All Forum Posts by: Jordan L.

Hi everyone, I am working on a rehab-to-rent in North Carolina that has some crawlspace moisture and wood rot issues. I'm going to end up replacing 30+ floor joists in this property. Having a repair of this magnitude done is a first for me-- this will be my second rental. This being said, I've done some research online to determine how I can protect myself from having to repeat this repair in the future. My first question is: Are there any other resources I can utilize to educate myself other than browsing the Internet? Here is what I have been told by another investor as to what I need to do after I make the repair to keep moisture levels down. Is this accurate? As of right now, my contractor is going to install a vapor area and call it a day after making the repairs. Would just a vapor barrier suffice or should I do all of this? My only hang up is that... lesson learned... I under estimated repair costs and overpaid a little bit for the property. Of course, I am trying to keep rehab costs down but I will keep the property indefinitely as a rental and don't want to continue to have moisture problems in the crawl. • install a vapor barrier with a minimum of 12 mm thickness • paint the inside of the crawl brick with dry lock paint •install a dehumidifier and sump pump • insulate the floor as there is no floor insulation currently in the crawlspace (how necessary is this?) Finally, should I permit this work? I didn't have to get any permits for my other rehab property... do they slow things down a great deal? Thank you all in advance! Jordan

Hi everyone, I am working on a rehab-to-rent that is currently my primary residence in Lathrop, California. I am looking for some solid investor-friendly general contractor references. I need a kitchen gut and remodel and I'm having trouble getting anyone to call me back thus far. Thank you!

In searching for my next investment property in the market I'm looking at, I'm starting to question my ability to attain the cap rate I'm shooting for in the neighborhoods I'd like to buy in.  I'm looking in and around Charlotte, NC at A- and better areas.

I know there are differing opinions on this--  if I find a property that will break even or cash flow ever so slightly at asking with 100% financing, but with only a 5.6% projected cap rate at this price, is it worth considering?  Obviously I wouldn't offer asking, but should I even bother?  10% allowances for maintenance & repairs, 10% for vacancy, and 10% plus half a month's lease for property management have all been calculated in.

There are cash-flowing deals to be had but nothing with a mind-boggling cap rate that I've seen.  Should I be discouraged?  FYI--  my investment strategy is to pay properties off ASAP and live off their income once I've acquired a large enough portfolio.  I've done this twice already.  I live in one free-and-clear and rent the other.  It's awesome.  The more I get, the faster I'll be able to go...

Should I sit on my money and keep hunting for that ever-illusive 10% cap rate in a good neighborhood or start getting more aggressive with my offers?

Thanks all.  :) 

@Kevin Latten, PM me the info and I will take a look.  Thanks!

Thanks all for the warm welcome back.  

@Curtis Waters, do you find that in the C and D neighborhoods it is more difficult to secure a good tenant?  I've considered being somewhat more open to different neighborhoods due to the fact that I've seen over and over that one is capable of seeing better returns in these areas.  Are these cap rates on single family units?  

@Jeff Rightmyer thank you for the neighborhood recommendations!  I started my zip code analysis last night and still have quite a bit more left to do.  I'll certainly take a harder look at these areas. 

Hello again BP!

My name is Jordan Little, and I'm a buy/hold investor with one current SFR rental in Kershaw County, South Carolina that's getting about a 7.5% ROI. I have been hunting for my next rental property for the past few months in the same area. However, based on the NOO property taxes unexpectedly eating up my return in SC (yep, lesson learned on due diligence there), I have recently decided to shift my search to Charlotte, NC and the surrounding areas. I'm educating myself on the local market and neighborhoods before I make any offers, and would like to connect with those of you who know the area. I grew up in Lugoff, SC but have lived in California since 2005 and haven't visited Charlotte since my youth. I'm putting myself on somewhat of a fast-track as I'd like to have two more SFR's acquired with tenants in place by the end of this year. As we all are, I'm hungry for as much information as possible and certainly would like to avoid any "gotchyas" with my next investments.

I suppose this is a two-part question.

First, I'm looking at SFRs in good areas so as to attain good tenants who appreciate a quality, livable rental. I love to use city-data.com to analyze the demographics of an area before considering property there, and also am a firm believer in Google Earth's street view as an out-of-state investor. So I can expedite my search, what are some desirable zip codes to take a look at?

Next, does anyone have any general tips about investing in NC or the Charlotte area? I realize this is rather broad, but I have a lot to learn!

Thank everyone in advance. As I add to my portfolio and gain experience myself, I can't wait for the chance to spend more time on Biggerpockets. I work about 55 hours a week serving in a busy restaurant in CA (not glamorous or making use of anything I did in college, but it gives me extra money to invest with) and my goal is to build an REI business and never work for someone else again within the next 3-5 years. I guess you could say I eat/sleep/breathe real estate and am frustrated that, at 29 years old, I only own two houses! lol

Looking forward to meeting some new colleagues!

Jordan

 Hi everyone!  I am a rookie investor, with one tenant-occupied rental property in South Carolina.   Anyone familiar with owning rental property in the state should know how high our property taxes are.

On top of this, the county assessor has my property valued at about $25,000 more than what it is really worth. Does anyone have experience with property tax assessed value appeals? What should I expect when I call the number provided by the county to dispute the value? Also, how do I go about finding sold comps in the area without MLS access? I'd like to be as prepared as is possible before I initiate this process. Any other tips or recommendations are absolutely welcomed.

Thank you,

Jordan

Hi all,

I purchased my first rental property in Kershaw County, South Carolina in Feb 2014. The state's property tax rate is 4% for owner-occupied homes, and 6% for NOO. My property would appraise around $175k.

My question is... when it was an REO the bank paid its property tax at $1179/yr (Jan 2014). I received my property tax bill in Jan 2015 and my taxes due were $3750. I paid the bill and haven't yet contested the amount, but this seems very, very high. I called the county assessor's office and explained that I know other landlords locally who pay a far lower percentage of assessed value than what I was charged. The secretary was quite rude and more concerned with finding out my associates' information so that she could see that they weren't being undercharged.

   This being said, I am an out-of-state owner.  I live in CA, and have my property tax statement mailed to my home address here.  What can I do, if anything, outside of contesting the assessed value?  What are my rights?  I know that I'm able to have the property re-appraised, and that the assessor's valuation was a little bit high at $199k.  It seems that even if it were assessed at $175k, that I would be overpaying.  I'm told that due to the fact that Kershaw County is a small, rural county in SC that I may not be able to do much, and that they see an out-of-state owner (especially from NY, or CA, etc.) as a gold mine and I should just expect to be price-gouged.   

Thank you all in advance for your knowledge and time,

Jordan

Thanks Engelo. 100 offers is great food for thought. Are these MLS properties?

To correct myself: NOO taxes are actually $2030/yr and rent would be a bit higher. More like $1000/mo.

Found an REO SFR listed at 75k. Two other offers "close to list" at two days on the market. The listing agent is calling for highest and best today. I'm looking for a buy and hold rental with healthy ROI and cash flow. Technically I am going in with cash but am using the 50% rule as a guideline. ARV is conservatively about 95k to 100k, repairs are about 10k, maybe 5k if I do the easy stuff myself. Property taxes are about $575/yr. It should rent for about $900/mo.

What do you guys think? Pass on it or offer "close to list?" What would your offer be?

All this comes with the disclaimer that I've been shopping for 3 months and have put in about 20 lowball offers. I haven't even gotten a counter yet and am getting frustrated.

Thank you all!