All Forum Posts by: Rebecca Knox

One of the biggest takeaways for me was that the City of Milwaukee AirBnB business is at risk of severe mandates ---the severest being that they want to match Madison, requiring STRs (30 day or less rentals) to be owner occupied. If you service the AirBnb/VRBO business or own, now is the time to speak up to your Alders and common council on how this suggested mandate would affect your business. City of Milwaukee AirBnBs are to be licensed and it costs around $475 (might have been $490) Soft stats show that only 25% of STRs in the City of Milwaukee are actually licensed mainly because the city hasn't had the manpower to monitor but now that crime and complaints related to STRs are heightened, the City has its radar on STRs and it was suggested that you look in to licensing yours--people who went through this process said that it was relatively pain free. 

The other thing is review your leases--if you're not using a WI Legal Blank lease, you may want to revisit that. It was suggested your leases be reviewed by a lawyer if you don't use a prominent & professional property management company as there has been a recent case that has caused much concern related to having banned language in leases related to section 704.44 https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/704/44/1m https://mkehometownhosts.org/...

Hi Torrean,

Nice to meet you. My name is Rebecca and my husband, Nick Knox III and I have run Captain Save a Home LLC, Brew City REI Club, Brew City REI Training Cafe and Wisconsin Contractor and Handyman Club based out of Milwaukee, WI for over a decade. My husband is also a licensed realtor with Premier Point Realty. Additionally, I wholesale deals and we buy & hold in SE Wisconsin. Reach out if I can help with anything.

Hi Taylor--I'm in the Milwaukee/SE WI area. Let me know if I can help with anything. 

🔥🔥🔥REMINDER--NEXT WEEK THURSDAY 🔥🔥🔥

We hope you can join us for our SE WI Real Estate Investor/Contractor meetup.

WHEN: Thursday, October 17th, 2024, 6pm-9pm

WHERE: Freight 38, 838 S 1st St, Milwaukee, WI 53204

ADMISSION: $15 cash, CashApp OR Venmo at the door

AGENDA:

6-7PM: Network with the most active local real estate investors & contractors in SE Wisconsin

7-8:30pm: Panel of local real estate experts discussing the new real estate buyer’s commission laws, WI wholesaling laws, and the proposed legislation regarding restrictions on City of Milwaukee AirBnB’s/short term rentals. Open Q & A

Get your questions answered by the top real estate professionals in our market.

Milwaukee seems to be a very popular place for Californians to invest. 

If it were me, I would definitely create a clear operating agreement...especially with friends. 

Forecast every possibility that could go wrong....I'd consult with a very good attorney and an accountant who specializes in real estate investment as they normally have seen every scenario possible. 

I'm in Milwaukee and I've used Citywide Rentals & Property Management for the past several years. We have a very good relationship with the owners however, if we didn't use them, I'd use Welcome Home Milwaukee or MKE Leasing as both get rave reviews from fellow investors and also am friendly with the owners of both. 

These were some questions that I was given in order to interview a property manager:

Basic Questions:

• How long you have been in business?
• Are there any other company names you have done business under in the past?
• Who are the owners of the company?
• What awards or accolades have you earned?
• # of employees
• Are you the largest Property Management Company in your area? If not, who is?
• How many properties / doors do you manage?
• How many Investors do you manage properties for?
• How many of your Investors are out of state?
• What class of properties do you manage?
• What class of properties will you not manage?
• Global Occupancy Rate
• Last 3 months Occupancy Rate
• Avg. Length of Stay per Tennant
• % of the rents collected by the 10th of each month
• Avg. length of time from closing on the house to the day a client gets a check (if in a turnkey situation)
• Avg. Rehab Time
• Avg. Cost of Rehab
• Avg. Initial Tenanting Time – ie the first time a house is rented after rehab is complete
• Avg. Length of Tenant Rollover- ie how long does it take to re-rent a property
• Avg. Cost of Tenant rollover (after the security deposit is applied)
• Avg. Security Deposit amount
• Avg % of Security Deposit returned to renter
• Eviction %
• Avg. Length of Time Per Eviction
• What is the Eviction Process in your State?
• % of the Gross rents allocated to maintenance in the past 3 years
• # of Global turnovers of portfolio under management

Marketing:

• What is your marketing strategy to find quality Tenants?
• Do you have internal staff that handles the marketing for tenants or do you rely on outside rental agents?
• What % of applicants do you approve to become a tenant?
• Where is the Lease Agreement signed?
• Is the signing of the Lease Agreement recorded?
• Do you run background checks on your tenants?

Costs:

• What is your monthly fee?
• Do you charge a monthly fee if the house is vacant?
• What is your Tenant Placement fee?
• What is your upcharge on maintenance issues?
• Do you allow a maintenance retainer to be held in escrow?

Milwaukee is where deals come true!!!

See if F-Street/The Hard Money Company is hiring. 

Also you can get your real estate license at a discount through Premier Point Realty or Homestead Realty. 

Also, you could do side jobs through WI Contractor & Handyman Club. 

Or get a job at a title company such as Stewart, Land Title, Superior Title, etc as they all heavily work with investors and are often hiring.

I've heard of so many side hustles that beginning investors have done--Uber, flipping free stuff or cars, fiverrr/taskrabbit gigs...

I have some deals right now that fit that criteria. If I don't wholesale them, then we will be buying them ourselves and keeping as rentals.