All Forum Posts by: Andrew T.

Hey guys - awesome to see this happening and I’ll be trying to make it as well!

Looking forward to seeing you @Chris Szepessy, and thanks @Greg Kardos for the invite. 

I’m an investor from Brooklyn, just got into the Hudson market.

Thanks for setting this up!

I think it’s a great idea Gianluca, and I have done the same, in Bed-Stuy. 
If history holds true, hard to go wrong with a brooklyn brownstone. Adam is right to say estimate conservatively, but the good news is if you use covid rent numbers in your underwriting, you should be quite safe.

Given your current rent, you should be able to make this work. Maybe a duplex with a big unit for your family and a garden unit to rent out to help the paydown? Lots with this setup in BedStuy. Clinton hill is pretty priced in at this point so could be tougher but such a great neighborhood. Bushwick doesn’t have the same amount of/quality of brownstones, so I’m biased against it, but you can find newer buildings with fewer headaches.
Shoot me a message if you want to chat about it. 

Hey Cris,

BK can vary quite a lot by neighborhood and block by block within neighborhoods.

Live here and invest here - shoot me a note if you have a Q.

Best,

Andrew

Hey Jordan,

Premier Roofing did a good job for us, long time company in BedStuy. 

https://www.premierroofingco.n...

I think crown heights is a great move. As always, it’s a bit block by block but the area is going to keep developing. 

We’ve had no issues with tenants paying Or leaving during Covid - we just had one renew for 6 months, but we chose not to increase rent because of Covid. 

Rents have softened even out here as some people flee the city, but people are still renting out places, so vacancy might be higher than usual but still not a major issue if you price correctly. 

Given our high closing costs, I do recommend a long term approach and mind set, which it sounds like you have. 

Hi Ben,

Congrats! Sounds like a good deal. Our market is tough to crack so this is a good way to make it work - yours is similar to my house hack in Bed-Stuy. What neighborhood is it in?

Regarding the roof, sounds like they did a bad job fixing it up two years ago. The guys at Premier Roofing did a great job on mine for $4k and they’re a legitimate business - I recommend calling them. These rubber roofs can be pretty cheap.

Aaron is giving good advice. Your calculation for capex seems fair (furnace is low, more like $5k+) but as you said, I’d assume there will be some additional expense. You could treat it as miscellaneous or a once over for each bathroom at $5k each. 

Raising rents may be tough for the time being, but if you have faith in the market they will come back and by spring you should be able find tenants for slightly higher rents. It’s not uncommon to make tenants shovel their own spot- it’s such a rare amenity here that people won’t mind or expect it, but then there may be an issue of which tenant is responsible for what shoveling.

Keep in mind, the numbers in Brooklyn are often slimmer than elsewhere, And that’s for a reason. You have abnormal amounts of appreciation and rent increases.

Good luck on this! 

Andrew

Hi Gabriela, 

Very exciting - congrats! I believe in BK multifamily and I think you're making a good move. Jessica is asking good questions^. Here are a couple of things to think about in our market:

1. High closing costs - be prepared for NY's higher than normal closing costs. Part of this is mansion tax so if looking to minimize, try to make a deal work under $1mm if possible.

2. BK is a block-by-block and neighborhood-by-neighborhood market.  There are a lot of housing projects out here - some of them are plenty safe and of course these are needed in our city, but just be aware of proximity when looking for long term holds, and know that this is the driver of the lower cost of certain properties. This map shows you most of the NYCHA buildings - https://nycha.maps.arcgis.com/...

3. House hacking can be quite effective here, given the high cost of rent you may already be paying. Helps with management as well. 

Reach out if you want to chat! 

Good luck, 

Andrew

Thanks for sharing Amanda. I agree that we have long term stability in BK with the beautiful housing stock and constant rental demand, and also agree it's tough to succeed with a short term strategy with high closing costs, mansion tax etc.  I will add though that the past ten years were some of the best in history, so if our results look close to this good in 2030 I'll be happy! 

I like the neighborhoods you called out as well (though you missed mine :) Bed-Stuy)  For me it's a wait and see on the market, with opportunities popping up as some sellers get more and more distressed.

@Alex Furini I had no idea that distinction, thanks so much for the tip! Updating the systems in that fashion is definitely something to consider in our ongoing renovation. 

Definitely learning from Ahmed’s post and yours @Alex Furini.

@Robyn Henderson I trust their opinion more than my own, just was providing my similar experience experience.

Alex, curious about splitting utilities like that. If we have to pay for heat and hot water anyways, is there a Cost benefit other than allowing tenants more comfortable living?