All Forum Posts by: Alex Deacon

@Joy Helton would like to help. Pittsburgh is a great market and I can answer any specific questions about areas and neighborhoods.

@Bryan Strain u will not pay any tax since its your primary residence. Take that gain and apply it to another primary residence. try buying a 2 to 4 family that you can live in one and rent out the other units. I have some young investors who have taken my advice and have done this every 2 years and if you are smart perhaps you buy only in your name and the next one in your girlfriends name. There are ways around the 2 year thing but you need to be careful and make sure its done correctly.

@Hector Valadez the Pittsburgh market is very strong and the price point is low in comparison to other parts of the country. Its still going to be challenging but if it was easy then everyone would do it.

@Alex Altamirano I would agree with @Nicholas L. Find an area within driving and or quick flights. You will need to build a good team, easier said then done and raise your local real estate IQ. Not easy to do. I have worked with hundreds of out of state investors here in the Pittsburgh market. Its very challenging but can also be very rewarding with the right business model. I have seen more failures then success and thats because the investor doesn't have the skills I mentioned above and has chosen the wrong team or doesn't take advice well. 

@william 

@William Hagedorn If your parents could cover the mortgage or even something close then I would hold onto the property and use the HELOC to buy more properties. If you feel the property value is going to continue o rise and the house is not going to cost a lot to maintain over the next 10 years it may be best to keep it. The nice thing about selling now would be not paying any tax on the gain since its your primary residence. You have to weigh the pros and cons. Also putting a value on having your parents nearby is difficult.

@Scott Royer I live and invest in the city Of Pittsburgh which is also a very old community. If I eliminated anything older from my portfolio I would have a very small portfolio.

As long as the property has been well maintained and you perform the proper inspections prior to closing there should not be any surprises when buying an older home.

Your partners need to have the same vision so that will be something you both need to discuss. If you dont want older homes then research communities that are not as old as Pittsburgh (as an example) 

@John J Murray we purchased hundred of properties at auction here in the Pittsburgh market. I assume its the same in most states. We have purchased quite a few before the auction. You can stop the sale if you know how to do it properly. You need to get the seller on board and have an attorney help you through the first one. The biggest challenges are 1. Is there enough meat on the bone. The sellers may owe more than its worth. 2. Finding the seller and explaining the process to them and how you can stop the sale and help them.

Seek out a good local experienced real estate attorney who knows the sheriffs sale process.

@Bradley​ Lobo we do a lot of remodeling since we manage 750 homes and do a lot of flips. 36k is absolutely insane. Unless I am missing something from your details the most it should be is 20k and the least around 8k. For sure get more estimates.

@Mark Swan I own and operate a property management company in the Pittsburgh market. I know finding a good company here is not easy and for a short term rental its even harder. make sure you ask a lot of questions and interview more than one company. For STR you also may consider finding an individual to hire and have them handle the day to day with you managing them directly.

@Gerardo Waisbaum I do a lot of business here in the Pittsburgh market. I find its best to have relationships with local lenders. Build relationships with them and talk to other investors and get recommendations from them for investor friendly lenders. It is a challenge and I do see it getting worse.