All Forum Posts by: Andrew Meyer

Have you guys ever had issues with tenants damaging the hard flooring with water or spills? Is it easier to notice and charge the repair to them since that obviously isn't normal wear/tear?

Welcome to BP! You are starting off in the right area! I'd recommend learning as much as you can in a certain area and then go from there. BP can help you with a lot of questions and has a lot of information!

Welcome to BP! I am moving to IN area, but other side of the state in Bloomington IN, but good luck with your endeavors!

Depending on your situation, a duplex will require 15% down. If your not a 1st time home buyer or in a certain profession with low income, you could be required to do 15% down on conventional loan for duplex. You could do 3.5% on FHA though. I am in the process of closing on a duplex and this is what I was told by my mortgage agent, so you may vary, but that's at least what I had for my situation.

Exactly. I am under contract on a duplex that is about 21 years old and I think has original roof and HVAC, so I am either going to see if seller is going to work on them or plan on getting them replaced soon. Luckly my W2 job can easily cover the needs and I have enough in savings if everything needed fixing at once so its not an issue for me, but for some it could be very difficult. That is one reason why age matters a lot. If this duplex is like 1930 build and hasn't had any work on it in 30 years... yeah I could see why everyone walked away so far.

I agree, but on the flip side, if you KNOW and can account for it, as long as you can work the numbers, you likely won't have as much maintenance issues for the future knowing you have new units/roofs/etc. A new furnace/roof can last 20+ years, so should realistically be a majority of the effective time you will personally own and be working with the property. Having to maintain an old unit or fix multiple leaks can be as bad or worse then paying up front to get new units.

Realtor.com works pretty well for MFHs. For my area, it does put a few SHFs in there, but for the most part it gets me the MFHs from the MLS.

Good work so far! If you have more information it would be easier to say how good of a deal this is. What year was the duplex built? Also, you will want an inspection on the HVAC, WH and roof as big ticket items. And you want to know what the taxes are... I am buying a duplex for about the same amount and the taxes are around $4,500/year!

I'd guess there is something that needs a major repair since it has been on the market so long, or your market is very slow.

I am just in the process of closing on my 1st true investment and we will be house hacking a duplex. It is a pretty good deal I think, but considering I am using the MLSs/Realtor to find it and I live out of state, I think it is the best I am going to find until I get moved to the area. The rent is about 1.2% of the price, so pretty good there IMO and the 50% rule says it should cash flow about $200, although that is with a FHA 3.5% down loan. I ran the numbers myself and I think it will cash flow a little better, more in the $300-400 range.

Of course this won't matter immediately, but I want it to be a good investment once I do rent both sides. I will also be getting a homestead tax deduction which will help while I live there. Also, the tax assessment is about 50k above purchase price, so I may be able to get the taxes lowered some, but I not going to count on that.

A few more details would help. Whats your interest rate? How much equity do you have in it? What are you long term plans in RE?