All Forum Posts by: Bruce Clark

@Justin Porco I am also in your area. I have units throughout the valley, and I actually recently picked up a couple near you in Weirton. I am always looking for people to work with in the area, and I'd be happy to help you with anything I can. Feel free to PM me anytime with any questions you have. My office is in Wheeling (I'm an attorney "by day."), so if you are ever in the area, I'd also be happy to get lunch or a coffee.

@joe 

@Joe Hughesundefined I'd  be open for coffee or lunch anytime. My office is downtown on Chapline Street. Just let me know when you are around, and we can figure something out.

@David Edwards your question seems to be different than the question that @Ibrahim Hughes is asking. He is trying to convince property owners to give him a quit claim deed with regard to properties that have been abandoned. if a person is giving you a property, a quit claim deed will work because the property is free. It seems you are trying to purchase a property but the seller has title under a quit claim deed. This is a different situation. I do not have much guidance for Ibrahim, but I can give you some guidance. When a person transfers property via a quit claim deed, they are only transferring what, if any, ownership they have in the property and they are not making any warranties regarding their ownership. They are essentially saying, "I may own all of the property; I may own some of it; or I may own none of it, but I am giving you whatever I own." As you can see, these deeds are not the most desirable. However, just because someone owns a property pursuant to a quit claim deed, does not necessarily mean there is a problem. It does mean that you need to be very careful when purchasing the property though. Specifically, you need to hire a real estate attorney to conduct a title search and issue a title opinion. The title opinion will reveal what, if any, interest the seller owns. If the title opinion reveals that the sellers owns 100% of the property, then you can move forward and the quit claim deed is not an issue. If the title opinion reveals that the seller only owns a portion of the property or does not own it at all, then you need to proceed accordingly. Costs of title opinions are going to vary by region. In my area, they can be obtained for about $1,000. 

Hope this helps.

I recently purchased a two story building. The first floor is occupied by a computer company, and they have already signed a lease with me. The second floor needs a complete rehab. The second floor currently has two units. You come up the stairs and on to the left is a decent sized one bed, one bath unit. On the right is a small efficiency unit. It's basically one room with a bathroom. It previously had a kitchenette, but it has been removed. In my market, efficiency units are hard to rent, and they really are not worth the hassle. My initial thought was to simply combine the units, and create what would be a large 2 bedroom, 2 bath unit. This would probably rent for around $900 per month as apposed to the one bedroom, which would rent for about $600.

My other thought was to keep the layout as is, and use the efficiency as an air B&B. I have no experience with short term rentals, so I am not certain how to weigh this option.

What research should I do? What costs and expenses are involved with short term rentals? What else should I consider?

All comments, insights, advice welcome. Thank you in advance!

I recently purchased a two story building. The first floor is occupied by a computer company, and they have already signed a lease with me. The second floor needs a complete rehab. The second floor currently has two units. You come up the stairs and on to the left is a decent sized one bed, one bath unit. On the right is a small efficiency unit. It's basically one room with a bathroom. It previously had a kitchenette, but it has been removed. In my market, efficiency units are hard to rent, and they really are not worth the hassle. My initial thought was to simply combine the units, and create what would be a large 2 bedroom, 2 bath unit. This would probably rent for around $900 per month as apposed to the one bedroom, which would rent for about $600. 

My other thought was to keep the layout as is, and use the efficiency as an air B&B. I have no experience with short term rentals, so I am not certain how to weigh this option.

What research should I do? What costs and expenses are involved with short term rentals? What else should I consider?

All comments, insights, advice welcome. Thank you in advance!

I currently own a house that I previously lived in for 5 years. I moved out two years ago, and it has been a rental ever since. The house is in very good shape (I used to live there) and rarely needs maintenance or repairs (fingers crossed). Also, I have a great tenant, who just signed her second lease. She pays rent early every month, maintains the landscaping - she really is perfect. The house currently cashflows $350 per month after all expenses are paid. (Rent is $650 and mortgage, taxes, insurance are around $250)

With all of this said, I am wondering if I should sell this house. I originally bought the house for $24,500 in 2010. I fixed it up before I moved into it and lived in it for 5 years. Right now I could sell it for $50,000 pretty easy and I only owe about $18,000. I am not an accountant, but it is my understanding that if I sold it today I could I would stand to make a $25,000 profit and avoid taxes on that money given that I used the house as my primary residence up until 2 years ago. Also, I could use the approximately $25,000 as a down payment on something larger - maybe a 4 or 5 plex giving me, at the very least, the same cashflow but probably more.

On the other hand, I keep thinking that I have a nice unit with a great tenant, that cashflows $350 a month. Maybe I should just keep it and not mess with a good  thing.

What do you think? Thanks in advance for your help!

I think this is what I will do. Ill take my contractor (who I trust) to the house and see if he is concerned about it and if so how much it will cost to fix.

Thanks for the advice!

I have a deal under contract for three small houses that are right next to each other on the same street.  The total price for all three is $64k, so I understand and expect these houses to have some issues. The Inspector looked at all three houses. For two of the houses, he did not find any significant issues - need some gfi outlets, a window does not close properly, roof is old but is not leaking etc. 

However, with one of the houses, he said the slab is sagging. He said the living room and kitchen on one side of the house are significantly lower than the bedrooms on the other side. He said he cannot tell when this happened or how much of an issue it is. He said it may have just settled that way and not be an issue, but he cannot tell.

I have no experience with houses built on slabs. All of my houses are on underground foundations. What should I do? Is this a big deal or not much of a concern? Is there a way to fix this for a reasonable price? Should I attempt to renegotiate the price for all three or tell the seller I just want two of the three?

Any and all advice is welcome. Thanks in advance.

I have found an off market deal on a vacation rental. I have discussed the property with the current owner and he wants to sell quickly. Although I have not nailed down a sales price, I am very confident that, if he can sell the property immediately, he will sell for 550k or less, which would be about $100k under the market value.

I have also spoken to an investor who owns other vacation properties in the general area and knows the market. He indicated that he would be very interested in buying the property if we can get it at $550k or less. He also has funds available via a line of credit to purchase the property immediately.

After discussing the deal with the investor, we both agreed that we could either immediately list the property at around 675k and flip it for a nice profit or we could refinance the property, pull his cash back out, and hold it as a cash flowing rental. We both agreed that after we got the property under contract, and got some more specifics, we could decide on the best course.

I told the investor that I want to own a percentage of the deal regardless, and he was fine with that setup. However, my question is, what is a fair percentage for me to ask for? I am bringing the deal to the table at a significant discount. However, I will not have any of my own cash tied up. 

I have found an off market deal on a vacation rental. I have discussed the property with the current owner and he wants to sell quickly. Although I have not nailed down a sales price, I am very confident that, if he can sell the property immediately, he will sell for 550k or less, which would be about $100k under the market value.

I have also spoken to an investor who owns other vacation properties in the general area and knows the market. He indicated that he would be very interested in buying the property if we can get it at $550k or less. He also has funds available via a line of credit to purchase the property immediately. 

After discussing the deal with the investor, we both agreed that we could either immediately list the property at around 675k and flip it for a nice profit or we could refinance the property, pull his cash back out, and hold it as a cash flowing rental. We both agreed that after we got the property under contract, and got some more specifics, we could decide on the best course.

I told the investor that  I want to own a percentage of the deal regardless, and he was fine with that setup. However, my question is, what is a fair percentage for me to ask for? I am bringing the deal to the table at a significant discount. However, I will not have any of my own cash tied up.