All Forum Posts by: David M.

This is a super simple question, but I can't, for some reason, find it anywhere. On an MLS listing, under occupancy, it shows 'T' - what does that indicate? 'O' I'm assuming is occupied...

Thanks all.

Hi Liz - I'm relatively new here, but I believe there is a BP member Nate Jones (https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/SlateHouseGrou...) that runs a PM group in this area.

I can't vouch for them specifically, but he's been helpful on a few forums posts I've had, and figured I'd pass it along. I'm in the Lancaster area, and like I said, just starting out, but would be happy to assist in whatever I can.

Best of luck!

Hello Tony. I'm basically in the same boat as you...just starting out/learning/etc. in the Lancaster area. Best of luck to you! I'm hoping to get out of the rat race as well. As much as I generally enjoy my career, I'm still looking for the flexibility that REI offers.

@Nate Jones - thanks...I will want to get over to the Lancaster meet up this month. I chickened out in March, but am going to attend April's meeting. I'm just starting out, so I'm definitely looking for some local knowledge, since the mid-state area is where I'd like to focus on.

I have some questions about the Lancaster market, and I'm sure there are a ton of folks that can address them in these meetings. Do you attend the Lancaster one at all?

Thanks Kyle. I will check them out at some point over the next few weeks. That 11% between the PM and leasing fee really eats into your cash flow though it seems. Can't hurt to chat with them either way.

Thanks for the comment Dominic. Yes, the mortgage includes taxes. Paying off the mortgage early would still be about 5 years away, so I'd prefer not to wait that long, but I understand what you're driving at.

I don't know if I have enough equity to do a cash out refi, which is another option I've considered as well. I'm guessing my best option is probably to just take this year and gather more available funds to look at another property all together.

Hello BP Community. I am looking for input on whether or not this would make sense to someone with a bit more experience than I have. I am thinking this might be the least expensive way at the moment to start out in REI.

I currently have a mortgage payment of $1430/month on my primary residence (including PITI & PMI). It is a 15 year loan with 14 remaining. If I could refi for 30 years, I could get the payments down to about 915 or so (including PITI & PMI). Rents for these types of townhouses are anywhere between 1150 and 1275 in this area. It would need about 4-5K of work to bring it up to rental condition. (Carpet, new paint, and few odds and ends).

To keep the math simple, let's conservatively assume PITI would be $1000, and the rent would be $1200. Do you think that is cutting it too close with only $200/month cashflow? The units were built in 1989 I believe, so it will more than likely need a new roof within the next few years. I believe the furnace and water heater are solid, and the central air unit was replace 2 years ago.

Alternatively if I could refi for 30 and take some equity out (not even sure if that's possible yet), I could use that as a down payment on something else, and keep my primary residence as is.

Thanks for your input.

[EDIT]

I guess after factoring in vacancy and capex, it would be more like $150ish/month cash flow on the conservative side.

Thanks Brent and Neil. Appreciate your input.

Hello all. Does anyone have any recent experience with the Harrisburg, PA turnkey provider PADeals.com? I've found a few threads on BP, but nothing seemed recent. There doesn't seem to be much info out there about them overall, other than one or two complaints that were addressed directly by the company itself.

I'm considering a turnkey property as a first foray into the game and am trying to do some more due diligence on them.

Thanks in advance.