All Forum Posts by: Aaron Gould

Hey guys - just closed on my first duplex yesterday. Water/sewer company wants to charge me for two $37 "base fees" even though I have just the one water meter. Anyone know if there's a way to get around this? Total sq footage of the duplex is 1600 sqfeet (800 a side) - 4 bed, 2 bath total. I understand their argument is that there are two units - but I only have the one water meter. Why should I pay 2 base account fees?? Anyone had similar problems??

Hey Tom - nice buy! Definitely think you're in the ballpark at 900. Might be a touch steep, but if the property has a couple nice features you can probably get that.

For sure Bob - each side is 2 bed 1 bath 820 sq foot, located in east Bremerton. Rent is 950 per unit, purchase price at 225,000. Over payed a bit on purchase price, but seller payed 5000 in closing costs, and got a contractor to fix some issues with the property. It will cash flow for us - maybe not home run numbers - but it's also a house hack for us and gets us out of flushing our own money down the drain in an apartment. Hope that helps!

Hey man, my wife and I are in the process of closing on our first duplex here in Kitsap. She has lived here her whole life and Ive been in the Silverdale area since 4th grade. We also recognize the growing potential for rentals right now, with increasing infrastructure in west bremerton, the development of the Trails complex in Silverdale and the expansion of the bucklin hill bridge. Not to mention Harrison Hospital is expanding their facilities and bed capacity by 45% over the next four years. We are new to real estate, but feel very confident about the areas growth over the next 5-10 years. If you want to chat hit me up sometime. Good luck!

Thanks for all the good leads, guys!

I agree with Nicole that it just depends on your strategy. If cash flow is more important to you, you'll obviously have more of it with a 20% down, traditional mortgage. On the other hand, it will tie up a good chunk of capital in the property. It really just depends on what your plan is. The one thing I will say confidently is to make sure the property cashflows for you no matter what. In other words, don't use a massive down payment to justify/make the numbers work. It should be a decision about how MUCH cash flow do you want and your overall plan, so run the numbers at 3.5% FHA and make sure it's a solid investment either way. Too often people think a deal is a good one, without realizing the only reason a property is cash flowing is because of a large down payment. Good luck running the numbers and choosing the right path for your portfolio!

Obviously there are a number of services/companies that offer credit and background checks. Is there one in particular that stands out?? Any consensus here on BP for who to use ? - Thanks for the input -

Hey Kristin - I also think 1500 in rental income doesnt give you enough room with your PITI at 1150. Even if you managed the property yourself and payed yourself a property management fee, the numbers are tight. Vacancy rate is at about 3% in Bremerton right now, meaning you would want to stash $45 a month for it, approximately 100 for maintenance and repairs, and another 75 for capex. Conservatively, that puts your operating expenses at around 1360 (assuming tenants pay for all utilities). The biggest problem becomes what happens when you do have to add property management into the equation, youre not even breaking even. If you two got stationed somewhere else, it would be a difficult situation to get out of. I think your best bet is to shop re-fi rates for a cash out like Burke suggested. Take advantage of you two buying at the perfect time and use the money to find a property that WILL cash flow the way you want it to! Good luck!

My wife and I close on our first property in less than three weeks - a duplex in need of a little love. The BiggerPockets community, and the concept of house-hacking, along with the broader notion of financial freedom seems to have just fallen into our lap overnight. You see, we didn't put an offer down with the idea of someday owning multiple properties, or managing a variety of tenants. We simply knew it was time to take control of our finances and break out of apartment living. In our community we have seen a substantial increase in population - supply and demand dictate that our rent just keep going up (and up...and up..) When we moved into our apartment 2 years ago, our rent was 840 a month. Then 930. It will be 1025 in August if we were not buying our first house. We saw that the time to pull the trigger is now. Our problem? The recent resurgence in property values force single family homes to stretch our budget higher than we are comfortable with. My solution? The duplex. We managed to get our soon to be property for under market value and below list price, and it was only then that it REALLY occurred to me the potential this strategy could hold. I immediately got online and was hit in the face with hundreds of stories just like ours. We are not some special case, seeing an opportunity no one else has - and while some might have been let down by that notion, it only made me more excited about all the concepts I could tap into. I bought Brandon Turner's audio book "The Book on Rental Property Investing" that day, and plowed through it every chance I got. Two weeks and multiple books and blogs later, and I'm beginning to build a plan for my future. One I never thought (but now am CERTAIN) i can achieve. I can't express enough how excited I am to be a part of this community - to learn from everyone's successes and mistakes, and to contribute my own experiences as well. 

Please feel free to contact me for any reason - i'm a big believer in open communication and constructive conversation. 

Any left-field tips for a beginner you're dying to share? lol :]