All Forum Posts by: Crystal C.

I'm really grateful for those who have been willing to share their insights, lessons and experience as opposed to selling it for lots and lots of money. I'm grateful for those who believe there is room for all of us to be successful and for the spirit of stewardship rather than competition. 

@Marcus Auerbach, yes there is a grading issue that needs to be addressed as well. This is a little bit tricky along my north wall which is inches from the neighbors yard line.
Interestingly, I noticed a thin, deep strip of neatly placed gravel in between my property and the neighbors on my south wall prior to buying the house. It appears the last owner and the neighbors collaborated on this little drainage ditch and wondering if I can strike a deal of something similar with my north side neighbor.
I'm a gardener, so in addition to addressing the negative grading and downspouts, I do plan to install rain barrels and a rain garden, which my village (West Milwaukee) encourages to offset the surface runoff. I'm an owner occupant for now, so I could easily maintain it. Have you ever found the rain barrel/rain garden approach to be helpful in your experience?

@Andrew Millard I have a similar issue with my north wall which is the side that sees the most seepage. I'm situated very close to the neighbors as well.  Relieved to hear that I can hopefully tackle most of the issue by addressing the downspouts and grading for now. But I think you're right, inevitably I'll be getting the interior drain tile and sump installed, particularly when I end my house hacking and rent out my duplex fully. 

I have an old Milwaukee house built in 1929. A such, the house was built with the old clay drain tiles and palmer valve system. There is seepage into the basement during seasonal downpours. A drain tile test was done and showed a 50% blockage in two of the tested sites and 75% at the third. The tiles are blocked with clay mud. The basement contractor of course wants to install interior drain tiles and a sump pump to the tune of $9,000.

I'm trying to get a gauge of who may have addressed the issue by getting the drain tiles cleaned out? Is it reasonable to expect a cleaning to open up mud clay from tiles this old? If so, any suggestions on how to safely DIY this cleaning?

I have an old Milwaukee house built in 1929. A such, the house was built with the old clay drain tiles and palmer valve system. There is seepage into the basement during seasonal downpours.  A drain tile test was done and showed a 50% blockage in two of the tested sites and 75% at the third. The tiles are blocked with clay mud. The basement contractor of course wants to install interior drain tiles and a sump pump to the tune of $9,000.

I'm trying to get a gauge of who may have addressed the issue by getting the drain tiles cleaned out? Is it reasonable to expect a cleaning to open up mud clay from tiles this old? If so, any suggestions on who to contact for cleaning?

There is also negative grading all around the house that needs to be addressed, and no doubt contributing to the problem.

Have an electrician replace it. It's a fire hazard. Most hazard insurances will not cover a house with knob and tube, which means most buyers using a mortgage loan to purchase will shy away from it, since you can't get the mortgage without the insurance. I had to have the seller of my house remove it as a condition of purchase, and it was just in the attic.

This thread was an incredible vicarious learning experience for me (and a bit of an emotional roller coaster). I'm glad it ended without much issue, it certainly could have gone another way.

Throughout this thread it was constantly suggested that airbnb should make landlords aware of the "residency after 30 days" law. Whether that be their responsibility or not, here that very information is provided to us through the OP's experience, top and center in the 'short-term and vacation rental discussion' board. I think that's why it's a sticky and I'd say it's important to keep this thread pinned. 

@Melba Chambers thank you so much for your kind words :) One of the best things about this community is all of the wonderful support. Congrats on getting your first property as well! I'm looking forward to reading that you got your next one. Hearing about success of others is so motivating. Here's to many, many more! 

Hello BP community! I'm a newbie investor here in the midwest (Milwaukee). RE investing is something I've been interested for years.
I didn't have the know-how at first, so I spent 3 years as a resident apartment manager, learning the ins and outs from an RE management companies. I managed college student rentals near the university and then moved to managing a (slightly) more upscale building in a wealthy suburb.

As a person who grew up with very little money, it took me many years to build both the funds and the nerve to get to this point. My job with the management company was key here, as resident managers tend to get free rent (and the worst unit) as compensation. I saved all (ok, most) of my would be rents. I also scored lots of experience. Prior to this, I had stopped taking student loans as a Sophomore in college. From the end of Sophomore year and forward it was all "scholarships or bust." I did win 4 scholarships during my last three ("super-senior" here) years in college, but I continued working my part-time jobs while going to school. This allowed me to graduate college with almost 20k in savings. 

I left my resident manager job for a really great full-time job but I had to pay regular rent again. So I moved into a 200 square foot room with only a bathroom and no kitchen. I took two more part-time jobs and continued to save. 

Saving got easier, but I still had to face a lot of subconscious fears in parting with something that gave me a strong sense of security- that saved money. The push was giving up on the idea of the "unicorn" deal (perfect in every way) and building intrinsic confidence in myself- the belief that I'm savvy and determined enough to rebound and recover if things don't go as expected....even if they went TERRIBLY, and by sheer grit I wouldn't allow myself to tumble back into poverty.  When I began to *truly* believe that, I didn't need the *perfect* deal anymore, as handling hiccups became but the normal process of achieving mastery. 

So without much support in this, but after really pushing myself forward I finally made the jump and purchased a turn-key duplex in a small suburb of my city. 

Well, it's paid off so far! I managed to negotiate the price of the property down from the original asking price and still the appraisal came back valuing the property at almost $20k higher than the asking price! Not only is the property something I'm really proud of, I will step through my front doors with a good amount of equity right off the bat. The whole process was both nail-bitingly stressful and yet exciting and exhilarating. My strategy is buy and hold and niche will be short term rentals for traveling professionals. A big thanks to Bigger Pockets for teaching me the importance of "running the numbers" and for the wisdom imparted to me from many successful investors interviewed on the podcasts. 

I can't wait to continue the journey and look forward to learning from you all! 

What about you? What did it take for you to land your first deal?