All Forum Posts by: Chris Baber

Interesting.  I"m not sure it's big enough either.  There are several other places close by which do have outside storage, so the ideas obviously works, but the lot is only 5200 sq ft, and leaving room to maneuver, fencing, etc, I'm not sure.

But, it's definitely better than what I've come up with so far, which is bupkis.

Flood plain map shows the flooding going mostly to the other side of the creek, not much on the side I'd buy.

thanks for sharing.

@tyler work

Good idea.  I don't have/use/want Facebook, but I will look for other venues to ask.

the regional manager for vacasa has also reached out to me, and I'll be talking with him on Monday.

I agree with both of you too.  National companies are normally not the better choice, local is almost always better.

However, as I've said, it seems vacasa might be different.

I don't really need convincing that local is better, I generally agree.  The specific reason I posted is because I'm trying to evaluate one specific company claiming to offer local quality service, on a regional basis.

I appreciate all feedback on vacasa that anyone who has used them can offer.

@Michael Smith  Thank you for sharing!

Currently I don't mind managing myself, but even with a second unit just up the road, I will still have turnovers at the same time of day, so I'll still need help from time to time, so it's just a matter of time before I have to get some help.  If vacasa can put the same $ in my pocket (or close), and I can find more deals with the extra time, that's a super big win for me.

I'm glad you've had a mostly good experience, and it sounds like you do recommend them, which is great.

I've had someone from vacasa reach out to me electronically, but I have yet to get someone on the phone that can talk about their ability to service my area.

Hopefully that changes soon :)

PS I lived in Austin for about 10 years about 5 years ago, and always thought New Braunfels was an up and coming place.  If it wasn't so darn hot, I'd probably still live there.  Stay cool my friend!!

Yeah, that's one of the things about vacasa, they are not national, they are regional.  

From their site...

Local Expertise

We hire the best local talent and work with area organizations to promote tourism and economic growth in your community.

Unparalleled service

Because we offer our staff a year-round living wage and plenty of advancement opportunities, they build strong relationships with our homeowners that last for years.

I really do appreciate everyone's input about property managers in general, but I'm really looking for feedback from anyone that has personally used vacasa.  They guarantee they will handle everything, from advertising to guest interaction, cleaning, repairs and even maintenance, and that I will net the same amount as I do now.

Of course I don't believe this, but if it cost me an actual 10% to be completely hands off, that's still a good investment in my opinion.  I am paying 10-15% doing it myself, with Airbnb costs, cleaning costs, supplies, etc.

That's why I'm asking for personal stories.  I want to hear what real people have to say about them, if anyone has used them.

Thanks Danielle,

I don't put much credence in references provided by a company, as any company worth anything will vet those referrals before giving them to me, so there should be no chance of really negative information.  That's why I've asked here, to see if anyone has personal experience with them directly.  i.e. I'm trying to find a non-vetted customer of theirs to ask about the company.

They have provided me lots of information about what they can do, and it all looks great, but the proof is in the pudding, so I'm doing my own research into them.

If you know anyone that has worked with them directly, I'd love to learn about that experience.

I have been reading, listening and thinking a LOT about real estate since making the decision to go all in on building a RE business.  My expertise is in residential, but when looking for deals, I ran across a very small (.12 acre or 5227 sq ft) parcel with a building  that probably needs torn down, filled with junk (it appears to have been a thrift/antiqui/stuff stand).

The building is about 800 sq ft, and the back of the property is a 10' wide shallow creek, but with enough water to hear it flow from the back and sides of the building.  i did not hear it out front.  It's got about 90' of road frontage on a secondary/frontage road leading from the nice part of town North to a touristy smaller town 5 miles North.  It's got mobile home parks close by, old businesses all around, and some houses behind.  It's not a nice part of town, but well loved by the locals.

I have not checked zoning other than to confirm it's commercial, but may also allow more/other uses.

I feel like this road will only get busier and the older properties will end up being upgraded as the town continues to push north.

The property is offered with seller financing for 80k, probably pretty negotiable, but I've not gotten a response from the seller yet.

I feel like the value will only go up from here, but can't figure a way to monetize the property in the meantime.

