All Forum Posts by: Chris Policicchio

Hi @Shimon Gorodetski!  There's a lot to unpack in your questions.  If you are not local to the area, I'd recommend finding an agent, getting on some wholesale buyers lists, and reviewing other discussions in this forum.  Everyone has an opinion on things like best neighborhoods to invest in for flips, what you should or not should be aware of, etc.  But I can assure you, in almost every neighborhood in Pittsburgh, there are investors who do well and those who do not!  

I think finding an agent might be a good route to get a better lay of the land.  Good luck!

I had a SDIRA that I used for several buy and holds. It was not an issue for me. I use Property Management for my rentals anyways, so I was already hands off. I have also acted as a private lender out of my SDIRAs. IMO, at the end of the day, it really comes down to what your goals are. I ended up selling my SDIRA properties and invest in a syndication. The properties I had in the SDIRA did well enough over a few years that when I sold them, it opened the door to more deals. Of course, if you have rentals in an IRA, you won't get the passive tax benefits.

Done.  Let me know if you don't get it for some reason.

Hey @David Lee Hall, III! I have limited experience here and I haven't done it my self, but the two most recent times I've needed windows, I have used Windows R Us. That's mostly because I couldn't get decent prices from other vendors. It's been 4-5 years since I've looked at Jay Scott's book, but personally, I'm not sure I'd put as much value into it. While I don't remember details, I think coming up with a global (or national in this case) price guide is going to be very difficult. I picked up an estimation guide at a REIA Rehab subgroup several years ago. I still use it as a guide when coming up with ballpark estimates for acquisition and rehab. That guide estimates double-hung replacement windows at $40/sq ft. While it doesn't say specifically, I'm assume that's materials and installation. Hope that helps!

@Heather Moore Sure thing!  Estimating rehab will be very difficult to do without seeing a property.  You can make some general assumptions (if you'd like) and ballpark estimates (e.g. estimate new roof, furnace, etc.).  But unless you see the place or talk to the owner or an agent, etc, it's near impossible to know what a rehab budget might look like.   

I typically use Rentometer, Zillow, and Craigslist for estimating rent.  Mainly Rentometer and Craigslist.  I use the free resources Rentometer provides.  I like it because it gives a range of rent.  

Hope that helps!  Let me know if you have more questions.

@Heather Moore I'd recommend looking at additional data points, too.  Looking at recently sold multifamily on Zillow is a great start and an important data point.  But it can be misleading because you won't know if the properties were rented or vacant, you won't know what the market rent is, how utilities are divided and who pays for what, and what, if any, repairs were required at purchase.  I think having a good idea on range of rent and potential rehab repairs are important variables.  Good luck!

Hi Heather! Are you looking to track all sales (i.e. mls properties listed for sale *and* off-market?) And are you looking to track all of Allegheny County? Or just certain neighborhoods or zip codes? And what about property type (i.e. SFH, duplex, triplex, 4-plex, 5-19)?

Also, do you know how you plan to use this information?  

Sorry for all of the questions...but I want to understand the problem you want to solve before I throw out a suggestion. If you are going to manually track anything, you likely want to have a fairly refined area/target (e.g. SFH in West Mifflin). If you start adding too many variables, it's going to be hard to track anything manually.

Anyways, if you give me a little more info, I might have a suggestion or two to try and help out.

Thanks!

Chris 

Thanks @David Lee Hall, III.  The title company is local.  And I get that I'm not going to get back the full amount.  The part that I don't agree with it, is they are giving me 2% less back than what I should receive, as if I paid the taxes early to get the 2% discount.  They are telling me that's standard.  I emailed another title company last night and they told me this is in fact how it's done...which is really baffling to me.  Oh well.  It's not a lot of money.  I just wish it made sense!

I'm closing on the sale of a flip tomorrow and the title company is telling me that my proration of school taxes is based on the 2% discount, even though I didn't pay the full amount OR pay early enough to receive the 2% discount.  

Here are the details:  

The property is in Woodland Hills School District.  Year runs from 7/1/2020 through 6/30/2021.  Annual taxes are $2365.04.  Because of the timing of this closing and the fact that this was supposed to close in October, I choose to pay an installment (so I paid $788.36 or one third).  Obviously, there is no 2% discount on an installment.

Since the school year runs from 7/1 through 6/30 and I'll own the house for five months during that time, I am responsible for about $991.44. Of that amount, I have already paid $788.36, so I should owe an additional $203.08.  However, the title company is telling me different.  In the end, it's about a $30 difference.  It's not the end of the world, but it makes no sense to me.  

What the title company is showing on the HUD is a DEBIT of the full year amount (with no discount). So that's a debit of $2365.04. Then, they are only crediting me back as if I paid and received a 2% discount. They told me it's "industry standard."

I've been on the other side of this and was specifically told if the 2% discount was not taken advantage of, then the buyer does not get that benefit...which makes sense to me.  

Thoughts?

Hey @Brendan August!  Just to throw one more opinion at you...I think it really comes down to what your dad wants to do.  If he's never owned a rental property and he's never wanted to, it might not be fair to ask him to do it now.  However, it he's been intrigued by the idea of owning a rental, then now might be the time.  Flipping the property could certainly be challenging, too, but potentially really worth it.  I like @David Lee Hall, III's post.  If your dad can live there while it's rehabbed (fully or partially), that might be your ticket.  But you need to be very sure about your rehab budget, comps in the area and estimated timeline.  Family partnerships always scare me.  If this is everyone's first real estate investment, IMO, this has the potential to get really sticky.  Also, like @David Lee Hall, III, if you need a second (or third) opinion on estimates or need some contacts for roof, hvac, etc., feel free to reach out.  Good luck!  Let us know what you decide!