All Forum Posts by: Carla Carvalho

@Ann North Can I please get more details here or via pm. At minimum location. We are seriously looking to add to our portfolio and have put several offers in. We also recently bought on Kling in SC in 11/2018. Sounds like a great home. thanks!

We went looking for a MFR in LA and instead found a "highly motivated" seller on a SFR (10% CoC) in Studio City. So now we're back looking for MFR's. I've learned a couple important things about LA Real Estate (I live in SF Bay Area.)

1) The vacancy rate is insanely low. For those people who refuse to invest in LA because "it's expensive," I offer that it's also expensive in Bumblewick, USA to not have a tenant.

2) Studio City attracts a lot of wealthy people. While I'm quite happy with my sexy rent, these people move around a lot: their show ends, they buy a house, their company strikes it rich and they're out. Going forward, I'm looking for a MFR in an area where people have "lived for a long time." Even if that means sacrificing some rent. Transitions are expensive and stressful....

Back to the MFR - We're looking for something in the $1.5-2.8 range. I need doors (trying to get REPS status despite another career,) so West Hollywood etc are out.... Any advice appreciated!

Guys I am looking for multi-family mentorship in Los Angeles. We are planning to purchase soon,but I want to go in with eyes wide open. Who should I call?

Hello,

I have invested before but Los Angeles is new to us. Somehow on our first trip we found ourselves a "highly motivated" Seller and a gorgeous SFR house in Studio City. Before I knew it, we were in contract. We have 60 days to figure out how to use this gem (seller gets 60 day rent back due to personal circumstance.) 4 beds, 4 baths, new pool, new hot tub, newly remodeled 2012. Flat part of SC near 101. Projected rent will easily cover expenses with cashflow $750-1000/month. But is this best use of this type of property? What has been your experience with "corporate rentals" (or 30 day rentals) in this market - and how do I get connected? I don't live in LA so can't stomach a night-to-night rental - the amount of work would knock out any gains based on my experience elsewhere.

Thank you for your input! :)

@Karen Margrave @Benjamin Goodpasture - glad that you are safe in Redding. I own a vacation rental in Napa, and last fall's fires missed by 1 mile. It was scary times, as I'm sure is the case in Redding right now. While our VR functions as a nightly rental, we wanted to "do the right thing" after the fires and offer the home to fire evacuees. The problem that we found was that the insurance companies were paying paltry rates. I certainly didn't expect the revenue that I was making on our VR, but some of these highly reputable insurance companies ("like a good neighbor...") were offering fire victims $2K-$3k/month for their burned $2 million properties. Also, the Attorney General in CA also prosecuted a lot of people under the Anti-Price Gouging laws for "price gouging" on rents. That is, rents >10% higher post-fire than pre-fire are illegal, so please do your math carefully.

@Aleejandro Dela Vega Great post. We were soooo close to buying in Vegas in 2007- right before the market crashed. Vegas took a huge hit. I remain nervous. However, it’s definitely on my radar for this year. What is your assessment of supply:demand ratio? Do you feel like there’s a lot more supply than demand? There’s so much room to grow in that town...

@Sharon Tseung Hi Sharon, I’m from Bay Area - Santa Clara County - and would like to agree with those that say don’t forget California. Although a SFR House here can easily be the same price as a multi-family elsewhere, so too can rents on a SFR be the same as a 10 unit complex combined elsewhere. Consider that ONE tenant here may give you the same yield as 4-5 tenants elsewhere. That’s 4x less hassle, less PM fees, and luxury tenants can be lower risk. Don’t underestimate the stable equity that CA offers, and remember that CA is NOT just the Bay Area. There are many many different markets here.

@Greg Junge my question exactly. If you get insight on this, can you let me know. I'm looking at a very nice property near me but financing is the trouble.

We acquired a vacation home. We purchased this as a second home with a residential mortgage. Now, however, we have decided to rent this home as a BNB, nightly (it is permitted.) I believe that we should get commercial insurance. We have put the home into an LLC. My concern is that if I switch insurance, my lender will recognize this as a commercial property and call the loan. Does anyone have any insight or experience with this issue, and any tips on which insurance to choose for large groups of bachelorette parties, families, and random drunks in Wine Country? Thanks in advance!

We acquired a vacation home. We purchased this as a second home with a residential mortgage. Now, however, we have decided to rent this home as a BNB, nightly (it is permitted.) I believe that we should get commercial insurance. We have put the home into an LLC. My concern is that if I switch insurance, my lender will recognize this as a commercial property and call the loan. Does anyone have any insight or experience with this issue, and any tips on which insurance to choose for large groups of bachelorette parties, families, and random drunks in Wine Country? Thanks in advance!