Closing on 5 units soon

[Justin Fantazier]

I am about to close on 5 doors in the next few weeks. Three single family homes and one duplex. Just reaching out to for thoughts on items that I might not have thought of. Thank you for any input. 

[Nathan Gesner]

Quote from @Justin Fantazier:

All five units are currently rented. I have financing and insurance in place all five will cash flow 150-200 a door as is. I am going to manage these properties myself. I guess what I am looking for is input about what I should know/do with my first deal? 

Again, there are hundreds of things to talk about. Do you know how to conduct due diligence on the property? On the Tenants? Are you working with an agent? Have you considered all expenses in your calculations or do you consider cash flow to be anything above PITI? Are Tenants on monthly leases or term? Will you be verifying their information with an estoppel? is the seller sharing application and screening information, payment history, copies of the leases, etc? What do you know about Landlord-Tenant laws? Do you have leases and forms ready to go? What will you do if a Tenant stops paying or communicating? What if they add a dog or five roommates?

I could do this all day long. If you want answers, it's best to ask specific questions. If you don't know enough to even know what questions to ask, then I highly recommend you start reading some books and educating yourself because there are literally 472 ways this can go wrong. It may not kill you, but it can certainly make your life more difficult.

BiggerPockets sells a book on managing property. My personal favorite is "Every Landlord's Legal Guide" by NOLO. Written by attorney investors, it's full of practical advice pertaining to management of investment property, has sample forms that can be edited, and - most importantly - they tell you what your primary state laws are and where you can read them. It's updated every year and is the best $40 you'll spend as a Landlord.