All Forum Posts by: Barbara G.

What would the normal rent for you to pay for this kind of apartment,  If it is at least the $1,300 you would consider the income here at $2,600.  If you have to pay more for this kind of apartment you could calculate a higher income.

If you get if for $350,000 it still would be a stretch.  But I don't know your expensive area .  I can not see your expense sheet as it is too small but if you listed the expenses it would be clearer.  Armed with this information you could ask a Real Estate  agent to find something in that area that is less expensive and has more income that you could look at.  It might be a starting point price wise for you.  

Join a Real Estate Club and /or a Real Estate Meet Up group in the area you want to live in and network there  and see what you learn.

You should not really buy the first place you are considering.  But go look at it.  How much renovation is needed?  You have to add that renovation  cost to your buy.   Don't fall in love with this place but you can use it as a standard to compare other duplexes, triplexes to 

Keep us informed

Katherine:  Did you say this was an enamel/porcelain tub?  If so my son brought some very caustic chemical over for my tub that had  a terrible rust or water stain? or something stain that no one was able to remove and the stain came right off.  I will ask him the name of it.  It removed it in a minute.  Of course if it is a fiberglass tub perhaps that would be another problem.

You are also correct about the painting of enamel?  I had that done in another apartment and it looked very good but they did not remove the drain cover and just taped it and that was a really bad idea.  Most of the companies do not remove the cover but if you can get them to do that it would last much longer as you said.  If it is Fiberglass does that make a difference when you paint it.  Is this a flip?

Question:

That area was always terrible and very old.  What is the housing stock like?  Are they brownstones or walk ups?   What economic level lived there before?  What age houses are you looking at?  How near are they to projects?  Is it like the Arthur Avenue Area??
Thanks

Bg

Joe how does your wife deal with you when you are always right!!

That's why some investors keep away from old buildings.  The plumbing and the electrical and the insulation  Then how old is the roof and the heating system?

Yes it is not a good idea

We did tell one of our tenants recently that he could do the snow removal for us this winter.  It's not a discounted price.  Hopefully we will not have a problem. figuring how bad can you remove snow?  He is on site and has the equipment.  He is the only tenant that pays his rent early so we have our fingers crossed. 

I just hired a contractor working next door to me on another house to do a small section of siding.  It was a low price and I said Yes and he did the worst job in the world.  I was going to do it ourselves  because it was a small area.  Now I just hope it gets by the insurance inspection

Forget painting it.  So get your price for the bathfitter and the replacement price and pick one and go with it.  You can't worry this to death and you don't have any other options.  If this is your biggest problem then you are fine

Well it meets the 2% test and there you are.  You must see it and inspect it.    There must be someone in that town that you can use as your feet on the ground.  I wold call some people like realtors in the town  and get them to reccomend a building inspector and negotiate a price with  him.  Meet the inpector there and walk the property with him.  If you can't get an inspector get a general contractor. Talk to the person renting it for $375.000 a month

How far away are you from this house?  How old is this house.  What did the owner tell you about repairs?  What does Zillow say about this house?  What does the building department know about this house.

What do they charge, the lawn company for cleaning the common areas?  How good does it look when they first clean it.  I would imagine a cleaning person would do a better job.  I would just have the cleaning person do it once a week and see how it goes.  How many floors are there and how many apartments on each floor?  How can the tenants be dirtying the common areas?  

I remember walk up in the village in New York and they always looked clean?