All Forum Posts by: Chelsea Ziss

I probably will for that stuff. It was a little creepy,  since we knew she had died (in a nursing home) and all her stuff was still there - even her drivers license! 

 I totally agree with this - The first property we bought is about 3 blocks away from our primary residence. It has already saved a lot time just getting estimates, becuase we can pop over at just about any time.

well I got to go inside for the first time today (my husband had already checked it out.) He made it sound like an absolute pit of despair, so I was expecting the worst. However, I was pleasantly surprised! 

Check out some of the pictures here:  https://goo.gl/photos/DVmhpWaTMbW2VS2LA I somehow did not get pictures of the outside... oh well. Next time.

The basement was as bad as I was expecting, so I wasn't worried about it too much. There is some water damage in the kitchen and bathroom, but that's about it - The gutter had basically fallen off the back of the house, so we know what the cause is. 

It's surprisingly clean for being vacant for 4 years. We'll have to haul all the crap out of it, but it's definitely not anywhere close to some of the bad places I've seen on BP. Thanks everyone for help putting it into perspective.

We do have to redo all the wiring - it's glass fuses and there's no meter. Luckily, because it's such a tiny house, the whole rewire will only cost $1600. 

The furnace looks good, and randomly also has a whole house humidifier installed? Not sure how I feel about that. We're still bouncing back and forth on adding central air. We should have a dumpster there by the weekend, and officially have the deed by Friday.

Haha true! 

there is a very similar market trend in Toledo Ohio in the Old West End - big giant Victorian houses converted into duplexes and triplexes. You can get into one for $30-$60 grand, and rent for $400-$600 per unit. It's also had a little bit of gentrification going on, and if it continues it'll be great for landlords and owners.

We've been thinking about getting it to the market down there, but want to analyse it a little more first - I would prefer to stick to better neighborhoods, but it's hard to turn down that cashflow!

 For sure! Half the reason I'm on BP is because I am able to basically rub shoulders with incredibly successful people in a setting that is basically just conversation. No one is slugging their book or video series for only 3 easy payments of 99.99 or giving advice in the format of vague rah rah you can do it bullsh*t. There is real information, successes and faliures, analysis, case studies, etc. People will tell you if something is or isn't a good idea, but will wish you luck and hope you succeed either way.

Well part of the issue with properties like this is that that are usually a cash purchase - meaning you either need to pay for it yourself, or find an alternate way to finance it. If you have to finance it creatively, you will probably have a shorter loan term and a higher interest rate, which will eat into cash flow. 

On top of that, these super cheap properties usually need a LOT of rehab - which can be crazy expensive. It may also have $10,000 in back taxes you may have to pay.

At the end of the day you'd probably end up having 40-50 grand in it anyway, but with the higher interest rate you'll have a lot more trouble having any cashflow. Buying a more "turnkey" property may yield lower cashflow at first glance, but it usually ends up being less risk.

Then again, I just bought a distressed property for $26,000 so we'll see how that goes....

Honestly, if I get halfway through rehabbing the rental we just purchased, I'll be pretty happy. Sometimes it can be intimidating to read about everyone else's crazy successes when you're just starting out!

 We are planning to hold pretty much indefinitely, so long as it has any sort of cashflow. It is forced air.

We are about to start rehabbing our first rental - a sfh in an A-/B+ neighborhood. It is only 700 sq ft. We are currently under the impression that the furnace works fine (although we don't know for sure.)

My husband / business partner thinks we will need to add central air to command the most for the property. I don't really think it's necessary - we'd probably be able to get an extra $25 in rent, and while it's common for the area to have central air, it is by no means the rule. 

What do you think?