All Forum Posts by: Brendon Seeley

@Adam Soelberg Hey Adam, lets link up. Send me a PM with your info and we can get together. I live in Yakima but go through Ellensburg frequently.

Way to go!

Hi Bethany, there are many schools of thought on this. My opinion is that you should take the class. The best investors are the most well-rounded ones. I became a real estate agent to familiarize myself with the sales side of it so I could know the transaction process when buying my own property for flips or holds. You don't need to be a full-time agent or drop everything you are doing with art to learn.

There is also no getting around learning the transaction side of real estate. You need to know the sales process, lending, escrow, title, all of it. So you can go it on your own, or learn through being an agent, being an escrow officer/title officer, loan officer, with a mentor, etc. Embrace learning everything you can, even the boring stuff!

My advice is no. As a broker we comp multi-family based on cap-rate, income, location, plus condition, amenities etc. Always comp to like-properties: 

• SFH - SFH
• MFH - MFH
• Condo - Condo
• Ranch - Ranch

You can get a general idea, but I would advise sticking to the type of the property.

@Jason Parker The suggestions above are great. You want to be on the lookout for as much as possible, while balancing not over-analyzing/scaring yourself from the deal which is easy to do. You will not catch everything, there is always something you will miss, and will need a full home inspection to catch as much as possible. Take the time to practice though. View homes that are currently on the market, go to open houses. They don't have to be fixers. Take note of:

• Siding
• Trim
• Gutters
• Roof
• HVAC
• Plumbing (flush a toilet or turn on a faucet)
• Foundation
• Paint
• Kitchen
• Mold
• Windows
• Insulation
• Etc

The more homes you look at the more things you will be better prepared to be aware of.

Considering the snow/moisture in the area, my personal preference is luxury vinyl plank flooring. Moisture resistant (some argue waterproof), affordable, looks good, customizable.

@Joe Crupi Just the nature of the beast. Not sure if you are working with a bank. Personally, I would shop around for independent mortgage lenders and work with them since, in my experience, they tend to be quicker and a little bit more flexible on their lending. Many big box banks have strict lending requirements, not all bad but check out your options.

@Troy P. welcome to the community. I'm sure you are as excited as I was when I first started browsing the forums. Great job making the jump into REI. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions.

@Iris Hou No problem. Still, consider states even with higher taxes. There is always give and take, taxes might be high but property values could be low and your dollar might go far for utilities. If the numbers make sense, then you are good. If you are investing out of state, spend a lot of time building your "core four".

Most states have laws that tilt in favor of the tenant. However, there are states like Texas that are known to have fair laws that are equally beneficial to the landlord and tenant. It falls on you to do your due-diligence of the law to make sure you are adequately prepared for the risks, no matter which market you invest in.