All Forum Posts by: Anson Young

 Short answer: it dosnt.  There is no method to update the valuation without a sale.  Appraisers only look at comparables, which are sold properties.  That neighbor fixing up their property and NOT selling will have ZERO impact on your sale next summer.

IF your neighbor got an updated appraisal, and you gave it to your appraiser to please consider, you might get a slight boost, but not sure if appraisers would even look at that information.

Johnny, 

Meeting with them and building a bit of rapport helps for sure, but I bring with me some recent comps and a detailed list of every single upgrade that we did to the property.  I always just say "not trying to do your job, but these are the valuations that we based the numbers of this project on, these comps in this package.  Also, since many upgrades can go unnoticed when this much work has been done to the property, here is a detailed list and cost of what we spent to make the property this awesome"

Let us know how it goes!

Sebastian, welcome!!

Besides a mentor, I'd recommend the two following books:

the book on rental property investing - turner
long distance real estate investing - greene

They also both happen to be the hosts of the BP podcast, great info for sure!!

Kat, welcome!  Do a quick google search for hard money lenders in your area, and start emailing or calling them.  They will want to know what your plans are, what you are looking for and how experienced you are.  Then they will let you know what they are looking for in a client, what kind of credit score or deals you can find.  A good hard money lender will give you everything you need to know in that initial conversation! 

Brian, this is 100% correct...  its all about helping others, if you focus there first, the money will follow.  But more importantly, you will be helping those out who need it.  You hit the nail right on the head.

Looks like skip tracing is legal in CA, but has more restrictions than here in the US.  A quick google search gave me a bunch of info, I'd start there!  (or search BP forums)

Smaller, local banks have been the best bet for those I know who have refinanced lately.  @Andrew Myers recently made a note on this in the BP facebook group.

Posting to follow this thread...   I'm planning to help my son get started in college, but want to know how others did it too!

A LOT of that is personal what works for your budget and comfort level.  I lean on the side of "its my home, I'm going to spend a little extra to make me happy", but that works for me and not for everyone :-)

Jesse, 2k for the new furnace can be a good deal, depends on the efficiency and other bells and whistles.  The whole amount seems high to me, mainly because its retail pricing most likely.  12 years on a furnace is still REALLY young, honestly inspectors say 15 years but a well maintained furnace can easily go 25 with no issues.  I'm thrilled when I buy houses with 10-15 year old furnaces, we can get them cleaned/serviced/certified and feel good about selling that property to a new owner.  Your main benefit to getting the furnace will be the re circulation/blower feature, which could earn you back that 2k in saved utility bills over a few years.