All Forum Posts by: Ben Bard

I need to work with a bookkeeper to at a minimum help me go through my quick books and get it all in order before tax time. I may also want to have this company do my bookkeeping but I first need someone to sit with for a few hours in front of quick books and help me understand and get everything setup. Any recommendation would be appreciated thanks

Definitely a great response.  I have already moved forward and am working on some deals.  Hopefully a post for a success story area  is in the making.  Thanks everyone for you responses and connections 

any good tips for finding these local banks?  Do all credit unions do this?

thanks replied to your PM

I have been investing in the lehigh valley, PA Buy and Hold, mostly multi family, but some single family.  I have several properties with equity.

I am now looking to accelerate my business, and do some flips or create equity in and refinance for long term holds in the Lehigh Valley and exploring the Poconos.  I need more sources of funding to get this moving more quickly. 

I am open to all options, please ask questions about any details you need, and we can start to explore possibilities.  Thanks

interesting point,  I bank with BOA because of the mobile apps and mobile check deposits bill pay Apple Pay etc....basically convenience of features.  The people in my local branch are locals and know me well, and are very friendly.  I don't get loans from them, and I have considered portfolio lending, but hadn't thought about my other business influencing the portfolio lending.  Very thought provoking question.

I ok I misunderstood, I thought you were implying that you would move into the duplex and rent out your old house after your parents move out.  And by cashflow I meant would it cashflow when rented. But I understand your situation.

Some tips to consider

2 bedroom units - I can find a duplex with 2 bedroom units and one with one bedroom for the same price 2 bedroom makes more money and seems to attract more long term tenants.  

Split utilities -or the possibilities to split not a lot of people talk about this one, but a change in purchase price of 20k or even 50k (when buying with a 30 year mortgage) makes very little difference in the payment.  Common utilities could cost 200-300/month, if your goal is to hold a long time and cashflow, split utilities make a huge difference, I think for some reason most renters don't look at this in their process.

Watch the neighbors - an attached building can cause you major headaches....if the building next door gets cockroaches they will come over into your building and you may have to let tenants out of leases, because spraying your building won't get rid of them, and getting access to the other building may not be easy....I guess I don't have to tell you where this example came from.  So what do you watch for....neighbors that are owner occupied and long term as well as maintaining the outside of their building...but the biggest thing would be what I'll call peer pressure from the neihborhood, if most people on the block are keeping their place nice it is more likely that it will stay that way. This seems to hold true even to the lowest income level neighborhood.  A good mix of owner occupants I a block or said another way their is maintained landscaping in front of houses, is a good indicator.

Separate entrances - not having common areas with common electric bills snow removal requirements and yard mowing makes a big cashflow difference, and again I have found that this doesn't change the houses purchase price.

Harder to sell - less buyers for multi family, so if you change your mind a lot you might want to think before you act.

Mls is a good start, ask your agent to setup a report which sends you an automatic email every time something in your criteria comes on the market....I watch all multi family in my area and get a daily email on it.  I have also bought on Craigslist.  

And a final tip for buying.  Be friendly with the sellers, in multi family their is a good chance that the seller has multiple properties, and also a good chance that they are selling them, if you find a good property that has all the things you like and is well maintained...good chance that sellers other properties will be good.  If you are buying distressed just look for good bones.

I think it is generally 25% down required for a multi family , the 20% is for a single family home

1. Duplex or triplex is definitely the way to go, very tax beneficial, and can make the biggest financial impact by reducing expenses. Yes you should qualify for FHA, you can have one FHA loan at time and having a coventional wouldn't matter.

2. Not sure what your goal is with the refi, if it is just to get more cash for the down payment, I would say open a line of credit on it instead of refinancing they are more flexible, and you can use and payoff again and again, and if you are sure you have the equity you can order an appraisal on your current home to remove PMI, it will cost you a few hundred so you should be sure

3. I would say 4plex and triplex are the only thing better than duplex, duplex is great because as a live in you don't need to pay capital gains tax if you stay 2 years, and it removes an expense at the same time, I can't think of a better way than this....I have a live in triplex now, all the units are separate houses it's great.

4. Not familiar with Portland I'm east coast 

5. If your current house doesnt cash flow when you rent it out, I would probably sell it and take the money you make to put into a property that does cash flow.  If it cash flows I would keep it. And take out the line of credit while the appraisal is good.  In either case live in multi unit would be a good next step.

Just some thoughts...

I am looking at a triplex which looks decent and is priced well...except It uses oil for heat, that paid by the landlord. The bill for oil is ~7k per year which destroys the cashflow Has anyone successfully converted a system like this to sub metered and paid by tenants? Any ideas on how this could this be done, and what would it cost?

Tenant pays all expenses. Electric is listed as an expense in the MLS info, I haven't received confirmation if this is covered by tenants. Heat is gas, but AC would be electric window units, so I am getting confirmation on this. This could eat cash flow in the summer if tenants don't cover it.