All Forum Posts by: Ben Headrick

@Chris Donathan, Sorry, I thought I replied to this the other day. BP saved my comment, I just apparently never hit submit.

It's my understanding that if the house is zoned residential, it must be owner occupied to do short term rentals and you have to obtain a permit. If it is non-residential, you can do non-owner occupied, but you still have to obtain a permit.

I am aware of individuals who own non-owner occupied short term rentals within the city limits, but I’m sure the city is aware of them too, after all, you have to advertise your home online to have any guests. I’m not sure about how the city is going about enforcing the ordinances other than sending out letters and fines.

The city codes will have some changes soon concerning short term rentals, but it’s mainly about accessory dwellings and the property would still need to be owner occupied. You can watch for updates on this at https://recodeknoxville.com/

If I were looking to buy a short term rental in the Knoxville area, I’d look just outside the city limits in Knox County where it's still the wild West or possibly in the Sevierville/Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area.

Are you familiar with the short term rental laws within the Knoxville city limits?

http://knoxvilletn.gov/government/city_departments_offices/Finance/business_license_tax_office/short_term_rentals

I'm not sure what you have planned, but I believe they have to be owner occupied if they are zoned residential.

One of the advantages of using private/hard money is that you can close FAST. Sometimes in a matter of days. If you wanted it to take this long, you could have used a bank or a crowd funding website. I agree with @Frank Y.. I like to do private lending, but unfortunately I don't have a vault full of cash and can only lend on a few at a time. Build a network of local lenders that you can offer these opportunities to. I hope you haven't lost this deal, but it's a possibility if they are entertaining other offers. I would cut ties with this lender if they're not communicating with you.

@Ryan Vernich Glad you made it to the meeting last night! @Victor Jernigan does a great job of bringing in knowledgeable experts to speak. Victor is a wealth of Knowlege himself, too.

I hope you made some good connections last night and be sure to reach out to them between meetings. See you next month!

Thank you @Victor Jernigan. Fortunately, Ive never had to make a claim on this policy, so that day will tell how good Safeco really is. It is what my agent recommended to have the right amount of coverage for the best value. I think @Alex Craig has found what he needed, but for anyone else reading this thread, I believe having a good agent is the main thing. You want an agent that can shop several carriers for you and isn't tied to just one brand. Find an agent that has your best interests at heart and is familiar with real estate investing. That being said, I'll agree that Matthew Bryan would be a great agent to choose. He is very knowledgeable about real estate investing and can get you exactly what you need.

@Alex Craig, I have a policy through safeco for my rental and it's $734/yr. I'll email you a copy of it and see if it's close to what you're looking for. My insurance agent's contact info is on the policy if you want to reach out to her. She made it super easy.

@Ben Wendt I am in no way an accountant, but the way I understand it is that you and your employer pretty much split Social Security and Medicare taxes. When you have no employer, you have to pay both halves in the form of self employment tax.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong.

@Link McGinnis I'll be there! I'm looking forward to doing some more networking. I'll see you there!

I hope to meet all of you at the next REIA meeting. @Jeff Nichols, the meetings will be a great place to learn about the Knoxville market. Welcome to Knoxville!