All Forum Posts by: Alan Diamond

I've been shopping in Rochester for duplexes for a little while, just closing on one now.  I would suggest finding a reliable realtor in the area to help guide the selection. The city can provide some nice opportunities but the good neighborhoods can be small and well defined.   2 blocks can mean the difference between a family area and a very undesirable area, that will have much lower rents and higher crime.  The Zillow estimates and alike are worthless in those areas and the taxes are normally incorrect because they don't pull all the proper data.  There are good opportunities, but they are very geographically sensitive. I work with Elizabeth McKane, with RE-MAX, she knows the city well and is very helpful and trustworthy.

We are purchasing our first duplex and I received quotes from a couple sources for insurance.  The house is approx 2100 sq ft, and purchase price is $56k.  The comps in the neighborhood are similar.

This is what I received for 40% replacement:

Dwelling (Coverage A)  103,200 $883.00

Dwelling Extension 28,000 $28.00

Personal Property (Coverage B) 5,160

Business Liability (Coverage L) each occurrence  $300,000

Business Liability (Coverage L) annual aggregate   $600,000

Premises Medical Payments (Coverage M) each person   $1,000

Deductibles

Policy deductible 1,000

Total Annual Premium 911.00

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The 100% coverage was set at $258k, with premium of $2143.  I know to bump up the deductible to $2500, but no 2100 sqft house in this city ever cost $258k (without land).  So, it seems that the best path is to set the placement at 50% of full, with a $2500 deductible.  I don't under stand how they calculate the $258k, that is VERY high for this area.  But, I'm sure they don mind me paying higher premiums...

Thoughts?

The seller has removed the property from the market.  I have in my possession a release form for which I will receive my EM in return. At this point, I'll chalk up the $305 to education and move on.  There are other properties out there that fit our criteria, but we did like this one...  This realtor is active in an area of interest, so I'll know ahead of time and so will anyone else I meet. I'm actually a bit more concerned about our realtor, she put in a lot of time and effort with this and she also walks away with nothing to show.  Looking at 2 other properties this afternoon!

All,

Any thoughts would be appreciated on the following.

Situation is I am buying a duplex from an out of state seller,  He is working though a local realtor who is also the PM.  We negotiated a price, a little below his asking and agreed. I put down $1000 in EM.  I had the inspection completed ($305), and there were a couple of items found.  We discussed and came to an agreement on how we would split the effort/cost.  Now his realtor says the seller doesn't feel like selling anymore.  He isn't happy with what he agreed to...  My suspicion is the realtor/PM talked him out of the deal, so he could keep the property under his PM.  We offered to decrease the cost of repairs to the seller, but the agent says he won't go for it, but he hasn't presented it to the seller.

Do I have any recourse?  We are out the inspection cost and quite a few hours of effort. I assume they have to return EM... My realtor has done a great job, and of course she is stuck also...

Unhappy in Rochester....

Thank you all for contributing to this thread, I appreciate it.  I have tapped another source of income and wont go to Starbucks for a month!

Thank you.

All,

I have found the first property Id like to purchase.  Relatively low dollar, but good shape, good track record of renting.  I was thinking of just a conventional mortgage for financing as I don't have a lot of cash for a downpayment.  I have a good income and credit rating, just not much cash right now.  I'd like to do 5 or 10% down.  Is this realistic?

Thanks,
Alan

We are looking at various types of purchases SFH, Duplex, TriPlex... We don't have a lot of equity/cash to get into larger numbers of units. It seems that duplexes will almost always bring more monthly income than SFHs. Thoughts?

 My name is Alan Diamond in Rochester NY, I work in the high tech industry.  My wife and I are looking for potential properties to rehab/flip and also for longer term rentals.  We were intro'd to Bigger Pockets via the podcasts I listen to for background information. Rochester has reasonably priced property and a stable population, seems like a great place to begin.