All Forum Posts by: Brandon Ness

Hi Phillip, would love to meet up and chat real estate; will be around all week!  Please PM me and let’s get something setup.  

@Kyle Zigan hey Kyle, would love to grab coffee or a drink sometime and chat real estate. Shoot me a PM and let’s set something up!

If there are any investors in the Sioux Falls region focused on a Section 8 strategy, or if you just have any Section 8 tenants in general, I would love to connect and have a conversation. We currently only have one S8 tenant but are looking to expand on this strategy. Feel free to shoot me a message or reply to this thread - thanks!

I have a unique scenario that I'm hoping some of the BP community either has experience with or can point me in the right direction. My friend is moving to Colorado Springs in January and would like to house hack a duplex or triplex (or possibly a SFR with roommates if the numbers make sense). However, the move and extenuating circumstances have/will put a strain on his liquidity. I'm an investor in the Sioux Falls area and would love to diversify into another state, so this seems like a prime opportunity to do so. However, we're hung up on exactly how to structure the partnership. I would provide the funds for closing, down payment, and an operating float, while he would occupy a unit and manage and maintain the property. Ideally, we would use a down payment assistance grant (or similar program i.e. first time home buyer) to purchase the property. The problem is, he would have to be the only person on the mortgage to qualify (due to income restrictions + the fact that I won't be occupying the property) so I won't have any actual ownership of the property. Additionally, I'm concerned about the tax implications if we would at some point transfer the property into an LLC we owned 50/50. Any suggestions on the following would be extremely helpful (or any comments on the scenario at large):

1) Structure of the partnership / securing my investment in the operation 

2) Best realtors in the area, particularly those well-versed in first time home buyers / RE investing

3) Mortgage officers in the area who are well-versed in grant programs

4) Best locations - leaning towards east side of town as that's the location of employer

5) If you're looking to sell your property (2-4 units), feel free to message me directly

Thanks!

Congrats man!  I'm actually using the same grant program to purchase and house hack a duplex right next to Augustana - maybe you have some tips to share on how to get the best Augie tenants in there? :) 

Thanks so much to everyone who replied - it was very insightful and definitely what I needed to hear. As an update on the situation, I ended up driving to the property to pick up a money order for the full rent amount on the 6th. I waived the late fee this month, since is the first instance this has happened, but told them that if it happens again there would be a late fee and, depending on how late, the possibility of eviction. I also mailed a receipt to them the next day with the following language at the bottom:

REMINDER:

Acceptable payment methods are as follows:

• Cozy System
• Mailing a money order
• Mailing a check

Rent is due on the first of the month, which means if you are mailing payment, it must be received on the first of the month. Payment received after the first is considered a violation of the lease agreement. If payment is not received on or before the 5th day of the month, a $25 late fee will apply and will be due along with the current month’s rent payment.

I think with my next tenants, I will be increasing the amount of the late fee, since clearly $25 isn't a large enough sum to discourage these tenants from being disrespectful. For a monetary reference, this unit rents for $675/mo.

Anyway, thanks again to all who took the time to respond. I was apprehensive since the issue seems a bit elementary but the feedback was awesome.

@Kyle J. Thanks for the reply! Currently the lease doesn’t stipulate payment method(s) so that’s definitely something I’ll look to add with the next tenant. Additionally, lease states that late fee is assessed after 5 days. So when I texted them on the first and asked why they had not paid, they relied “well technically we have 5 days” - how would you reply to that? Obviously don’t want this to be a recurring theme.

I know the girl does have a checking account, but I will still offer several payment method options from now on - just not me driving out there. Not that it’s a major inconvenience currently but really just the principle of the matter.

@Syed Firoz thank you for getting back to me. What did your pay to quit letter consist of? Is there a template you used? Also, what do you mean by 3-4 months from SD? Thanks again!

@Syed Firoz thank you for getting back to me. What did your pay to quit letter consist of? Is there a template you used? Also, what do you mean by 3-4 months from SD? Thanks again!

@Kelly Byrd thanks for the reply! We did discuss payment when lease was signed and I demonstrated to them how to use Venmo, but they procrastinated downloading the app and then weren’t able to set it up. I love the idea of a comprehensive “new tenant handbook” and will definitely implement that with future tenants. I didn’t expect payment method to come up as an issue but here we are!