All Forum Posts by: Raman Bindlish

Hi,

I am looking to refinance a duplex in Sacramento that we bought 2 years back and there are hardly any comps available in the neighborhood. 

What are the ways I can estimate the appraisal of the property? Single family houses in the neighborhood have been going up at more than 10% annually since I purchased and I have renovated and raised rents by 40% in 2 years. So, I am hoping that the appraisal comes out at a significant higher value. But when I look at Realtor.com estimate, the duplex shows up as 10% up from our purchase price. 

Even though cap rates do not directly apply to Duplex, what is a typical multi-family cap rate in Sacramento these days? 

Tax assessment is pretty low for the area for some reason and that is a critical factor in realtor.com estimate. I am wondering what appraisers look at in absence of comps of similar units and how they come up with value. Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks
Raman

Hello everyone..

Just started following this thread. I am in San Jose and have been investing in Sacramento and out of state SFH in Raleigh, NC.. also, I am investing in some multi-family deals as well (including crowdfunded ones).

I used to run a meetup on diverse investment topics in south bay. But dropped it recently due to busy schedules. I would love to share ideas on out of state investing as well.

Cheers

Raman

I am looking for some advice on the following code :

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_disp...

Does it apply to an old building or only to the units that are built after the code comes into affect? This is a minor issue but CA has so many such codes and I am not sure how to apply to my 1968 built duplex. Any insights would help.

Thanks 

Raman 

I got both tenants to sign it, asked them to buy renters insurance including pet and took a deposit. Let's see how my first lease with pet on it goes.

All,

Looking from some feedback from experienced landlords who allow pets in the rental. I am adding a standard pet addendum and asking tenant to buy renters insurance which includes Pet damage and liability coverage. 

Now, there are 2 tenants and pet belongs to one of them. If the 2nd tenant does not want to sign on pet addendum, is there any issue? Can I just have one of them sign on pet addendum or I need to have both sign it?

Thanks

Raman

@Jeff B. the rental market is very hot in the area. And my unit is one of rare duplex with 3 BR. Most of the duplexes in the area are 2BR. Single family rental is at least 25% higher rents for comparable units. So budget folks prefer it. 

I always run full credit and background check including employment verification. Rental history check is not that solid here as most of these guys refer to private landlords and who knows who I am talking to. 

 I have got interest from some better qualified tenants and doing the showings today. I guess if I find someone who is more qualified, I will simply go with that before worrying about the bidding tenant. 

@Thomas S. I have looked at local laws but I could not find anything which prohibits me from charging higher rent than what I advertised. I have only taken applications and there is no offer of lease made to any applicant. I am not sure if it is a legal issue unless someone can tell me that there are laws so specific regarding accepting applications and processing them.

Regarding fair housing law, I am not discriminating any application and also I am deciding between fairly similar credit / income profiles. 

I am looking for some feedback on what are the fair practices / law for renting a unit when there are multiple applicants.

(Background - Sacramento, California - duplex rental unit - for local law considerations)

I have marketed the property at a particular price. I have accepted applications at that price point. Now I have another applicant coming in (who is not necessarily more qualified for the unit but in similar ball-park as other applicants) and offering me a higher rent amount to consider him. Will it be fair for other applicants if I accept this applicant?

Can you ask for a higher rent for the unit if there are multiple applicants who really wants the rental and willing to offer a higher price? Do I need to inform all the existing applicants if they want to bid for the higher rent? Is it legal / fair? 

I know there are some sites which have cropped up that allow rental bidding. But I am sure they must have figured out the law and the loopholes. I am trying to do right thing while getting market rent for my property (which seems to be higher than what I advertised for). 

I heard from a friend that Mack is filing for bankruptcy. 

Thanks all for your comments and suggestions. Watermarking is a good idea. But I am wondering if pictures are even critical in my market as it is really hot.

 I have been getting the best quality of leads from Zillow and there is no way to hide the address there. I am 2 hours away from the property and hence it is difficult to monitor day to day. But as I have some work going on there, I have my contractor going in there time to time. I think these scammers are working out if state and operating in high demand markets where tenants are desperate to get cheaper housing. They are hoping someone will just send money site unseen to reserve the place. But I hope people realize that rent offered is too good to be true and it is a scam.