All Forum Posts by: Brian Ellis

But we dont have more inventory, we dont have lower prices, and there is definitely not less competition.

I guess my point is that a newbie is going to have a really hard time getting into the game, and the mom and pop landlords (like me) will have a hard time getting deals that actually make sense, and the guys with all the money will continue to purchase in cash essentially pushing out every other competitor.  It will stay that way until we see more inventory, and we havent seen it in YEARS.

With the recent jobs report and inflation data coming out, we're already seeing rates rise at a rapid pace over the past week. I can only see them going up even more throughout 2023.

Inflation isn't going anywhere anytime soon. FEDs should have raised rates in 2018. 

Its like that saying, you walk 10 miles into the woods. It takes 10 miles to get back out.

In my opinion we're in for a crappy real estate time as an investor. The only thing keeping values propped up is the lack of inventory (at least in my area). 

 What has brought me sales is social media marketing through videos. Building up the trust with your followers goes a long way.

Also, ive had some luck with email marketing believe it or not.

Ready to buy, the problem is finding something that makes sense. 

If it does make sense, its gone within minutes. All cash. Just cant compete right now.

Also, off market has very little activity. Ive had zero luck with mailers, cold calling, tax defaults, etc

 yup! Ive been actively looking for 5+ units now. The single family residence and small multi family dont really appeal to me anymore. Between the minor repairs, and cutting 5 different lawns every week isnt what I envision in 10 years. 

 Indeed. I even went as far as creating a Yelp account to leave a review. He was a savior. Not only saved me the furnace, but also saved me from having to put the tenant in a hotel for a couple of nights. Extremely grateful, and a contractor ill be using from here on out. Sometimes its moments like this that provide you valuable resources.

Had an eventful Sunday evening.

New England saw temperatures below 0 for a couple of days. I knew this was going to be fun for my rentals.

I sent out texts and called all my tenants to remind them that it was important to crank the heat a little higher, and leave hot and cold taps drizzling.

Here in New England we have a lot of non-insulated crawl spaces, and that can be a recipe for disaster with extremely cold weather.

So I set out for my day, and made some calls. All tenants said everything was fine, but I had this inclination just to swing by a couple spots to double check. First house, no problems. As im on my way to the second, I realize im cutting a couple appointments close on time. But I convinced myself to check anyway and let a client know I would be a couple minutes behind. I turn the corner to the bulkhead and I hear a sound. It resembled the sound of a furnace firing... except it was a burst pipe spewing out water. I go down the stairs and its an absolute disaster. About 12" of water in the basement, and a furnace that was underwater.

Keep in mind im in some nicer clothes, there is no way for me to get to the water main without getting dirty. So I took off my boots and did what I had to do. Then I carried on to my afternoon appointments, with cobwebs and dirt scattered all over me.

Luckily, my trusted HVAC guy was able to salvage the furnace with some new parts, and the water drained relatively quickly. He repaired a good amount of pipe. He came to the conclusion that the oil line got plugged and the heat shut off completely. The tenant must have taken off for a day or two.

Now my initial reaction was to be upset with the tenant, but what's done is done and the only solution was to fix the problem ASAP and move on. What could have been a $7500 problem, ended up being a $1000 problem. 

As time goes on, these things sting less and less. Because they do happen. And I am prepared for it, although I will admit I was naive when I first started out. What are some of your experiences? 

Buyers are getting quoted 5.5% right now. It was only a matter of time before they came back out. It only makes sense with the lack of inventory.

I dont think its sustainable, though. We should see inflation tick back up. 

My uneducated guess is this is the last hoorah before we see inventory pick up, and prices fall off a cliff. People are over spending in all areas of their life. Some home values have doubled in a short 5 years. Thats not normal. History repeats itself, and that certainly isnt an example.

The people that told me not to buy back in 2017, are the ones who are screaming BUY NOW. That gives me a clear indication of whats really going on. 

With the most recent jobs report.. I think we see rates going much higher. Inflation isnt under control as much as they are leading on. Just my opinion

Get a list of tax defaults in your county, and personally reach out to the owners through direct mail or cold calling.

Its strenuous work but Ive had a handful of leads come in that way. Also you can use a skiptracing system for a list of emails.