All Forum Posts by: Brian J Allen

@Colleen F. I disagree about the walkability of Worcester to the hospitals.  There are 3 hospitals that make a triangle between Shrewsbury Street and Belmont Street.  Inside that triangle there is a lot of walkability and rentals.  On the West End of Shrewsbury street by Union Station you have Alta on the Row which will come on line in the next 6 months, from here you can walk to Saint Vincent's hospital very easily along with MCPHS.  What people don't realize is that there are a lot of 3 deckers in that Triangle as well.  Yes you have to pay a premium but you can buy them.  There are a lot of owners I know that will sell, but these properties have value so they need 1031 purchase targets before they let them go.  @Aline Elad my recommendation for anyone looking to do this is to find a local realtor who sells in that area. They will be able to find you stuff. Most of the good stuff trades off MLS so you need a realtor who is tied into the local investors

@Steve Tse, I welcome the public discussion about this, and it is good that you understand that Worcester is heterogenous and there are neighborhoods.  The reality here is that certain people want to be in certain neighborhoods due to location and where they grew up.  They like their shops, and their restaurants.  Then there are the people who are moving to Worcester, and they want something different, maybe more like what you are inquiring about above.  I am also interested to see what others say about the city.

In Worcester, I think your numbers are pretty close, but there are also a lot of Programs between Mass Save, and the City of Worcester that will pay for many of these things if you agree to an income restriction, or sell income restricted.  Also, if you shop around you can do better on some prices.  But I try to encourage my clients to value time to market.  If you hit the ground running you can turn a unit or a building around quicker and get yourself to renting sooner.  Some people are trying to save $10k on the project but it cost them 2 or 3 months and they have a lot of time on task, and a lot of personal overseeing.  I DON'T THINK IT IS WORTH IT.  DO THE PROJECT AND GET ONTO THE NEXT ONE.

@Aline Elad. It is good that you are checking the areas prior to purchase.  What I have observed in Cities like Worcester, MA is that certain areas end up with more crime but it is very isolated.  Yes some areas have better statistics but as a whole crime is general to the area.  And comparing Worcester to other cities of similar size, (Hartford, Springfield, Providence) and even smaller cities (Lawrence, Fall River, New Bedford, Brockton) you will see that overall crime rates are low.  Once again it is good to check the statistics, but as Mark Twain paraphrased from Benjain Disraeli,  there are "Lies, damned lies, and statistics". Best of luck in your search.  Best to have a local realtor to help you out.

Great job.  It is good you were able to learn and make money.  There are contractors in Worcester that can turn something like that over in weeks so you can be collecting $ right away.  And some of the contractors will hold paper as well.  That might be worth exploring next time you have a project.

That is wonderful, but some Cities, like Worcester simply don't let you do it without sprinklers

@chris wang

@Chris Wang I would start with a property manager and get advice, they may be able to do it for you.  Then go to the attorney they recommend.  I would start with these guys.  They do in house property resolution, and have an in house attorney as well.  https://www.trustuspropertysolutions.com/about

@Mike Boss. I have both my agent license and have passed the broker test in MA.  But I am not a broker.  I pay a flat fee to my broker and then i get the extra level of protection if there is an issue.  I also get a transaction coordinator, insurance, office and some other agents to hang out with.  Being an agent or a broker is a lonely profession as a lot of people are competing for the same clients and deals.  Be careful what you wish for.  If you are just trying to buy for yourself, hire an agent.  If you want to make it a career some day then become one.

@Mike Boss You will need E&O insurance, but typically the broker gets that for cheap. Also keep in mind that when you are a new agent, the broker likes to take about 70% of your commission for hosting your license and the minimal help they give you.

As for the class and the test prep.  You can and will pass the test if you want to.  But the question is if having a license is a benefit to what you want to do in real estate.

@Mike Boss. There are lots of positives to being an agent, the most important of these is the ability to help others purchase places and make commissions.  There are downsides as well.  Whenever you are involved in a real estate transaction for yourself you need to notify all parties that you have your license.  Also, if you choose to cold call in a particular area looking for properties for yourself, you are required to disclose to potential sellers that you are an agent.  Often times, if your goal is to purchase for yourself, it is better to use an agent.  This allows you to have that agent work on your behalf when you are doing other things as they are motivated by their commissions.  Additionally you are able to approach sellers directly without having to notify them that you are an agent.  There is a huge subset of property owners who simply hate agents, this allows you to make those transactions happen on your own.