All Forum Posts by: Satha Palani

@Dan Schwartz

ending the war in Ukraine and returning balance to the global energy supply would be a a start. Higher energy cost is a huge factor in inflation.

@Nikhil Agarwal

Agree with this analysis. The trick is to make principle payments. Pre ‘08 most ARM were structured such that principal payments were optional. Most borrowers opted to not make them ( interest only). When the market crashed and the property values went down, borrowers were hit by a a triple whammy. High rates, no equity and no exit ( underwater on the mortgage).

As an investor I would do 10/1 or even 5/1 today to keep interest payments low. Pay down the same principle as a 30 year loan and refinance at the end of the teaser period.

The risk of rates being higher in 10 years is mostly offset by the upfront cash flow the lower rates will generate.

@Stefanie R.

Look at Harrison, Newark, East Newark and Kearney. Great proximity to the city with a range of transport options.

I particularly like Harrison. Thousands of new apartments being build centered around the PATH station that is attracting young, diverse renters looking for a better deal vs JC or Hoboken. Multi family below 450 might be tough but you might be able to find a single family fixer upper in the mid 3’s. Definitely worth checking out.

Newark is seeing explosive growth downtown around Penn station / NJ PAC but I don’t think there is much there for sale.

RVA landlords,

The incoming supply line in my rental unit has sprung a small leak. It's all exposed pipe in the basement so access is not an issue. Looking for a plumber recommendation. Anyone know a tradesman who is reliable and reasonable. post here or DM.

Your help is much appreciated.

Thanks,

satha 

Lots of factors to consider:

1. How close do you need to be to public transit to get in and out of NYC? 

2. How much of a commute are you willing to tolerate?

3. do you plan to own a car and therefore need parking?

4. What is your medium term plan? Are you going to live in the house for a few year before moving on ? is this a one and done deal? 

Everyone has their own opinion about how safe a neighborhood is. For what it's worth you can look up crime stat data. I would focus on determining level of violent crime; murder, rape, aggravated assault, carjacking, Auto theft and the like. High rates of these types of crimes are red flags for systemic problems (rough neighborhood).

4 years ago my wife and I bought a Multi family in the ironbound section of Newark. Our house is a 10 min walk to Newark Penn Station. I work in midtown. My door to door commute is 50 min (including the 10 min walk to the station). The neighborhood is safe (violent crime is very very rare). My wife works uptown and commutes into the city more than I do. She returns late (9/10 pm) fairly often and feels safe being out at that hour (walking back from the station to our house).

More recently I have had my packages stolen a few times and a couple of teenagers' attempted to snatch my wife's cell phone while she was texting while walking (Phone fell  and the perps ran off). Both happened after Covid started. Neither incidence made us feel un-safe. Covid restrictions have resulted in a small uptick in crime. Nothing alarming.

best of luck in finding the right spot for you and your family    

Check with the city if this is possible before you spend money on plumbing. I am Newark NJ, one town over and you cannot  do that here. Each unit has to be separately titled to have its own water meter.

The units you are revering to are likely condo conversions.

There is a legal definition of what a basement is based on the ratio of above grade height to total height. Egress is not the only consideration. As a matter of general principal to city does not allow kitchens and full bathrooms below grade. 

In all honesty, there are 2 ways you can go about this. 

1> off the books conversion of the basement into an apartment. This is what the vast majority of folks end up doing. I bought in the ironbound and almost every multi family units i looked at before buying had an off the books conversion in the basement. Some better than others. I  believe the fashionable term for these apartments is "bonus unit". If going this route please, please do your best to provide adequate ventilation, lighting and HVAC. Some of the units I saw where not fit for occupation IMHO.

2> Legal conversion. This will require permits and almost certainly an application for a variance. The 2 biggest ones will be higher density vs. zoning. Assuming your current zoning is R-3 you are going up a unit. The other big one is parking. Very few older multifamily homes in Newark have off street parking. The city ordinance requires 1 spot per unit. A friend converted a basement in the northside a few years back and the city put him through the ringer for parking. He had to get a study done to show that street parking was adequate to support an additional unit on the street.

Hope this helps. Good luck.
 

The tenants who live in the unit next to mine complained of an odor that smells like stale cigarette smoke in their apartment. I checked it out and was able to smell it. At first I thought it was from the unit downstairs which is directly below. Checked out the downstairs unit and no one there had smoked indoors nor can I smell the odor .

I renovated the house shortly after I bought in 2017. New plumbing , roof , electrical etc. Tenants living there are the first to live in the Apartment post remodel. Couple with no kids. Both health nuts so I know it is not them smoking.

At first I though it might be mold but I don’t see water marks anywhere . The unit where the smell is shares an attic space with my own unit and I have not smelt anything so I am fairly sure it’s not in the attic either.

Tenants tell me the smell intensifies some days . Does anyone have any Ideas what it could be?

Many thanks,

Saths

@Troy Ritter

Try posting directly to universities and collages close to you; visiting scholars and temp faculty are great short term tenants. Also reach out to hospitals nearby. Many nurses travel to take up temporary positions.

I had a short term rental for awhile. My first tenant was a traveling nurse that found my add on Craigslist. Got a bunch of nurses after that just from here referral.

@Maimouna Sow

Are your downspouts trailed away from the house? Do you have a blocked gutter thats over flowing?

You need to figure out what the root cause is; where is the water coming from?