All Forum Posts by: Bruce Olsen

@Andresa Guidelli ?

Thanks!

To be considered a bedroom, a room needs a built in closet. 

TL;DR        ;-)

@Will Barnard, there are lot of investors here who would like to buy you a drink when this sad tale is completed. Too many for you to drink (at once, anyway), so accept my wishes for a hell of a bidding war when this thing finally gets on the market. That's probably a more practical gift, anyway.

It's very difficult to live in a rehab, especially when the plumbing is out. Be prepared.

Be sure it's on the market in the spring, especially if it's in a neighborhood that families will want. 

Be certain you understand the target market, and don't under- or over-improve it. Visit lots of open homes (starting now) to see where your competition is. Don't be aafraid to spend if you need to elevate the level of the property.

If sale price/sf is high enough, consider adding another BR/BR, especially if you can make a really nice master suite. Under 500 sf usually doesn't trigger major plan reviews, but check carefully w/the building department to know what's available.

Be very polite to your inspectors.

And have fun!

@Mandy McAllister, Check landlord laws carefully before deciding anything. If you do anything outside the law it can cause major, expensive delays. 

I'd interview a couple of property managers and seek their advice on your legal options. 

Hire one manager, and (if legal) ask them to raise rent to market level w/ the current tenants.  Require them to sign a new lease (if legal) that defines late fees (assuming that's why you haven't been collecting fees). This should also let you collect a deposit. Maybe they'll stay, or will make a counter you can live with, so you won't have to pay to fix it and to cover the vacancy. Do. Not. Waive. The. Deposit.

If they move, clean it up, and get market rates.

You may want to give the tenants a few hundred dollars to help them move, which is only a few months of profit from your new rent--well worth it, if it speeds them happily out the door.

@Danny Cerecedes- Sorry; I used a couple of abbreviations. 

I've found that many clubs exist only to market traveling gurus, where the meeting isn't much more than a hard sell of whoever is in town that weekend. Or they're so focused on the needs of the organizer that they don't really offer any content, or any networking. There were several good clubs in the SF Bay Area, from where we moved recently, so I've been a little disappointed by what I found here.

FIBI is a network of clubs. The name stands for For Investors By Investors. I regularly attend Christina Suter's meeting in Pasadena but all the FIBA chapters have the same no-sales-pitch philosophy. The Pasadena event has a fee. There's usually some networking time allotted, depending on the speaker.

CiA is Club in Action, in Burbank. Matt Skinner is the main organizer (along with Julie Falen). Mat is a developer and investor. Also no hard sales pitches. They take part of the time to analyze deals that people bring to the meeting, which is unique and I've found very useful. There's a fee, and annual memberships are available. 

We're traveling to part of our far-flung (ha!) real estate empire later this week so I won't get to FIBI, but I may get to CiA.

We regularly attend CiA in Burbank and the Pasadena FIBI. I've been to most of the others once. Robert Hall in Glendale sponsors a couple at their offices that are usually good.

We're traveling during this month's meetings; otherwise we'd be happy to meet you there and offer a guest pass to CiA.

Thanks for the stats, @Shane Woods. That's very helpful.

Is Austin played out like everyone seems to say? We almost moved there in mid-2013.

@Barry Herbst That makes sense, then. Most investors shy away from even mentioning a retail price, partly as a time management technique and partly to avoid setting unrealistic expectations (and making the subsequent conversation more difficult).  I wonder if that's an urban myth... any investors have any thoughts on marketing w/ the retail price? 

@Barry Herbst Are you trying to buy the property or get a listing?

I ask because the Zestimate is a retail price, which is is too high for most investment strategies.