Honolulu Property, Live In Reno

[Rob King]

Investment Info:

Condo buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $380,000
Cash invested: $19,000

This is a live-in renovation of a 3/1 condo. This was property was an estate sale which sat on the MLS because of a disorganized seller and a lazy agent.
The condo was originally listed for $445,000
The unit sat and sat while they systematically dropped their price every 2 weeks and when I was in the position to buy I offered $380,000 with a 3 day decision period. The seller's agent was beside herself and claimed that the offer was offensively low.... and then they took it.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I knew the building well and had desired a 3 bedroom floor plan for the increased square footage and large private outdoor area which is rare in Honolulu. This property is also located in the residential area the services Waikiki and is within walking distance to 2 major hospitals, the state's major public university, and is serviced by the best public high school in the state. My other properties are in this area and I know that when I rent in the future I will have low vacancy.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

This property was withering on the MLS, I worked with a different Relator, Ava Pyszczymuka (pronounced "Pez-muka"), who is also a real estate investor and she aggressively negotiated the deal. From the start I told Ava that if the deal went through great but I would rather push too hard and loose the deal then buckle and buy against my strategy, Ava totally understood and crushed the negotiation by not only reading the seller but also the seller's agent who was retired-in-place.

How did you finance this deal?

This was the first property I purchased that qualified for the GI-Bill and I was thrilled.

How did you add value to the deal?

Complete renovation with only the upper cabinets remaining from the previous owner. The unit was out of date and in bad condition but because it was a condo I knew most of the work would be cosmetic and within my wheelhouse. When I did hire contractors I made sure to stress it is a future rental to keep the material cost in check and then rewarded excellent work with references to other investors in my area.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Lesson learned from this property:
Be aggressive with both price and timeline - this is a seller who had set themselves up for failure and while the offer may have hurt their feelings at first I was the only show in town and had the leverage. By keeping the timeline concise I keep the momentum and did not loose the deal by allowing the seller to reorganize, fire their agent, and relist the property.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Ava Pyszczymuka (pronounced "Pez-muka"), she was such a difference maker in this process and I have recommended her to numerous friends and coworkers since. She is also an investor and understood my mindset, how I wanted to approach the situation, and what a successful outcome looked like for me. After gathering this information she went to work building a strong approach to gain the seller's approval to our terms. I can't speak highly enough of Ava, an absolute rock-star through and through.