All Forum Posts by: Alex Chin

@Brendon Stewart - I believe that @Account Closed is based out of Everett and has all his holdings in the area.

I think that the areas north and south of Seattle will appeal to different approaches to real estate investing. North, you'll see more significant appreciation and stable tenant base. Jobs tend to be a bit better due to the influence from Boeing and the ancillary businesses that have grown up around it. South in Tacoma/Lacey, you'll find better opportunities for direct cash-flow as well as a lot more flippers. The tenant base tends to have lower incomes than in Snohomish and you'll have more of a transient, rent oriented population.

Hello BP.

I have a individual that is interested in funding one of my projects as a private money deal, but they have concerns about the paperwork and tax documents being a serious hassle. I have always done conventional mortgages, so this area is new to me and I would appreciate more experienced investors chiming in with their opinions. 

As a bit of background: I have a couple of buy-hold rentals currently held by my LLC. The private money loan (PML) would go to the LLC of which I am the sole owner. My goal is to minimize the amount of paperwork my lender will need to fill out and process.

1. How difficult is the process of filing tax documentation for a private money loan? Would you recommend hiring a CPA to draw up the documents or is it simple enough that an investor should be able handle it themself? 

2. I have a simple promissory note already drawn up with terms that both the lender and I are happy about; my lawyer has already reviewed and ok'd it. Are there any other documents you would recommend having in place?

Thank you for your input, please let me know if there are any questions I can answer.

Keywords: CPA Accountant Tax Taxes 1099

I also recently saw a condominium hit the market, 2bd/2ba with about 875sqft., ask was about $280K. If you can get it at that price, it's a great bargain.

@Julie Marquez - well, it's in Tacoma, so I guarantee that if nothing else, there's construction going on for I-5.

Feels like they've been working on the freeway forever, certainly I can't remember a time when there wasn't some kind of construction project going on when I passed through.

Buy another multifamily.

@Tim Sutton - I think a lot of the numbers look very solid, if there are no major defects in the building such as weird layouts, or missing elements, then your next step should be to get a close inspection of the plumbing to make sure you won't be replacing all the pipes in 5 years, check the electrical to ensure you have good electrical panels and modern wiring, get a timeline on the life of the roof, and make sure the foundation gets a good look.

If these major ticket items are fine, then I would say to get this one under contract and start moving forwards. Numbers look good, even if the repairs quadruple, then you're still going to be cash flowing well in the long run, don't worry about a temporary loss on your books initially.

I was working with Freedom Mortgage, but do not recommend them and intend to refinance to move my account to another lender in the spring.

Doesn't sound quite right. I had a duplex appraised last year in Tacoma, it was an expedited job and cost me $1,100. Non-expedited would have been about $650.

I did recently have an inspection of a 6-unit apartment building run me $1,500; that was quite the hit but would have been worth it if the seller had been willing to compromise on price as it would have basically given me a complete scope of work to give to the GC for repairs.

@Tom Pritchett - Get in contact with @Troy Fisher, @Tiffany Plovie, and @Kevin C.. They run the Kirkland, Seattle, and Lakewood/Tacoma meet-ups respectively.

I have a close friend who is looking at purchasing in the Redwood City area.

He has found a duplex but it is currently only permitted as single-family home and the seller is not willing to complete the permitting process.

My question is: Do you or someone you know, have experience with converting SFRs to duplexes and the cost/time/paperwork involved with that process? Is it a route that is feasible for a non-investor, someone who just wants to buy a home they can househack and potentially convert to their long-term residence a few years down the road?

Keywords: California. San Francisco.