All Forum Posts by: AK Fowler

Definitely a tough situation. more so that she was upfront with her lying. She was concerned with discrimination but how are you supposed feel about her dishonesty? So what's the next lie that she will tell and what other systematic play will she invoke when its time to pay rent or property repairs that should be the tenant but some how you get stuck with it? 

I think a heart to heart with some cookies and milk (excuse the pun) is warranted. No one wants a bad tenant-owner relationship, so I would try to get on the same page, with intent that honesty will be displayed moving forward. 

There's many ways you can finance the repair cost. 

-HELOC, if you own your home and have equity built up, tap into that.

-Borrow from 401k, pretty easy to set up and funding is about 7-10 business days. repay is directly from paycheck 

-If you own an asset of some sort that has value, you can look at getting a loan against it. take a look at your state laws

-Credit Card balance increase, can get expensive.

-Friends and family, borrow and pay back at 10% interest or you could give them equity stake in the property. 

There are a slew of ways but get creative and have fun with it. That's what makes real estate so much fun. 

I recommend a 1 year lease with requested/market rent. If they're able to afford the rent plus some then they should be able to pay the higher rent. I'd also look at an autorenewal with a 90 day notice prior to renewal of lease for them to not renew, otherwise they the lease will auto renew for 12 months. 

you can set up automated listing using filters on websites like Zillow, Realtor, Redfin and it's free. You can also hook up with a realtor, tell them what you're looking for and they will set up an automated listing. These are emailed to you when a new property hits the MLS, property reduces price, or a property that was pending doesn't close and is back on the market. You can also attend your local REI Group (Real Estate Investment Group) and network with others and you can get on wholesalers list and they will send you properties.

Just a recommendation...but with 3 months remaining on the lease. I would start the eviction process but also send a certified letter stating your intent to not renew the lease with the tenant. You might get your money but I'd prepare to not get anything and try and weather the 3 months. I would also document everything including all damages and expenses to fix the place. Only communicate in writing, do not speak to the tenant verbally since that won't hold up in court (if you end up in that direction). 

We recommend you look at rental rates in the area and then see what's in other rental properties, i.e. granite countertops, hardwood floor, tile showers etc. We believe that no matter the property, kitchen, bathrooms and bedroom (size) sells the renter or buyer from the inside but curb appeal is very important from the outside. So to answer your question (in our opinion), focus on curb appeal first, so renters/buyers are interested and then focus on kitchen and bathrooms. We like to put in 1 attraction in the house, something simple like an accent wall or an upgraded fixture typically will draw in a renter/buyer. This is just our opinion, hope this helps you on your journey.

We haven't found much to rent because we haven't looked. We were looking to buy but we are about to put our flip on the market soon but unfortunately, we won't have the funds from that flip to purchase our next property. Which was supposed to be in Pittsburgh. Now we are going to need to look for rentals so that are son isn't stuck with no where to live while at school. We are 4 hrs away soooooo....commuting is not an option (LOL). 

Hopefully we can find something quickly.

Thanks Everyone for chiming in on the thread. 

I don't believe House Flipping is dead. There's just more resources and patience that's needed to find a good deal. I hear about many are getting outbid which means to me (in my opinion) it probably wasn't a good deal. Especially now that the winning bid paid close to full price evaporating any possible profits. 

I think you have to use all your resources in order to find a deal. I would say that if flipping is your main business strategy and livelihood, then it can be difficult since your trying to live off that stream. If it's just one of many real estate strategies then like any market, it goes up, it goes down and sideways. It will all work it's self out. Just keep going, don't quit. 

Hey Megan, This helps a lot. We will not be living with him. This would be his intro to real estate. Instead of paying for room and board, we can help him by investing and he can be the landlord. Creating income would also be good for him too. South side flats look promising and it’s close to Pitt. Rental market looks good in that area. So we will focus there. Thank you,

Hi BiggerPockets Family,

We need some help with finding a good area to invest in the Pittsburgh area. We prefer to be near University of Pitt. We have a son that will be attending there and we believe it would be smarter to purchase an SFH that we can House Hack or Multi-Family (which could house hack too). Our issue, is understanding the area's such as Squirrel Hill North, South Side Flats, Shadyside, North Oakland, Greenfield, etc.

We are open to driving to campus but it can't be more than 20 mins. Purchase price is around $150k. This would be in our business name (Bluebird Homes). We are coming from the Philly area which is why we need some help. We are also finishing up a major flip which will list in July, so the idea is that it would be sold in August and we can then purchase a property in Pitt. 

If anyone knows the Pitt area, please reach out. Any help is greatly appreciated. 

Thank You, 

Amy and Kevin