All Forum Posts by: Barb Asay

Am I missing something?  Why would you rent out your house at a loss just to turn around and also rent an apartment (more expenses)?

@Mariel Painter-Chapman

Someone may have already suggested this and if so I apologize.

Have you considered putting your fridge where you have pantry cabinets? Would have to play with the layout of the dishwasher etc.

Also, was the cost of closing in the window calculated in? If you arent doing new siding that will be an added expense to do a good patch job.

@Alton Bell

I have rentals and also flip.

Last year we flipped 3 and netted $200k (pre-tax) We didnt overlap projects too much but a little. We didnt go into it intending to work on one at a time but thats how the deals worked.

Our strategy for flips is profit over volume. Whats the difference if I flip 5 at once and make $10k each or do 1 and make $50k? Its less stressful, less room for error, and if **** hits the fan I have one bum deal that I can always stick a renter in instead of 5-10 empty homes with holding costs.

Now, keep in mind that this works for us because 1) we are in a smaller market and volume isnt really feasible 2) we are doing most our own rehab work because we are capable and we enjoy it

I have people tell me its stupid to do my own work but I disagree. I am self employed, make my own schedule, make great money and am proud of my work. Who cares about volume if you dont make any money?

@Dan Heuschele

You assume a lot about people you dont know. Your market is not my market. My houses are not your houses. The poster asked and I shared my experience. Just because your experience is different does not mean that I dont do math or understand my business. You absolutely CAN understand the total cost of long term ownership without actually doing it. In fact it would be dumb not to.

@Javen Bowman

Ok so I read through about half the responses so sorry if this is redundant.

Yes. You can.

We have been working with a local bank. They have allowed us to have a property appraised subject to improvements and than borrow as much as 90% of that. Often my purchase price and rehab budget are more like 50% so I can pull some extra cash if I want. But more often I leave the equity in the property and use it as collateral on the next, again allowing me to buy a property with no actual cash.

You have to buy low, rehab smart and have a good banking relationship.

@Dan Heuschele

Good to know that after 5 years of hard work and close to a million in paid for real estate I am too "new" to know what things cost. I will keep trying.

@Dan Heuschele.

I am not new. I have been an investor for close to 5 years and have over 20 SFH's. Market matters. My $600/mo homes cash flow over $300 per month each after mortgage, taxes, insurance and maintenance. I do self manage because there isnt a management company in my town but what would that be, another $60? And due to a variation on the BRRR method im into them with nearly no cash.

It can work.

@Martin W.

I wanted to comment on a couple things.

I rent out houses for $700/month and cash flow just fine. I have some that rent for $600 and are some of my best properties. But I didn't pay $70k for them. I paid $25k-$50k depending on condition. So as someone else pointed out, its not the rent amount or the percentages that are wrong. Its the purchase price. Are you buying on the retail market? Ive bought move-in ready off the MLS but not very often. Usually its an off-market deal or a fixer upper that gets me the cash flow I want, which is way more than $100 a month.

Second. Banks. WILL lend on small loans. I don't get why people are saying they wont. Just because it hasn't been true for some doesn't mean its a fact. Make calls, ask! Get with a community bank or credit union.

@Angie Shires

Thank you. Good advice. I do have a realtor representing me. But she never mentioned back up offers as being an option, and I didnt know either so thats great info.

It was a pretty crappy and all over the place offer so im not super surprised, actually. Its just uncommon in our area to flat out back out and not negotiate. Especially without offering valid proof of the complaint.

My realtor thinks something else is going on, because the house is solid.

Thanks.

I currently use cozy. One reason I like it is because in our small town its not common to collect an application fee. Cozy allows me to accept online applications and only require my chosen applicant to pay for background and credit checks, not everyone. The new system does not appear to allow that. It sounds like every applicant is automatically charged with no opt-out option.

I will stop using it if thats the case and look at other options.