exceeded the 750 hours mark.

I want to ask if there's a way to be able to deduct more that the allowable $25,000.

Thanks. I appreciate all comments. 

@Michael Facchini @Jeff Slipko, Thanks! I'll look into it but currently I don't have the money for the down payment to get another property. 

@Martin Vehlow, @Parker Eberhard, its unlikely that I'll be able to rent out my house at a higher rate. I'm already getting a very high rent for my house in my neighborhood. The average rent around my neighborhood is roughly $3,000/month. 

@Michael Facchini, I don't own in Chicago. I've only been in the city for a couple of months. Still trying to get to know the area. Which area would you recommend to look around?

@Martin Vehlow & @Jonathan Poulin, I'm currently cashflow positive about $1k/month. However, these tenants will only be staying temporarily and once their house is finished repaired, they'll be moving out. I looked online and I think the value of my current property is roughly $550k.