All Forum Posts by: Angelito Mamutuk

Hi BP,

This is probably a stupid question but wanted everyone's take on Landlord Insurance. I'm located in the Bergen County, New Jersey area and fortunate enough to be moving into a new primary home within the next month. My current primary residence is a multi-family (2 units) my wife and I house hacked, so it's under regular Home Insurance (through Geico). Since I'll be moving and renting out my space to a tenant, I'm back and forth between keeping the same home insurance or doing Landlord Insurance. The cost is much more - my home insurance now is $1100, and landlord insurance is $1850. 

Is Landlord Insurance worth it? First time using it. I require all my tenants to have renter's insurance as well. 

Again, I think I know the answer but figured I'd ask haha. Thanks for the help!

@Shawn Mcenteer thanks for the input. I looked at other lease agreements and they mentioned stating the responsibility "tenant agrees to perform.." etc.

Regarding the snow, aren't you afraid of liability? Or does the landlord insurance cover you?

Thank you

Hi BP Team - hope everyone had a great holiday :)

Doing my yearly lease update for my current tenant in Bergen County NJ and wanted to get someone's take on adding additional jargon pertaining to "house maintenance". I live in this multi-family so I take care of the grass/lawn, snow removal in the winter, etc - however, I plan on moving out this year so I'm in the middle of deciding whether to hire someone to take care of the outside work or include it into the lease for the tenants.

For the lease agreement, I used the old one the previous owners had and made small changes but there's nothing specific to snow removal, lawn care, or other general household maintenance (changing light bulbs, air filters, etc.) 

Anyone have any advice on how to add these things into the lease agreement? Any specific wording that's potentially all encompassing and puts the responsibility on the tenant? 

Any help would be great - be more than happy to provide additional information if it's helpful.

Thank you!!

@Ralph DiBugnara oh that's great! Haven't really looked in that area. I just got an offer accepted in Coolbaugh Township (first one!). Heading over there Tuesday for home inspection.

I'm working with a lender now who helped me refinance my current home, but always willing to expand my network.

One thing I have come across that's a bit of a nuisance is putting in offers on houses I haven't physically seen with my realtor. With the homes in the Poconos, my realtor takes videos and sends it to me and my friends on houses we're interested in putting offers in. However, our realtor mentioned that sometimes sellers will not accept the offer, regardless of the amount, due to the fact that I haven't physically seen the property (which I understand is a potential concern). Unfortunately, logistically - it would be almost impossible to drive over and see every house we're putting an offer in due to time constraints, distance, and how competitive the market has been.

I'm assuming not all investors physically see every property and do long-distance investing. Is this just part of the process or how have you guys combatted this now or in the past?

Sorry if this is a stupid question haha

wow appreciate all the responses guys!! very helpful insight.

@Ryan Chatman I'll take a look at the Scranton/Wilkes Barre area and start reaching out to some folks over there. 

@Raymond Temprano my parents recently moved to Easton, PA about a year ago and to get there, I always drive through Lehigh Valley (I'm assuming that's the same area). I know there's a University there and a good amount of businesses. Will reach out to agents to get a better feel for that market. Thanks!

@Matt M. hahaha that makes it more enticing for me actually ;]

@Charlie Cooper Yes I'm actively putting in offers in the Poconos, PA area for STRs. Since you mentioned the need for SFHs, I may look at that as well. Main reason I'm leaning more towards the STRs is because a friend of mine and her group of buddies have two rentals there and are doing very well. We actually stayed in one of their properties before COVID and they gave some good insight into the area. 

@Travis Wylie Will definitely look into the Harrisburg area! I've heard good things about that area from other people looking to explore PA as an investing opportunity. Do you have a lot of Multi-family homes out there or more SFH rentals?

@Jonathan Dempsey would love to pick your brain a bit more on your success in the Poconos! Unfortunately we've been getting outbid with our offers (and we're offering asking or even more) so still hunting for deals out there.

@Ralph DiBugnara where did your purchase your SFH? in the Poconos? And going multi-family is a personal choice of mine. Ever since I learned about real estate, I was always drawn to multi-family rentals because the way I always viewed them was getting 2 houses for the price of one (or 3, or 4, depending how many units). Maybe down the road I'll explore more SFH rentals but my focus is SRTs in the Poconos market and/or multis in the above neighborhoods mentioned.

Hello BP team!

I'm looking into purchasing a multi-family property in the Pennsylvania area and could use some guidance into what areas would be viable. Currently live in NJ and familiar with multi-families a little bit as I'm house hacking my current two family. I'm mostly familiar with the Poconos area near the resorts but I know it's more SRT over there and haven't found too many multi-families.

Would love to get some direction and/or network with someone doing this now.

Thanks!!

@Ryan Chatman yeah seems that way haha guess just have to be patient and keep looking!

Hello! First post on BiggerPockets and looking to gain some insight in the Short Term Rental market in the Poconos, PA area. Actually have a friend who already owns two rental properties there and is doing very well (Pocono Lake area). They have owned both properties for over two years now and they manage it themselves.

My friends and I began looking for an STR about two years ago and have sent out about 30 to 40 offers since (pre-COVID) and unfortunately we always got outbid. In the past few months, supply has dwindled extensively and we haven't found anything we liked, also prices have increased dramatically.

Can anyone provide any insight on what else they've been seeing or are other potential investors equally as frustrated with the supply in the Poconos? Hoping to get more supply towards the winter season and into next year. 

Fore more transparency, our budget to purchase an STR was at $200k around the Pocono Lake and surrounding area.

Thanks for the help!