All Forum Posts by: Ben Sears

Hi All...I'm looking for some opinions on funding a deal with a HELOC on my primary residence. The investment would be held under an LLC. Am I treading in a dangerous area by mixing my LLC with personal money? I would, of course, refinance and carry a mortgage under the LLC at some point. Thanks!

What a fantastic book. I just finished it and I can honestly say that it was eye opening! I don't consider myself to be all knowledgeable on taxes and this really gave me some pointers on where to start. This book covers a little bit of everything from deductions, depreciation, and IRAs. The part I really enjoyed was how to spin lots of everyday tasks into write offs for your business. While it's certainly not all encompassing, it does provide a great place to begin discussions with your tax advisor. Highly recommend to new and experienced investors.

You mentioned that you are managing the remodel from another state. It could be that your contractor is following local trends by going vertical. I know that my tile distributor injects a lot of their personal styles on pros through their design center. Personally, I kind of like it and I don't know that it detracts from the kitchen. I think a buyer or renter that runs from your property over that has bigger issues. On another note, as a contractor and investor, I make sure that I always nail down specifics on materials, part numbers, installation, etc. It avoids a lot of controversy and wasted time later. I might suggest you create a template on the computer to use a small a build schedule. I'll try to attach an example that I've used in the past. If you would like the entire document, PM me your email and I'm happy to share. 

Browsing listings the other day and came across a listing for four SFH on 5 acres. Each house is identical (900 sq ft 2b,1ba). All are currently rented and producing income. I haven't seen these in person, but the condition looks average from the pictures. My question is on strategy for purchasing. If I went hard money with a down payment, would I have difficulty refinancing later with multiple properties on one lot? Would you purchase and have each property subdivided in case of a future flip/sale? Just some interesting thoughts running through my head.

Thanks Shera! Glad you made it out to our neck of the woods recently. I have really enjoyed the investments that I've made here. If I have some time I would love to attend a meet up in Richmond and do some networking. I'll check out the website.

Hello BP-

I wanted to throw out a question related to local tax assessments. I recently purchased a rental on a good deal and it is currently cash flowing nicely. My question is what would cause the tax assessment to drop rather drastically in a short period of time? The current assessment on the county website lists it as $59k (13800 for land and 45200 for the structure). The previous assessment, within the past few years lists it at $78k (13800 for land and 64800 for the structure). From what I can tell, not much has change with the property itself so what types of external factors generally affect a tax assessment?

Located South of Richmond. Looking to connect with other investors and lenders in the area. I'm a small time investor that started flipping houses several years ago. I've flipped approximately 10 SFH and am entering the rental market. I'm also a licensed Class A contractor and perform almost all of my own repairs.

@Colin Charles anything far west end (Short Pump, Goochland, Glen Allen) is out. I would look closer in towards the city like the 64 cooridor from Parham Road to the city. East of the city Highland Springs, Sandston areas would fit your request. If you want to PM me I can give you some specifics on areas that you're looking for. 

We're getting slightly below market price but plan on increasing the rent some when we close. I think I may just wait until it takes a crap and then get it replaced. I think the only big thing that we'll need to address is smoke/CO detectors. 

I'm currently in negotiations to purchase a SFH with a tenant already in place. Tenant has been there 13 years with no reported issues. My question is what are people replacing/upgrading on purchase? For instance, this particular property has an antique range that I'm positive I can't get parts for. Is it worth spending the money upfront for replacement or let it go until it breaks? It's seems like a good time to be proactive and head off some future repair costs.