All Forum Posts by: Chris Schwagerl

@Chris Schwagerl That's an interesting experiment. Did you survey your tenants or was it learn-by-doing?  I'm undergoing the same experiment actually. I haven't gotten direct feedback but I get the sense that tenants prefer getting charged the flat rate. Only starting to bill back utilities on the multis.

 Just curious the time commitment/work required on your part. Was it comparable between the two, or was one easier than the other? I would have though the second would be a pain. 

Hey BP, I have been talking to a lot of investors purchasing for AirBnB and even headed out west to see some new construction being valued for its AirBnB potential. Do you guys think this kind of investing (STR) is sustainable.

Couple thoughts of mine of why I think it could be volatile: 

1. Traveling is sometimes a trend. Tiktok has made it cool to go to one place one month and then another next month

2. Heard AirBnb is getting more strict with their regulations - larger companies/hotels are now listing their properties there. 

3. AirBnb is getting more expensive. Recently found that it was $200 cheaper to use Booking.com than AirBnB. The nightly cost was the same. After all the taxes and fees being charged on AirBnb it didn't make sense for a short trip. Possibly for a longer stay it could be justified. 

4. People are buying very expensive homes (1M and up) and hoping to get crazy returns - recession could impact how nice of a place people would rent. I hear lots of people who own airbnbs are getting most of their requests from 20 year olds looking to party in their mansion. 

Would love to hear what people have to say!

Hi everyone! 

I'm a renter in NYC, with my partner and two dogs.  I have amassed a decent amount of savings which I have put in the stock market, but would like to consider putting between $100-150k into real estate, but I'm really not sure how and would love some guidance.  Some initial thoughts / questions:

1) I have done the STR/AirBnB game, and I know it's not for me (at least the way I did it). I bought and renovated an A-frame upstate for $400k, put in $150k, sold after a few years for $700k, but it wasn't worth the stress of making AirBnB guests happy, managing a renovation, all while having a very involved 9-5 job. If I knew a really good, dependable property manager that didn't take a hefty cut, I would be possibly interested again (companies like RedCottage in upstate NY take around 20%-25%).

2) My partner and I aren't ready to buy a house together yet, but if/when we get married in the next couple years we would want to.  If I have money sunk into a different real estate investment, does that prove to be a challenge in terms of having the capital for a downpayment on a primary residence?  

3) I'm leaning towards buying a house/condo that I can do some minor updates to, and turn into an LTR.  Some questions with this route:

- If I have a 9-5, I can see it being a real headache when things go wrong and having to deal with it immediately - is it hard to find property managers, and should I?  Or should I get to know the tradesmen in the area, so I can call them up to handle problems? 

- How do you narrow in on _where_ it should be?  I know NYC really well, but it's so expensive, so I get the feeling that $100-150k won't take me very far. I keep hearing that place doesn't matter so as long as you understand the real estate market there and can get someone you trust to manage it?  

- Between studios, 1-br, and 2-br, is there a certain one that yields more "stable" tenants?  What are the pros/cons in your experience?

Any other advice would be greatly appreciated, especially on approaches that I might not have considered!

Hi guys, I have 5 properties and I am struggling to manage them. I do have a full time job and a family but besides that, its only 5 properties. By managing I mean paying utilities when the tenant moves out, getting a new tenant in, paying mortgages , keeping track of expenses for taxes and which mortgage company sold which mortgage to who and registering on the new companies  website so I could pay the monthly mortgage...

I know a full time job does take a lot of my time. But I dont have many properties either.

How do people deal with 100-200 properties? 

May be they have bookkeepers? Or their accountants are paying mortgages for them? 

But you have to trust those people. You hear so many stories about athletes who trusted someone but those people scammed them out of their money...

I would love to expand but not sure how if I am already struggling with only 5 properties...

Good day,

Hello everyone, my name is Courtney. I'm rather new to investing in real estate. I've done 4 wholesale deals, but I want to pivot into Buy and Hold multifamily IMMEDIATELY and start house hacking. I currently want to sell my current home through a creative financing strategy so I can pull 40k-50k out of it then acquire a multifamily to move in. My home has 253k to pay off and the ARV is 360-20k in rehab. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Hello, a family applied to rent my house. They are great and have "5 Pomeranians. All shots are up to date and they are seniors."

The dogs have been living in their house (which they are selling) and things are under control.

Is it a good idea? What additional info shall I ask and what amount of pet deposit is reasonable for such a large dog family? The house is in Houston area. Thanks!

I believe this Is the greatest opportunity, not because of pricing, but because your weaknesses will be exposed. It is easy to be an investor in a bull market, this market will force many to learn the fundamentals of real estate which will serve to benefit you greatly. A great market does not teach you what a recession will. For those on the fence, get off.