All Forum Posts by: Chuck K

I moved out several months ago and renovated the place completely, I had some neighbors and co-workers actually show interest and ask when I'm putting it on market. One said he'd like to buy it for his mother. The house is empty and I live few blocks away. I'm thinking about testing the market on my own at first, the home has some attractive features and is located in a desirable neighborhood. I have a friend who's a RE agent and offered to help and is the one encouraged me to try to sell it on my own, ran a CMA for me, etc. I can handle most of the marketing and listing on various sites (I'll probably not list on MLS initially) but not sure about the legal and other paperwork that'll be involved, how do I screen for serious buyers, what are the main pitfalls, and if I get an offer from a private party, how do you arrange closing, should I hire a RE lawyer, what do they usually charge? Any advice or suggestions or direction for information will be much appreciated.

I got a letter from my lender saying there's a escrow balance shortfall after they've conducted an account review. I can pay it upfront or pay it in 12 monthly installments by allowing them to take the additional amount automatically every month by adding it to my monthly mortgage payment. It sounds reasonable (no fees, penalties, etc..), but I'm always suspicious when a big bank is trying to appear like they're helping out?

Yes, replacement windows. Not sure what you mean about the 1/4 round transition? Right now, they just have caulking on the inside, here's what it looks like:

Replacing windows and the company replacing the windows won't do anything about the inside window trim, they've already started so I can't go somewhere else. My question is (I have 20 windows) what should I expect to pay to hire someone to do the trim, is there a good place to buy the trim or let the contractor handle it? Finally, is this a DIY type of project, I have a couple of weeks to get things finished?

Thanks again folks, always great comments and insights.

Jon: Thanks for the response, 80K houses are renting $700-$800, I've been checking all price ranges. I plan to manage it myself, we have very low taxes, and I think I can squeeze some positive cash flow, after checking more, I believe I might be able to get $1300. My PITI is around $1050. The house should have very little maintenance for a long period of time since I made some major improvements in the last few years. I also have a 4% loan, if I sell it and buy something else, the best rate I can get is 5.5% last I checked. Plus, I won't have to worry about sinking any more money into fixing a new place up, this is one is ready and in tip top shape. Plus, it's familiar to me as a first timer, I know the house upside down. The market is soft right here, I am not sure how long it would sit on the market and I can start collecting rent now and if I change my mind, I can always sell it. I still like to hear if you think I'm very far off in my line of thinking?

I've bought a new house and I was planning to turn my old house into a rental, I worked the numbers and they make sense financially for me. It'll be my foot into the door of real estate in which I've always held a passion and an interest. In my research, I've read books and here on BP, but I've talked to several friends and family members who are landlording and every single one of them is discouraging and advising against it. Almost every one of them tells me to sell the house and take the equity and run. Most tell me about the headaches of dealing with tenants and how they'll destroy everything I worked hard to fix and update. I don't understand if they're just negative or really have my interest in mind? One person told me how landlording caused him physical problems and needed medical attention. I guess I'm looking to BP for few words of encouragement! :help:

This is the advice I got from a relative six years ago when real estate looked like it would never stop going up, gold was like $500 back then. He had liquidated most of his real-estate holdings (he owned several homes and apartment buildings) and sunk it all into gold. We thought he was nuts back then.

I saw him again few weeks ago before the market downturn and he said gold is going to $5000 and real estate has several years before it bottoms. He advised me to sell any real estate and put it into gold, does it still make sense when gold is at all time highs? I was looking into buy and hold and getting into the residential rental space, now I'm questioning if it's the right time?

Do any of these work for online or phone orders?

Thanks to everyone for the great responses, I'm digesting every bit and reading up on the rest.

I have another question, I had refinanced my previous residence with a 15-year mortgage, if I decide to rent it out, would it make sense to refinance it now for 30 years to improve my cash flow prospects?

Hello Jon, the old house is worth around 170K, I have a 15 yr mortgage for 120K at 4.5%. It is in a good neighborhood. Rental for similar properties are going between $1200-$1300. I'd appreciate your feedback.