I don't think the building can be saved, but maybe the original house part could be, I've not been inside yet.

I know people turn larger lots on busy roads that will eventually be swallowed up into driving ranges and rock/stone yards to minimize development costs and monetize a property until it gets bought up, but this isn't big enough to do any of that.  I don't really want to start a business there, but would be happy to raze the place and build something simple to rent, but what?

What can you put on such a small lot affordably that you could rent that doesn't need much parking and would still cash flow?

This is almost certainly not the right 'first commercial venture', but it's got me thinking, and wondering what I could do with it.

I'd love any feedback you might have for me.

Thanks

@Travis Rasmussen

It's just a 1/2 mile up the road from my current one, in Weaverville, NC, just outside Asheville.

Maybe also consider Short Term Rental as an exit strategy (Airbnb).  My home here would maybe rent for 1400, and 1200 is very possible.  It's a remote location, 1/2 hour from 'downtown', with terrible internet and cell service.

But, it's got waterfall views and an acre of forest, so it's a great vacation rental.  I'm currently seeing about $3500/month, and think I can get $4500 in the peak 2-3 months.  Probably 2500 in low season.  So 2-3 times as much as a long term tenant (I have to pay utilities and cleaning and such), and it's a lot more work to self-manage, but with a good property manager, you should see at least a 50% increase over Long Term Rental, and you've got someone inside the house at least weekly to make sure it's in good shape, catch little things before they get bad, etc.  Not to mention probalby an extra $500/month or more in cash FLOW, which is my driving force.  Values are great, but cash flow lets me invest and live a better life NOW, not after I sell for a (hopeful) gain.

Ovbiously not for everyone, but I'm happy with how it's going for me so far.

I'm currently trying to find a good hard money lender/private investor to help me accelerate my next house rehab to get it rented asap.  My peak season starts in about 2 more months.  I had been doing the work myself, but the money I'm 'saving' is going to get lost in missed rental if I don't hire help to finish.  It's all a big, constantly moving puzzle; this real estate thing.

Cool.  I'm glad she seems on board.  Mine did too at first, but reality set in after a few months of washing dishes in the laundry sink, and having plastic hanging in the shower, her enthusiasm waned.

I'm not suggesting you don't do it, just pointing out that the idea of it and the reality of it are not necessarily the same.  With all that said, mine was a total gut job, so if you're just updating stuff, and can get a project completed fairly quickly, the stress shouldn't be as much.  I highly suggest you start with and finish as quickly as possible the kitchen.  It should add the most value to the house (actual appraisal value), and will add the most value to your life in that house also.  Her having a nice new kitchen (if she cooks at all) will make everything much more tolerable; for you both.

Also, a 203k will require you to have bids from licensed contractors, and they will have to do the work and the rehab funds they escrow will be distributed to them as they prove completion of specific jobs.  I don't think you can be your own contractor on that loan, but I could be wrong.

One thing I would suggest is if you can buy the house with an 80/20 loan (or 80/15 if they require 5% down), but set up the 2nd mortgage as a HELOC. This will let you dump all your extra cash flow into the HELOC to pay it down, but let you re-access it to tackle another project when you're ready.

Finally, although it will probably cost you several thousand more to implement/use, perhaps a hard money type lender is a better way to purchase. They are a lot more flexible in their underwriting (almost nothing personal, but using the house values to base everything on), so you can probably get all the money you'll need from them, then will have a year or 18 months to pay them back. You would use their money to purchase, and do the repairs as quickly as you reasonbly can, then go to your bank and get permanent financing (or get your whole mortgage as a HELOC if you can find a bank/credit union to give it to you that way).

It'll cost you a few points to the hard money lender, and a 10-12% rate for the time you have it. That might cost you 10k in additional costs up front, but it would probalby let you get a much better permanent loan once all fixed up, and probably save you several times that over the life of your permanent loan. not to mention the flexibility of a HELOC vs a fully amortized loan if you can get that. I would definitely try to get the highest percentage of your financing as a HELOC that you can, just for the flexibility it offers. you can use it to borrow for your next property, and the next and the next and repairs and more.

Just some ideas to consider.

good luck to you either way!