All Forum Posts by: Bryan Bokowy

Hi Everyone!

Quick question, I have some friends interested in buying SFHs for student rentals in Big Rapids (Ferris State University) and Mount Pleasant (Central Michigan University).  Does anyone currently invest in student housing in either of these markets?  If so, is there an investor-friendly RE agent you recommend they reach out to?

Any help is greatly appreciated!  Thank you!

@Alexander Wurm - I just sent you a PM!

@Alexander Wurm - I just send you a PM!

@Brad Waterstraat Thanks for reaching out!  That's awesome you're looking for your first house hack.  House hacking has been one of the best financial decisions I've ever made.  Hopefully it will be for you too.

1) I bought my property in Bridgeport.  I love the area, I think it's up and coming and close to work for me.  But more importantly, the numbers made sense.  I think any area can work as long as your numbers do.  You can use the BP calculators to analyze deals, they were very helpful for me.  Your realtor should also be an investor and can be a huge help when you're looking at properties.

2) It took me about 6 months to find my current place. Although I was under contract twice before I found this one, but ended up backing out for different reasons. I looked at places from the MLS, and some off market properties through my realtor.

3) I recommend using @Brie Schmidt for all your multifamily investing needs.  I learned a lot from her and her team.  I still connect with them today for some rehab strategies and general landlord practices.  She's the best.  Check out her website.  http://www.secondcity-re.com/

4) I would read as much as you can about house hacking and general RE buy and hold investing.  Get your hands on the BP books, read forum posts, start attending the BP meetups if you haven't already, etc.  Also, take your time, don't just buy a property if the numbers aren't there.  I know some people who bought properties when the numbers didn't make sense because they were ready to "get one".  Just know your numbers so when you see a property that makes sense you're ready to move!!  Hope this post helps. Good luck man!!

Hey @John T Lizzo, fortunately I didn't see a big jump in taxes even with it being a reassessment year.  My taxes increased slightly, but nothing near the 20-40% that you've seen.  I'm right in line with what they've been that past few years.

Let me know if you have any other questions.  Good luck with your first house hack!

Chris,

Thanks for reaching out.  The 4 unit is turning out to be a great purchase for me.  House hacking is a great way to get into your first property, live for free, and manage the property since you're living there.  For me, I've learned a lot about being a landlord, managing tenants, rehabbing kitchens and bathrooms, etc.

House hacking is helping me save money to fix up my current property, raise rents, and put most of that money towards my next purchase.  Are you currently looking to purchase your first property?  What areas would you like to buy?  If you don't already have a realtor, and are looking for one, I can put you in touch with who I used.  They are very knowledgeable, and I learned a ton when shopping for my first place.

Good Luck!!

Awesome, thanks everyone for your responses they were very helpful!

Just a quick question about taxes @Brie Schmidt

On Redfin.com the 2016 taxes for my property were $6200.  Lets say my purchase price for this property is $600k (600k x .018 = 10,800) does that mean my taxes will jump up to just about $11k?  Seems like a huge jump.  Given the 2016 assessment, I planned for $7k / year in my pro forma.  If you were me, would you change that number to $11k?

Thanks!

Hey everyone! I'm currently in the process of purchasing my first 4 unit multifamily property in Chicago.  I want to make sure the numbers I have in my pro forma are as accurate as possible before moving forward.  I have a few questions below that I'm hoping I can get some help with.

1) Taxes - I have the annual taxes that I took off Redfin.com from 2016.  I'm sure they've increased since then, what the best way to estimate my current taxes?  Also, would taxes be lower as I'll be living in one of these units? 

2) There is currently laundry on-site in the basement for the four units. I have around $2k built in for water/sewer/garbage.  Is that realistic?  A friend of mine invests just outside the city and his water/sewer/garbage pushes nearly $3k and that's for a 3 unit property.  Also, I'm told that adding washer/dryer in each unit would increase rents.  Has anyone done this?  I just had an inspection done and the inspector advised against it.  He said all it takes is one leak (which is inevitable) from the second floor to cause a ton of damage.  If anyone has put washer/dryer in units for additional rent, what has your experience been like?

3) Rents - I've been looking on Craigslist and Trulia, etc. for comps on what I can get for rent.  However, there is such a huge range that it's hard to tell what is realistic.  Does anyone recommend other avenues?

Thanks! Any help would be greatly appreciated!