All Forum Posts by: Amelia McGee

We're here and ready to answer! :)

Jessie, your support means the world to us! 💕

Investment Info:

Large multi-family (5+ units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $495,000
Cash invested: $120,000

11 Unit Multifamily close to downtown Des Moines. 6 of the 11 units are furnished midterm rentals.

Hello all of my fellow female investors!

I will be hosting a virtual meetup for newbie investors on February 2nd at 7:30 PM CST! To register please just shoot me a DM with your email address. It's going to be super informal but will be a great chance to meet other newbies and share ideas, tips, tricks and just make connections! I plan on talking about my experience going from 0 to 8 doors in 2020 :)

Please let me know if you have any questions! Looking forward to meeting some new faces! 

-Amelia

Great points! I like the idea of phasing into it. I think because I'm able to still turn a profit without raising rent, it's best to slowly raise rents but implement utility RUBS immediately. That way I'm not stuck with an empty building in the middle of winter in Iowa.

Hello all -

I will be closing on a quadplex in December and am curious what you would personally do in my situation. I've already done my research so I know what all of my options are but want to weigh in on what other landlords would do in my shoes. All tenants are on month to month leases so I really have a lot of freedom here.

Situation: 

Three of the four units in the property that I'm purchasing are under market value for rent.

- 1 bedroom currently at $390 ---> market rent $440 (tenant longevity 6 years - immaculately kept apt)

- 2 bedroom currently at $495 ---> market rent $550 (tenant longevity 5 years - immaculately kept apt)

- 3 bedroom currently at $650 ---> market rent $750-800 (unique tenant situation; no lease, 3 dogs, 4 kids, no deposit, pays rent in cash)

- 1 bedroom currently at $465 ---> at market rent (tenant longevity 1 year - immaculately kept apt)

Additionally, the current owner is paying for water and gas for the entire building (each unit has its own electric meter). After looking at their utility statements from last year - they're averaging about $400/mo in utilities (obviously that fluctuates significantly depending on winter/summer).

I realize that I'm going to have to 're-train' these tenants no matter which route I go but what would you do?

-Raise rent and start charging RUBS for utilities?

-Leave rent as is and start charging RUBS for utilities? 

-Leave rent and utilities as is and raise at a later date?

-Other?

I don't think I would have any problem filling the units if people decide to leave as these are some of the nicest apartments I've seen in town. But I don't want to be left with an empty building right after I take possession, though, because even if I leave everything as is (utilities, rent, etc) I can still cash flow about $650/mo. BUT if I raise rents to what I've suggested above and start billing for utilites I can make an extra $600ish a month. That's a heck of a lot more cash flow!

So, if you've made it this far, thanks for reading and I look forward to hearing what others would do here :)

-Amelia

@Emali Taylor I've had good luck with Apartments.com. It does everything I need without a bunch of bells and whistles that I don't need - plus it's free. I also feel like it's a reputable company that I can trust.

@Joseph Stammeyer I'll keep that in mind. I wouldn't feel too sad for this owner. He has let it sit vacant for 20+ years and is also known as a 'slumlord' - a name that he truly lives up to. I know of 2 other landlords/investors in this town who have given him cash offers that he has refused. He has been warned by the city for many, many years that he needs to do something with the property (along with a few other properties he owns). They are fed up with him and are holding him in contempt of court for not making the repairs that he was ordered to - hence why I believe we will end up purchasing this at auction as no one is willing to pay the price that he is asking.

@Joseph Stammeyer The seller rejected our offer HOWEVER the city is forcing the owner to sell or they will take possession so all hope is not lost. I've talked to a few other investors in town and they all said our offer was very generous considering the condition of the property. 

Like I said earlier, the owner is pretty delusional about how much the property is worth. I have a feeling the city will end up taking possession of the property and we will have to buy it at auction. He already had another apartment building taken away from him a few months ago by a city about 20 minutes away from this one.

@Balaji A. @Kyle Wells Midwest Heritage Bank. They are a local lender that I also bank through so they have access to all of my records. I don’t know if they fund out of state deals - they only have locations in Iowa.