All Forum Posts by: Charlie Lockwood

Hi Rizalene, 

I might be able to help. I have a long term rental in Sparks that I self manage. I've been looking into STR when the long term lease expires. I attend one of the local meetups and have two close contacts that have STR in Sparks and another in midtown (they both self manage). Both of them have been great resources for questions pertinent to STRs in the Reno/Sparks area.

Reach out and connect with me and maybe we can figure out something that would work for you. I'd like to get more experience in the STR realm so could be beneficial to both sides.

Hi Nidia, 

   I live in Reno and have a rental in Sparks. Feel free to reach out with any questions. Unfortunately, I don't have a rec for a contractor. I'd recommend attending the RE Meetup that Alex leads (RE Meetup for wholesalers and flippers). Theres a ton of collective knowledge in the group and a ton of resources. 

I've heard PMI in Reno is good...can't speak from experience, just heard that from a few REI in a local RE Meetup I attend.

Hi BP Fam, 

    I'm curious what everyone recommends for direct mail marketing. I just tried Deal Machine (trial week). It seems to have all the features I'm looking for. I like the driving for dollars app. The main drawback I see is that it seems to want to upsell me for additional features. What other direct mail marketing platforms or software are you using/recommend? 

Thanks in advance,

@John Bernabel I am wondering if you were able to partner with your family member on an FHA loan. I am in a similar boat where I think I'd like to partner with a friend..they get the loan, we go 50/50 on the down payment. Ideally, I'd like to try and get a duplex..How did your experience go partnering on an FHA?

Hi BP community, 

   I recently (2.5 weeks ago) listed my property for rent after having some solid tenants lined up who eventually bailed. 

I'm following B Turner's book on managing rental properites pretty closely but I'm curious your opinions on the follwoing.. 

First some context- I've had a ton of inquiries, most of them don't meet my criteria (650+ cred, 3x monthly rent, etc). It's listed on all the major sites (zillow, realtor, etc). Additionally, my wife is 32 weeks prego so I feel a little bit of a time crunch to get my property filled..baby is expected beginning of March.

Last week, I showed the house to two groups. The first guy has around a 600 credit score, stable job, but isn't able to move in until the end of February. He's in the process of selling his home and going through a divorce...My property is available Feb 1st. 

The other group- both have stable jobs. One has a 750+ credit score, the other around 600. They then shared with me that one of them is a felon and has drug related charges (from 2016). 

My questions to the world of BP are- 

how much does credit matter to you? 

What's your experience, if any, with tenants who have criminal records?

Have you ever selected a tenant who couldn't move in right away? How did you proceed (deposit to hold?)? 

Any other thoughts or advice? 

Thanks for your input, 

Awesome! I'm shocked you could even find something in the Reno area for that cheap. 

@Jameson Schwab Here's an update on my rental. I posted a message on my personal IG a couple weeks ago that I will be renting my 3/1 house in 89431 in Feb. I had two couples come look at the house. Both really liked it. ((Both are teachers (I am as well). 

One of the couples filled out an application that night. They appear to be great tenants (cred score 800, no evictions, good references, solid employment, income at least 3x monthly rent). 

Since then, they've put down a deposit to hold (got that from B Turner's book on managing rentals).  We've agreed on $1850 per month and 1850$ security deposit....plan on signing a lease soon... for Feb 1 move in. 

A couple thoughts - I chose not to post the listing on Zillow or any other online platforms. I think I probably could have gotten closer to 2k if I had marketed it more...BUT, I feel confident in my choice...I guess time will tell and i'll keep you posted on here. 

Gotta give a shout out to Brandon Turner's book on managing rental properties. For the most part, I've followed the steps in the book to a T (I will be self managing). So far, so good. 

Hi Caelan, 

   I just started using avail.co. It's 5$ a month for the unlimited plan or pro plan (I forget the name). This plan allows me to create my own lease or use one of their already created leases...it'll notify tenants of rent due, apply late fees (if necessary), tenants will pay thru the platform, and tenants can put in maintenance requests.  For screening, it does cost $55 (tenant pays) for the whole nine...i.e background check, eviction history, credit report, etc. 

I got the report back in a matter of hours.  I was also able to add/create my own screening/application questions. So far, I like avail. co  but I def need to experience it for a while to give a better rec. 

Take all of this with a grain of salt as this is the only platform i've used thus far and I am a newbie landlord.   I posted a similar question to yours a while back and two ppl mentioned Rentredi. 

Hope this helps, 

@Jameson Schwab   I'm holding off a little longer until I list my rental. Only because it won't be available until Feb 1st. The listing is all ready to go, just need to hit publish. Going to start at 2k. I saw a couple listings on Zillow with similar 3/1 floorplan w/garage and yard for 2k. 

I noticed the listing you're talking about. It has a modular home on the property as the back house. It's been listed for a while, maybe you can get it for closer to 400k.

I'll keep you posted on my listing. Aiming for a few more weeks.