All Forum Posts by: Alex Uman

I'll DM you the name and number of an agent I know. Comes highly recommended from an investor standpoint.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence wholesale investment in Lansdowne.

Purchase price: $82,500
Cash invested: $65,000
Sale price: $200,000

NOTE- this is an ongoing rehab in Lansdowne, PA. My investor was itching for his first bigger flip coming from more of a rental background. This property fit his criteria well in an appreciating area well outside of his specific target area. The home needed a solid rehab to add extra living space in the attic room and in the sizable basement to add significant value. After photos coming soon!

How did you add value to the deal?

Helped to facilitate in analysis, access, disposition and contractor referral for this deal

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

If you're looking for similar deals in Southeastern PA, don't hesitate to reach out!

I would recommend calling the L&I office as @Kevin M. mentioned. Atlas could be outdated but I'd be wary of a potentially fraudulent Certification Statement...

@Robert Gonzalez I would take a look at multis in Drexel Hill, Lansdowne Collingdale and as well as SFRs in Upper Darby. Plenty of great areas to cashflow all over Delco!

@Frank Robinson definitely a great area to own rentals. The cost of entry may be a bit higher than when @David Vitarelli bought there but I would still recommend that area for investors.

For a three story of that size as a full gut, adding HVAC, finishing the basement and adding a roof deck will cost you well over $100k or even more if you need to dig and underpin the basement. Assuming that you want to live here as well, definitely budget more money for nicer finishes as well. Also expect a lot of bumps in the road in digging out the basement and adding the roof deck as you'll need to get approval from the city to get it done. Good luck! This sounds like an excellent project.

I think experience is rather necessary to start real estate investing. Personally, I am currently working as an agent myself before putting a single dime onto the street investment wise. I don't want to dive into something head first and risk my money without first learning as much as I can about it. My job now allows me to learn my market, learn investing strategy, get experience analyzing deals on a daily basis and most importantly build capital before I ever attempt to put any of it into a property.

Good work @Ben Mell! Sounds like you've learned a lot from your first live-in BRRRR. All the best in your future investing!

New construction may appreciate quicker in the more immediate future, sure. That being said I think your strategy to house hack a SFH will be more difficult than the multi approach. Would you intend to rent out a room and live with the tenants? You'd be receiving less in rent than in a multi in other areas of the city.

I'd say you're better off taking the value add route. There are still plenty of opportunities in the surrounding area to find value add properties as opposed to breaking the bank and taking longer to recoup your initial investment in a new construction home. While the tax abatement is a great incentive, property taxes are already quite low in Philly helping to reduce your holding costs.