All Forum Posts by: Curtis Bidwell

@Sharon Rosendahl We had 250 landlords from across the state at the legislature Friday before last to voice opposition to the Just Cause legislation.  We had another sizeable group for the Landlords Day On The Hill this past Thursday.  We filled the committee room where they were updating the bill to eliminate Criminal History from being considered in your rental criteria.  Our show of solidarity is having an impact, but we need people emailing their legislators and the committee members proposing these damaging bills.  

You MUST be involved and make your voice heard in the legislature, city and county councils.  If you don’t belong to a landlord association, it’s time to join one!  
Washington State Landlord Assoc. https://www.walandlord.org/
Or Rental Housing Association of Washington at https://www.rhawa.org/

Our efforts are only as effective as our input.  Due to our activities I have heard the Criminal history bill is likely to fail.  Not many legislators are ready to fight for rent control in this current session, so it will likely also not get out of committee. 

You can track these bills at: https://app.leg.wa.gov/billsum...

Bills we are watching include: 

HB 2520; OPPOSE: addresses excessive documentation to withhold from security deposit

Han 2453; OPPOSE: State wide Just Cause

SHB 2069; SUPPORT: Concerning a property owner's or tenant's liability for delinquent and unpaid utility service charges

SB 6490 OPPOSE: endangers tenants

HB 2779 OPPOSE: Rent Control

My last 2 deals were from the MLS (Seattle region). In both cases the property was significantly underperforming due to poor management. The first required significant upgrades and improvements, but we refinanced 10 months later at double the purchase price.
The second was in solid condition just way under market.  It had 2 failed sales prior to my purchase because of debt service concerns by the lender.  I was able to show my lender what it was and what it should be (documented rent comps). We got creative to accommodate their underwriting (1 year interest only to get stabilized before amortizing met their debt service requirements).  In less than a year we again doubled the value through standard turnover upgrades, market rents on vacant units and structured increases on existing tenants. 

The takeaway is: know your market better than your competition.  Know what rent should be in your market And look for the outliers.  (in both cases we increased rents by $400-500/unit on turnover with between $2000-7000 in improvements). The price may look high for what it currently is, but not as compared to what you can make it.  

Good luck and be creative!

On behalf of my 70 year old mother-in-law, I refinanced her home and bought her 2 duplexes. A couple years later we sold for a good profit and she invested in a 42 unit apartment that I was purchasing.  So now we pay her a monthly dividend in addition to her social security check (We also had a nice duplex built for her where she lives and rents out the other side to cover her payment). 

At 52 I bought out my long term partner, acquiring 32 units (his half of our partnership). A year later, I picked up a 10-unit building (that has almost tripled in value).  At 57 I bought another 22 unit complex. +64 units after age 50! 

“Old Guys Rule!”

https://www.gosection8.com/

Hi @Jonathan Gragg. You're in a great area and an ADU will definitely add value to what you have, and I don't think you'll have any problem renting it out. Your issues will be related to permitting and timing. Typically you'll be limited to 800sf for an ADU (check with your local building department. they are usually very helpful and can give you some upfront parameters). If your existing building can be made to conform to code and If your able to do the majority of the work yourself you can obviously save a lot of $ -assuming you can do it in a timely manner and get it occupied. If you are doing financing they will place it on the property as a whole and not just the ADU.

Good luck!  Welcome to the game! 

I added a 24 unit to our portfolio in 2008.  We never lowered rent on an existing tenant during the recession.  Our units were B-/C properties that were relatively reasonable. We are in a growth region.  We had some consolidation of living arrangements (particularly young adults sharing a unit or house). My mortgage and other costs remained relatively stable.  So we faired just fine. 

We didn’t have enough capital to expand at the time, but we used our cashflow to aggressively eliminate 2nd mortgages putting us in a stronger position with lower overall debt service. 

Don’t fear a potential recession if you buy right and manage properly. Even if you don’t make a home-run deal, Remember that time heals most RE mistakes.

This is time for everyday landlords to get involved in direct communication with your local city counsels and state legislators.  Don’t assume someone else will tell your side of the story.  As landlords we don’t create a shortage of housing, but we can help provide it if those passing laws don’t impede our ability -and in the process create more shortage.
I attended a city counsel last week and spoke personally to 2 council members who had not heard directly from housing providers like us.  I spoke on a panel of landlords this week before state and local housing workers along with several agencies (sec 8, shelter reps, rapid rehousing, etc).  I got several invitations from policy makers to talk further.
We need to be telling our stories and showing how theses laws and other restrictions hurt the very people they are trying to help. 

@James Baker Why do you assume you need to add fire escape and sprinklers?  If it was previously occupied you are probably grandfathered depending on the level of upgrade you are planning.  Unless you are expanding the sq Footage and are just doing things like paint, flooring, cabinets and basic repair you generally don’t need to upgrade to those systems -unless it is your choice. There are fire scape ladders you can include in a unit if you choose for under $100 (Lowe’s, Amazon).

@Colbi Ight I recently went to Zillow, looked up “shop rates”, put in the zip code and type of home, along with other details and got a refi with AIM loans for an investment home.  Lowest cost, great service.  Did the same thing a year ago for my mother in law.  The refi saved her several hundred in payment and was a no cost loan (no added balance to her new loan!). 

The internet is your friend for competitive loans.

@Engelbert Devera Almost every deal I’ve done over 30 years has had something I could have gotten upset and walked away from ... just on principle!  But then I wouldn’t have anything! 

Don’t let your emotions get in the way of making a good deal happen.  sometimes you can vent your frustration through your agent to some advantage, but do the deal if it’s a good deal.  Your war-story will be a hit at the next get together!