All Forum Posts by: Aaron Aho

I'm looking to sell two lots of land located in Collegedale, TN.  One lot is 1 acre and the other is 1.47 acres.  See the Hamilton County Assessor cards here:  Lot 1 & Lot 2. $35K each or $65k if sold together.  

These are located in an established neighborhood and are ideal to build a SFH for either primary occupancy or rental. The rental market is strong in the area due to high economic growth.

They were cleared in 2006 with plans to build investment properties on the lots.  Septic perk tests were done and passed.  However, the plans were never built and it's time the lots were moved onto someone who will make use of them. 

If interested please contact me and we can discuss further details.  

@Dave Olverson Thanks for the recommendation.  @Eric Weireter also recommended @Timothy McKinney.  Thanks for the support. 

Hi BiggerPockets,

I'm in Durham, NC. I'm attempting to get a FHA 203K loan and need to identify an approved/willing to get approved contractor to do the work. Any recommendations from the community or any contractors on here that would be willing to work with me?

Jonathan, I would be very interested, also, in any insights you have about the area. I just moved here and am looking to get active in the Durham area. I'm currently researching the local market and looking for any information local experts are willing to share. I'd like to make my first purchase in the next couple months but want fully understand the area first. Thanks, Aaron Aho

@Dave Olverson It does seem like there is a limited number of MFH's in town.  Makes me wonder if it might be worth exploring building new constructions of this type.  Not whole apartment complexes but rather just quadplexes.  I'm really not picky on location as long as the neighborhood is acceptable (I'll be living there with my family) and the numbers work.  I would like to be anywhere east or south of Duke since I'm commuting to Cary for work.  

@Eric Weireter thanks for reaching out.  I just sent you a PM with more information. 

I'm looking for a broker familiar with the Durham market willing to work with me. I'm looking to purchase a house hack for myself and also interested in buy and hold or BRRRR investment properties. I'm ready to move but at the same time not in a rush so I need someone who understands I'm looking for good deals and the right property.

Thanks everyone for the information. However, we are getting off topic.  There is a lot of information out there on whether or not to get you license.  For a number of reasons I've decided I want to get my license despite the effort and potential downside.  

What I'm curious about is whether there are any NC brokers/investors on BP that can assist me in networking with a BIC willing to work with investors looking for MLS access? I understand that most brokers are looking for provisional brokers that will generate commissions but there has to be some out there that are friendly to investors and see the benefit. This is one avenue I'm using to network and potentially find a friendly BIC.

@David Dachtera Thanks for the clarification.  It's helpful. I'll look more into Zillow and see if I can't get a better understanding of how it work.

@David Dachtera can you share with me what other resources you like to use for comps and values?  I'm only familiar with the online aggregators, i.e. zillow and trulia, which I've been told are inaccurate and I should stay away from.  

Maybe I'm naive here but how would disclosing that I'm an agent/broker hurt me?  It's a negative I've come across often but I haven't seen an example of how it could negatively impact me.  

Thanks for the info guys. I know access to the MLS isn't a silver bullet. Most of my research, though, seems to think it's helpful to have access. I'm mostly looking for the ability to conduct my own research and get to know the market better. It might also be an avenue to networking.

I have the GI Bill so that will cover some of the cost.  

@Matt Koerner from the research I've done people say the online search tools are outdated and inaccurate.  Do you not find that to be the case?   How do you find the Durham market to be?