Worked with Martel Family Realty/MartelTurnkey?

Question

Does anyone have experience with this company?

Krissia Sheehey · Answer

Hi all,

I recently purchased a property from @Antoine Martel (MartelTurnkey) so thought I'd leave a review on what my experience was like:

Prior to my purchase, I was waiting to buy real estate through a turnkey provider for quite some time but never felt fully confident with how various providers were operating or with their inventory for me to make the jump.

For instance, I thought some of the purchase price for the properties were way too high above retail, or the rehabs weren’t very nice and didn’t looked rehab at all, or they were renting at well below the 1% rule etc.

I took a look through Antoine's inventory and found the purchase price of their homes were in my sweet spot: $60-100k in markets like Cleveland, Memphis, and Birmingham. That was enough to get me through the door but his company offered a few other things I didn't expect such as an intro to the lender, title company, insurance agent, and property management team. Typically, other turnkey providers have their list of preferred companies but Martel turnkey sends out the email intro for you - which was one less thing off my plate as an investor.

Before I got in contact with Antoine there was a property I wanted to buy on his website but it had been listed as “sold” on the day I was scheduled to speak with him. He told me the contract wasn’t signed and that it was first come first serve essentially. So I was happy he provided me with an opportunity to buy the property without him going to a list of an internal list of preferred buyers which would have counted against me as a first time investor.
I signed the purchase agreement then ordered an inspection report so I could perform extra due diligence as an investor. After forwarding MartelTurnkey the report, they addressed the issues right away within a ~2 week period. The issues on the inspection report were few and mainly related to safety which speaks to the quality of the rehab that was done (e.g. no expensive CapEx items).

From there it was fairly smooth sailing. Closing had to be pushed out a month later since the initial appraised value for the home came out to be lower than the agreed purchase price and MartelTurnkey proceeded to dispute that. Afterwards the bank updated me and stated the appraised value was changed back to the original purchase price. It would have been nice to pay lower for the property but from what I can see from the appraisal, the appraiser took into account properties with similar rent values which brought the appraised value back up the second time around.

In closing, I had a positive experience working with MartelTurnkey. I thought Antoine and Angelica from his team were helpful and I loved how the property already came with a tenant so I didn't have to pay the prop. manager one month's rent fee! I am considering buying my second turnkey from them when I'm ready to do this again early Spring 2020.

I've documented the rest of my experience on my blog and will write a more thorough review of the company when I can.

Feel free to reach out to me with any questions!

Aj Parikh · Answer

@Gina Watkins

I recently closed on a turnkey property with Martel Turnkey and the communication from Antoine's team has been top notch. I have got a response from his team in less than 2 hours on any question I have had. The renovations mentioned on the listing are the exact renovations carried out on the property so its a very transparent process. Antoine is right in mentioning that there is $200-250 cash flow per month on the property. There is a new property management company in place now and I had my onboarding call with them last week and they walked me through every step of how they will be handling repairs, late payments, evictions and maintenance.

Really happy with the whole process. Definitely recommend them.

Jason Carter · Answer

I've worked with Antoine Martel and the crew over at Martel Turnkey. I've lended private money to him and seen his rehabs from start to finish. Overall I'd say he runs a top-notch operation. I've worked with some other turnkey providers, even bought 1 turnkey property years ago and MartelTurnkey is head and shoulders above the rest. That's why I chose to invest with them. They're professional, transparent and very communicative, which is key.

My advice to anyone buying turnkey from anyone is to insist that your closing is contingent upon a paying tenant being in the property. Otherwise it's not turnkey. I've talked to several people who have bought turnkey properties and then watch them sit empty for months because the provider sold them promising a higher than market rent and thus an unrealistic return. Learn from their mistake.

Also if it's a turnkey occupied with a Section 8 tenant be aware that Section 8 often pays higher than market rents. So if that Sec. 8 tenant has to leave for whatever reason there's a chance your next tenant may not be Section 8 and thus your rent could decrease. And there goes your returns. Some providers stick Sec. 8 tenants in there so they can project higher returns.

Antoine Martel · Answer

What an amazing post thank you so much for working with us and you were so easy to work with.

Sorry about the bad appraisal at the beginning. Its not fun for anyone but these appraisers are really hit or miss.

Enjoy the cash flow and we're ready to work with you on the next one

Antoine Martel · Answer

Gina.

Thought I would touch base here. Would love to chat with you and see if I can help you any way.

Worked with Martel Family Realty/MartelTurnkey?

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