All Forum Posts by: Dan Ward

Jerry W.

This is actually very common but also somewhat tricky. You really have to make sure you clean the surface very well first things first. I would lightly pressure wash it to blow off any remaining flakes of paint. I would caution you against using any mild acidic cleaning agent, a strong degreaser (Krud Kutter) would do just as good, just make sure you don't use a super cheap one because it might leave an oily residue. You will then want to use an exterior, DTM (direct to metal) primer. This will somewhat "dig in" to the metal, you can use latex and you will probably end up paying $35+ per gallon. You have the option of grey, red oxide, or white and it really doesn't matter which you decide to use. If you can find a "high build" that will be even better because it will help bridge the gap where the paint flaked off. If you use a high quality DTM primer you can then use either a regular exterior paint or a DTM paint finish for your topcoat. You will want to use latex base, it will hold up much better with the metal believe it or not, after one good summer of baking the paint on it will last for many years.

Neil G. 

What kind of temperature and environment are you dealing with for most part of the year? You will definitely have to wash the surface to remove and dirt or debris...its a guarantee you will have issues if you don't for an exterior stucco paint job. Normally with stucco contractors will use "Dryvit" (http://www.dryvit.com/home/default.asp)...its really just stucco material with color. Its super heavy duty! But if you wanted to paint stucco, you could use a high quality exterior latex paint. It would need to have mildew and UV prevention, that could cost you $50+ bucks per gallon at Lowes and Home Depot so I recommend finding a PPG in a near by town. Normally you can get a good quality from them for around $20-$30 per gallon.....well worth the drive. 

@Steve B. 

If there is lead in the house....most will advise you that its a huge issue and can purchase a lead test kit for a few bucks at your local paint store to find out. Normally in older homes that have somewhat of an "alligator" texture to the walls its because of multiple coats of paint and multiple crappy prep jobs. Your best best for both time and money would be to primer the walls....I would recommend you clean the walls with a bleach mixture (simple wipe down prep)....then skim coat the walls in areas where it is uneven. You can youtube how to skim coat a wall...its pretty simple, just apply a small amount of mud....then scrap it off to fill in any voids. Then you would be able to sand....prime...and have smooth walls. A skim coat can realllllllly save some time and money, it fills nail holes and really allows the walls a fresh start. Another option would be to add knockdown texture to the walls...prime...and then paint. 

I spent many years as an industrial/architectural paint sales rep. I feel like I could answer and have probably dealt with most issues you encounter so please feel free to shoot me a message if I can ever help you out! 

Thanks for the input! I have found the most difficult part of getting into property ownership is getting your first one. I currently own a home, make a good living, but I just cant see digging into my nest egg to put 20% cash down on a property. It must be because I'm sure a cheapskate. And oddly enough I have done some work with a local architect and although I wont actually build a duplex for 70k, it wont be terribly far from it. Its more of a loft style concept, one bed, one bath, industrial style with a monolithic slab and a similar design to what you see in the picture.

Ive got a friend of mine that is a bank loan officer and he believes that he could get me a loan to build a rental duplex. Lets say I can build an economical duplex for 70k and it would be appraised at 100k. So, the bank would loan up to 80% of the appraised value which would cover the entire cost to build the duplex correct? Would something like this work or not to avoid having to put 20% cash down?

Me and my wife just closed on our first home! Originally we wanted to purchase a multiunit property but I really didn't want to rush into a bad deal and it just worked out that we first purchase this home. We both have good credit....good jobs....what are the chances that I can still get a rental property financed? What kind of cash would I need to bring to the table? 

So me and my wife are house hunting and we are planning to purchase a home real soon. We have found a home....great...older yet established neighborhood...very close to a booming area of our town. There was just a multimillion dollar hospital built in the region and this home is probably 10 minutes away from it...so I don't see this booming growth to slow anytime soon. I can get the home for right at $180,000....3b2b....2,450 sq ft liveable. We are looking into the Navy Federal Credit mortgage options. I will take any and all advice! I know that I am going to have a home inspection done....the agreement will be totally contingent upon the home inspection and the removal of all wallpaper in the home. Ultimately I want to get into this home with the least amount of money out of my pocket so I can use my nest egg of cash for a rental property investment.

My name is Dan Ward and I am a native of Northeast Arkansas. I am young and looking to break into rental properties. My original plan was to purchase a duplex...me and my wife occupy one side and rent out the other side to build our equity much faster. It has been difficult to find a duplex in a good location for the right price so I might be looking to change gears. I am definitely open to any and all advice from seasoned vets. I am young and willing to put my time in...I am not looking to get into property ownership to become an overnight millionaire and I don't have outlandish expectation. I understand it will take time...hard work...patience...and at sometimes educated risk.