All Forum Posts by: Adam Miyata

Hey again Daniel,

I'm still working in pensions, but on the administration side.

I agree with your revised cash-flow calculation, this looks like a great deal from that standpoint!

The other issue I didn't mention though is buying at a discount. Since you're a new investor, it's especially important to have a quick exit strategy in case you find that being a landlord isn't for you. Duplexes are typically harder to sell (quickly) than a SFH, but if you buy at a discount you can get out quickly by selling at a low price (hopefully without losing money).

I also agree with what Wade said above, get the revenue/expense history.

Did you go see the place yet?

Hi Daniel,

Welcome to biggerpockets! Looks like we have a little bit in common, I spent several years as an actuary. Are you in pension consulting by chance?

Anyway, about the deal… What is the seller including in the $300 "expense" charge?

I personally wouldn't be comfortable assuming few vacancies, that's a huge expense and a painful loss if you're wrong. That being said, I'm not entirely familiar with Section 8 vacancies.

A nice conservative assumption is that 50% of the gross rent will go toward expenses (property management, vacancies, evictions, legal fees, etc).

Using that assumption, here's my cash-flow calculation:

Gross rent: $1,375

Expenses (50%): -$687.50

Mortgage: -$775

Cash flow: -$87.50 per month

Of course this number could certainly be improved by purchasing at a lower price.

Does the seller have any other properties? Maybe he has another that would provide better (positive) cash flow.

@Mark Ferguson Thanks! I agree, I'm hoping to find one to be part of my team eventually.

@Marco Santarelli Thanks! I had read the Ultimate Beginners Guide but hadn't read your 10 Rules; good sound advice there!

@Joe Fairless I'm a buy and hold investor, hoping to manage the properties myself as well. Thanks for the good luck!

@Cuong Le Good advice! It's very easy to get distracted in this situation. Thanks for the welcome!

@Mike Hurney Thanks Mike! I'll have to do some more research on that club.

@Samantha M./Joe Gore Thanks, you saved me from some extra work!

@Jon Klaus Sad to hear Mike Rossi is inactive, I suspected that might be the case though since his blog went silent a while back as well. I read your profile; I'm curious, are you interested in mentoring at all? Are you only selling mobile homes at the moment? Thanks for the welcome!

@Brandon Turner Thanks for stopping by! I did set up my keyword alerts this weekend, but need to rethink them a bit. "rental" as a key word averaged me about 50 emails every few hours!

@Paul Timmins Almost missed you, sorry! The podcasts are awesome, listened to three while driving to my girlfriend's parents house this weekend. Thanks for the links as well! I could definitely use some education in estimating repair costs.

Sorry to all for not replying sooner…Been a crazy week with the holiday and all. Thanks again for all the replies, and happy investing!

Hi Jason,

Just wanted to add two things:

1. Don't give up! You've done the hard part (identified an obstacle), now all you have to do is figure out an action plan and take steps to get past the obstacle.

2. As others have said, talk to small banks. The piece I'd like to add here is that you need to talk to a decision-maker at the bank… Ask around to see who will listen to you. If the bank is small enough, you may even be able to talk to the president.

Good luck!

Welcome John! I used to live out in Boston and didn't see a ton of deals. Sounds like you have the inside track though, I'll be interested to see how things go for you. Good luck!

@Ali Boone Thanks for the welcome and the advice! You make a great point- being the only one who knows about a deal is hugely beneficial… Hopefully driving the neighborhoods looking for houses in rough shape will help. I suppose another good strategy for finding those deals is to put a "We buy houses" ad in the paper/craigslist as well.

@Joe Gore That's an awesome idea, hadn't thought of that. Thanks!

Hope everyone is having a merry christmas (or other happy holiday)!!

Hi all,

Just popping in to introduce myself! I'm interested in becoming a landlord long term by utilizing a buy & hold strategy with SFHs (initially).

I own one rental property already (out near Boston), but I don't really consider that a landlord deal as I initially bought the house to live in. I am hoping to pull a few actual deals in 2014 though!

If the price is right, I should be able to use conventional financing, but my first challenge is to find deals. Currently I'm doing so using RedFin, checking the newspaper, and driving neighborhoods in my local area. Any tips/advice on improving my strategy is much appreciated!

I'm mainly following the advice of Michael Rossi (MikeOH from BP, not sure if he still hangs around or not); I read his book "1 Minute to Rental Property Riches" which is great and has awesome tips for REI landlords, but it's a little outdated unfortunately. I think if I can combine his advice with current methodology, I'll be on the path to success!

Hope you all have a great Christmas Eve!

-Adam

The midwest tends to be pretty REI friendly it seems, I've heard especially good things about Ohio. Not sure about potential in Montana, but if you like small towns you really can't go wrong in that state.

It was great meeting everyone last night! When/where will the next one be?

Awesome! Don't suppose you'd be willing to share the name of the bank you used? Did you have an established relationship with the bank or did you have a substantial down payment?