All Forum Posts by: Catie Sherry

Hi all,

My husband and I are looking for a CPA that is well-versed in real estate investing tax strategies. We are small fish still. We only have 2 STRs and are doing a "live and flip" that will be our third STR when we are complete. We property manage and clean our two STRs, and we both work full time jobs. I listen to the Tax Smart Real Estate Podcast, and while I would love to use their tax planning and CPA services...I'm not sure the cost would be equal to savings since we only have 2 active STRs. Has anyone used them before? Does anyone have other tax planning/CPA recommendations in the Raleigh NC or Sanford NC area?

Thank you all! Still a newbie at this :) 

I think Martha Lucas is a realtor and property manager in Sanford. I met her once at a home showing and she seemed like she knew what she was doing. Her phone is 919-280-2484. It's a place to start at least. We are also investing in Sanford, so reach out if you ever want to chat! 

Thank you both! $1900 is our gross income before expenses. It's a little low compared to what normal STRs bring in because right now we are only allowing stays that are 30 nights+. We did this to get on the market quickly because true STRs in this area require a permit and we didn't know how long that process would take. We may transition to shorter stays in a few months. We are currently booked the whole way from Feb-July and then all of September! :) 

Investment Info:

Townhouse buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $217,000
Cash invested: $45,000

STR in Raleigh.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Raleigh is an up and coming area and I go to school at NCSU, so it is close to where I live.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

We offered over asking price and put 20% down knowing that it was a good area to invest and did not need major improvements.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional loan.

How did you add value to the deal?

We renovated the kitchen, bathrooms, and light fixtures to make it more modern and higher quality materials.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Lesson-moving quickly is key.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Mary Hodges was our lender from Equity Resources INC, she is great. Allee Harrell was our buyer agent, she's the best. Tell these ladies we sent you!