All Forum Posts by: Brian Sipes

Hi Alex. I personally prefer greatschools.net. For my area in Northern Virginia, I have found them useful in helping me identify better schools. In my area, I've been surprised how schools a few miles apart can have drastically different ratings - in one example, an elementary school was a 3 out of 10 and the elementary school right up the street (probably 2 miles or less away) had an 8 out of 10 rating. Fortunately, my rental property is right on the border of the 8 out of 10 school. 

Interestingly, when the school boundaries were re-drawn, the 8 out of 10 school went down to a 6 out of 10 a year later. For me, this illustrated that ratings aren't everything, and there are socioeconomic and other factors that come into play. But parents tend to place a lot of weight on these ratings. If your target market is young families, it is a smart move to factor school ratings into your analysis of rental properties. 

@Al Williamson Thanks for the tips! After much internal debate, I elected to go with the Allure. Will be sure to follow your advice. 

@Blake Burnett - have you considered your military credit union? If you have the ability to join Navy Federal, they offer very good rates. Not sure if they do multi-family or not, but it doesn't hurt to ask. 

It's time to replace 12-year old laminate in a rental property that's turning over. Area to be replaced is approx. 375 sq ft. I would normally throw in some new cheap laminate and call it a day, but I'm thinking about alternative paths this time. Cost is always a concern, but aesthetics and durability are equally important here. The incoming tenants are a couple with 2 young children in a B neighborhood in northern Virginia.

If you were in my shoes would you choose:

1. $0.49/sq ft laminate. 7 mm thick. It's cheap, but it looks like $0.49 laminate and feels very flimsy.

2. $0.69/sq ft laminate. Also 7 mm thick, doesn't look quite as cheap.  Still flimsy. 

3. $1.68/sq ft laminate. 12 mm thick, AC 4 rated. Supposedly scratch-proof. Feels solid. 

4. $1.56/sq ft vinyl, waterproof. 

What say you, BP community? 

I was recently looking at a property with popcorn ceilings. My contractor recommended hanging new 1/4" drywall to cover the popcorn ceiling. Haven't tried it, but it seems like a reasonable, less labor intensive option.  

double post.

@Derrick H., I'm actively looking for buy-and-hold and fix-and-flip deals in the Fredericksburg area. If you have anything, let me know. Thanks. 

@Benigno Cunanan, also review rental listings on Zillow, Rentometer, and Craigslist to get an idea of market rental rates for the areas you are looking at. In Dale City, a few miles down the street can be a $300/month difference in rent. 

@Benigno Cunanan, welcome to BP. I'm very familiar with Dale City. The advice that @Eddy Dumire gave you is good advice and directionally correct. I would classify the K-N streets as B areas (they were C areas after the financial crisis, in my opinion they've returned to B areas recently). In general, you can expect to pay $260k to $320k for MLS-listed houses in this area (of course, you might be able to find off-market deals for less). They tend to rent for around $1800 a month.

There are some A areas. There's a relatively new neighborhood near Ridgefield Dr (near the K streets) with prices from the mid-400k to mid-600ks (again, for MLS-listed houses). House there tend to rent for $2500 to $3000. As @Eddy Dumire mentioned, there are a number of new neighborhoods all along Hoadly Rd.

In my opinion, Dale City is not a great market if you are looking for cash flow. Prices are high relative to the rental income that you can generate, even for houses that you find a deal on. Forget the 1% rule. But there are positives. There is strong demand and the tenants that I attract are high-quality tenants with solid incomes and credit scores. 

Hi Kristina. I own a 4 BR SFH in Woodbridge. I find the demand to be strong. The last time I had a tenant change (approximately 3 years ago), I had 3 applications within hours and ended up with a tenant with very strong credit. Depending on the neighborhood, your potential tenant base includes young families and military families stationed at either Quantico or Ft. Belvoir.

I'm very familiar with the area and am happy to answer any specific questions you might have.