All Forum Posts by: Alys Brown

Thank you! I was going to offer 2 years, just because I feel so crappy for what happened. Still haven't heard from Zillow from my frantic calls. 

I have a rental posting on Zillow. I just sent a completed rental application including SSN to 3 new applicants. I thought it was a blank application.

1) Can I delete the email or attachment before they read it? If I cancel the entire listing, will it block people from reading emails?

2) What should I do to protect the applicant whose information was shared? I will definitely call her as well as pay for a service, if that's advised.

I am sick about this. Thanks for any quick advice.

Thank you Dave and Daniel! Learned something I didn't know from both posts. Most importantly, I thought I had to put the entire amount in the 1031, not the profit above $250K. Big difference that I didn't know! I also will learn more about net value for FAFSA. Thanks much to you both!

I'm going to get my 9th grader reading and thinking about cash flow to help pay for grad school since it assuredly will not be paid for. I've read a few other FAFSA suggestions (don't sell next year, because that will show up; I'm going to buy a much smaller house where we live now, so spend proceeds to build a garage/apartment that I can rent out for our primary residence) that I'll post later to get feedback. I'm struggling between selling my former residence now vs. rent it out since I know the value will go up. 

Experienced renovator but newbie investor + single mom with 2 kids, 9th and 4th grades. I own real estate I've renovated and all are paid off in full: 

#1) primary home until mid-last year (approx $1M), market in going up and in fast-growing top 20 city and close to center city. My plan was to rent it (approx $4200/month) for 2-3 year, use the money to make updates and capture further growth, then sell and put into 1031 since I'm single and will have closer to $400K appreciation. We moved to a better school district; I'm renting now until I can find a house to renovate. It will be much cheaper than this house. I've learned my lesson about larger and expensive houses - more costly to maintain and harder to rent out. 

#2) Former home in another state, worth approx $275K, currently rented for $1500/month. In a growing beach resort. No chance of flooding. I can rent yearly but not AirB&B. I had a lot of interest when I rented it out last summer and have a great tenant. I rented it out several years ago - I can keep it rented, although quality can be an issue at the beach.

#3) Land in same place as #2. Was going to build when I moved. Approx value is $300K. It's in a desirable neighborhood in a growing beach resort....but not so close to water that it will be flooded. Land is worth more than building and then selling.

Also investing in a new business idea I have. I own another business that has seen a steady decline so time for something new.

Any suggestions are welcome re:  

1) Maximizing investment potential. I find it hard to sell once I buy! And I like to own things outright - easier to sleep at night, since I'm the only income producer, but I know not always the best investment idea. Also, almost all my net worth is in real estate. 

2) My older kid wants to be an orthodontist and has many years of schooling ahead, so if I can make any changes now knowing FAFSA is coming in 1-2 years, this is the time. 

Thanks for reading this long post and especially any recos!