All Forum Posts by: Ana Marie B.

Wow @Karen F.... you were spot on! Impressive! 

@Romain Nguyen - You’ll want to purchase umbrella insurance through your auto insurance provider. In my case I use GEICO. Low cost.

Glad you're leaning towards umbrella insurance over LLC for your first rental. Smart move. Good luck!

@Account Closed - I glanced through some of the advice you’re getting in this thread and I would just say take them with a grain of salt.

As usual on BiggerPockets, folks give tips that overgeneralize and pertain only to their specific real estate situation. One example is @Joe Splitrock who mentioned that acquisitions should meet the 1% rule. Sure maybe you can find deals like that in midwestern areas. But good luck finding properties that meet that rule in coastal cities where you tend to find higher priced homes with higher appreciation rates. 

Didn’t have a chance to read all comments, but want to say that curry is no joke! In some cases it can be worse than cigarette smoke. I recall attending open houses in SF Bay Area where the vacated, lovely house reeked of curry and the house would not sell. The poor agent tried everything to remove/mask the odor to no avail. 

Due to this experience, I asked my property mgr. about adding a clause to the lease that passes fed guidelines but keeps my home “safe.” Our property mgr. added a line to the lease about no “nuisance odors” or something to that effect (I can check the actual language if needed). But it’s been fine and the rental is in very tenant friendly SF Bay Area.

Very risky. I would recommend new investors avoid balloons, as it can get you into trouble. 

@Marty Houghton - Just do a google search for Onerent or call them for more details on their service structure. I will say that I have add’l knowledge of this company. I think one detail that hasn’t yet been mentioned is that in order to keep costs down, much of Onerent’s team is located overseas in the Philippines. Think of a call center. 

The Onerent boots-on-the-ground staff are “contractors” who get paid $20-30 per showing or $60 per walkthrough/inspection. Think uber/lyft driver contractor structure.

But the call center staff who handle the important stuff like leasing, arranging repairs, etc. work overseas and likely do not have intimate knowledge of your rental area.

That said, I’m not bashing this model. It could work. I like the lower management fees and the idea of using technology to try to automate business processes. I even thought of using them for my rentals, but decided against it, as I’m not keen on call centers. I just feel that call centers are like Russian roulette — too much is given to chance as to who may be on the other end of the call. I take my business very seriously. 

@Matt A. - Thanks for the tip! I’ll do some research on that company. Yes, what a shame about erentpayment.com...

I just read received the email from Cozy announcing the aquisition. Guess I’ve been out of the loop since this is the first I’m hearing this. 

I’ve really enjoyed Cozy, but am now left wondering how much longer this service will remain “free”....

Oh I see, @Ariel Nixon. I missed the part that you are seeking a commercial loan. I guess I got confused because you are seeking a 2bd/1ba home. Any particular reason why you need or prefer a commercial loan vs. a residential loan? Are you purchasing via an LLC?

@Ariel Nixon - To answer your question -- being offered solely variable rate loans is not common for investment properties.  All of my rentals are on 30-year fixed rate loans. 

I would try contacting other banks/entities to see what fixed rate options they provide.  If they don't offer you fixed rate options, then ask for reasons why and what you can do to obtain said terms.  Perhaps it's due to the relatively small cost ($38k) or maybe it has to do with your credit, income, etc.?  Anyhow, wishing you all the best with your first purchase.