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All Forum Posts by: Bruno C.

Bruno C. has started 13 posts and replied 114 times.

Post: Starting/Growing a Vacation/Short-Term Rental Property

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Dan L. Understood by what you mean. I haven't been doing it for that long (only 6 months) but I could probably answer some of your questions. 

I'd say it took me about 4 months to reach what I would call a "steady-state" occupancy of 65-70%, using Airbnb. This growth took some time because I needed to get great reviews first, before I could get a consistent amount of occupancy. 

From what I've seen from other owners on these forums and in the general market, it seems that after the first year you've understood the seasonality and you can tweak pricing up in certain points where occupancy is higher. 

Post: Real Estate Agent in Providence area

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

Hi Elizabeth and welcome! I have some property in both Boston and Providence. I'll be sure to reach out when I'm looking for contractors. Good luck on finding the first flip!

Post: Mortgage vs HELOC - Planning for 2nd Rental Property

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Yos Getting a refi on the investment property is definitely possible, the requirements vary lender by lender but you can definitely find a lender that will help you refi. There are many lenders that only need 6 months of ownership to recognize the income or consider the property "seasoned".

The advantage of a HELOC if you choose to go down that route is that it is reusable. So you could use the heloc to purchase a property, refi the property into a conventional loan and pay off the heloc, then use the heloc to buy ANOTHER property. just a thought!

Best of luck!

Post: New Member in Rhode Island

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Mike Iafrati welcome to BP! Take it all in, read the forums, the blogs, listen to the podcasts. There's so much information here to help you learn and succeed in REI. Good luck!

Post: Real Estate Classes in Massachusetts

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Brett Storro I took real estate classes in Waltham for my license and it worked great. They are called American Real Estate Academy - passed my exam on the first try. If you've got any other questions about what the course is like feel free to PM me. 

Post: Pro Upgrade Feedback

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Aquila Phillips I couldn't recommend it highly enough. As an investor it gives me access to some of the best forums, the best calculators for analyzing deals, and tons of additional content that normal members don't get. I felt that it was worth it so I decided to take the plunge and have no regrets.

I personally use it most for the calculators as a method of analyzing deals. I've found that to be the most valuable part of the package. 

Post: Home Insurance for my new property

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Kevin Lee I used Liberty Mutual. Pretty easy to use, links with my car, investment and personal properties, and umbrella insurance. Have not had an issue at all but I'm sure others can speak to more experience. 

Post: New Job or Focus on my business?

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41
Originally posted by @Vick Galu:

@Bruno C.

Thanks for the reply man. Finding a part time job in Hawaii at 20 bucks an hour will be a challenge. But one I will look into. Major actions to get me closer would have to be getting my marketing up and running getting in leads is my number one goal right now

 Understood Vick. You could also try to market some of your skills on a place like Upwork or another freelance site, where you may have more access to jobs than in HI.

Post: Running with a 9-5 while finding time for REI

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41
Originally posted by @James Austin:

Maybe this question has been asked a few to many, but for all you who have made investing work while running the race in a 9-5, I have set a plan to start out by wholesaling (yes I know doesn't everyone...) I have a 9-5 where it seem like I'm struggling to keep up with both most of the time, with a family to raise, getting what seem to be nothing accomplished during the week and then playing catch up on the weekends, OMG the time flies and man does it go fast!! I think for anyone trying to start out in the REI world it is definitely a lesson in desire, persistence, and willingness to go the long haul, for those of you that have made it and have made it while juggling a job and family, and keeping up with the day to day. I'm curious as to how you managed it, while on a budget? I'm beginning my marketing campaign, and looking toward the future when I have the phone calls to make and the deals to run with, my cell service is hit or miss so trying to use lunch to make calls seems next to impossible, do you find that potential clients get PO'ed if you call after 6 or 7 or later? Are there other tricks when it comes to all this? forgive my jumbled mess of questions, I really am just curious how or the best way to manage everything?

Thank You in advance, for even taking the time to read through this mess!!

 From my vantage point, simply put, you need to keep going where others give up. That doesn't have to mean sacrificing time with your family, but you will need to prioritize.

I definitely have found it helpful to do a few things in particular: 

-block time out for focused work. That might be even just 2 hours a week, but that difference means you're able to have some time to think strategically about how you want to move forward with your business.

-hire out what you're not good at

-build relationships with everyone around you. Those people will help you learn faster and grow - it's invaluable.

Good luck!

Post: The Difficulties of Airbnb

Bruno C.Posted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Providence, RI
  • Posts 120
  • Votes 41

@Carolyn Fuller I've had a very similar experience in Boston. The net income we're getting in comparison to a long-term rental is 2-3x better, and we have had little to no issue so far. 

@Juan 

@Juan Diaz The group and location definitely matter. I find that smaller groups (1-4 people) actually seem to be more trouble than the larger ones - they are more apt to breaking rules from my own experience. Being in Boston, it's mostly families too, and that makes a huge difference.