All Forum Posts by: Courtney Cotton

@Courtney Cottonso in my experience the insurance company has tables and formulas that they use for appraisals. They don't care what the "real" value is and so paying for an appraisal is a waste. So how much are we talking about. Usually changing the value of the property doesn't change the insurance payment that much. The agent should be doing more to get your rates down. Maybe all you need is to shop the insurance. Usually the savings in insurance wouldn't cover the cost of the appraisal for several years.

SFR or MFU? Singles are relatively cheap to appraise, but a multi-family can be upwards of $500/door :ouch:

Hey @Courtney Cotton, welcome to BP!

I've heard Chris speak a few times, he is a smart guy.

Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of BP:

Start here. You'll get a wealth of REI knowledge and learn how to take full advantage of Bigger Pockets (including how to connect with other local investors).

Listen to the podcasts , get active on the forums & set up key word alerts to be notified when people are discussing topics you're interested in.

Check out the webinars, they are very informative, and there’s usually a new one every week.

I wish you all the best in your investing journey Courtney.

I do not have check writing with my SIDRA . I just request money via a"direction letter" . You cannot manage your own property if you buy it through your IRA so I have money sent to my property manager to do any work that is more than an average bill that my reserves cover [ i.e. painting, new carpet etc.... ] There is a list of self directed IRA's on BP in REI Resources. I use Polycomp out of California. They are very helpful and will answer any questions. If you are going to finance your property you need to find a lender that will give you a non-recourse loan. I recently heard iplan (sp?) out of Ohio is easy to work with.

It's no harder than dealing with a teenager -- Best of luck