All Forum Posts by: Derek Hutson

@Terry Louwerse there are opportunities in many places, depending on what criteria you set that defines a good deal for you.
Also remember to assemble your core 4 long distance investing team (thanks David Greene!):

1. Deal Finder
2. Property Manager
3. Contractor
4. Lender

More details here, good luck!

@Doug Crenshaw Thanks!

Hi all,

We are making an offer on a house that has been passed on multiple times due to it having a swamp cooler (evaporative cooling) instead of central AC.

It is in the Denver area where the climate is relatively dry, other houses in the neighborhood have them, and they in general are more efficient and cheaper than central AC units. I don't see how it could be a deal breaker assuming it works right after being inspected.

My question is, if you have lived with a swamp cooler (in Denver or otherwise), would you recommend one? Or is it necessary to have central AC?

@Jonathan Greene Are there certain types of "buyer premiums" to look for?

@Kai Kopsch Interesting.. makes sense, thanks for your feedback

Hello,

I am currently in the process of looking for my first property, and am gathering my network of resources to use (realtor, inspector, lender, etc..)

I asked my realtor for information regarding a couple home inspectors she would recommend, and she said that until I filled out her paperwork saying I am exclusively her client she can't give me any of that information...

Is this normal? Or is this a red flag that I should maybe look elsewhere for a realtor..

Come up with the system you want to use that will best benefit you, and then write it into the lease.

For example, if you are only going to take certified funds (money orders, cashier's checks etc.) then write into the lease that is all you will take and it is due by the 3rd of the month (or whatever you want it to be).

That way in the future, when your tenants sign the lease you can prevent any disputes by just saying "According to the lease you and I both signed and agreed to..."

Also as a side note, the most important thing here is making sure you are getting paid rent. After that you can decide to put the funds in a business account, or a high yield savings account, etc. Come up with your plan before you get tenants and stick to it to save yourself some headaches!

@Grant Schroeder You could also ask him to use a vaporizer if he insists on doing it, it is much more discreet and leaves little if any odor.

I agree with @Robert Wentland that this is not the last time you will encounter this in Oregon...

It is up to you to decide if you want to evict a reliable long-term tenant for something like this, even if they are choosing to do it outside and not in the actual property.

If it comes with a lot of disturbances (friends over having too good of a time and making a lot of noise), you could reference that as an issue. Otherwise your best bet might be just putting a clause into a future version of the lease with your 25 foot rule.

Hi all,

Recently I was talking with a buddy of mine who is hell-bent on having a storage unit facility as his primary real estate investment. It seems like an interesting opportunity (when done right of course), so it would be great to get some of your feedback, especially if any of you currently own storage unit facilities.

Here is a quick list of some pros/cons that I came up with after a little bit of research:

Pros:

- Very little tenant face time and maintenance, due to nobody living in it

- Less upkeep and maintenance than live-in properties

- More secure as there are no tenants, and only one way into people's property

- Utilities are more controlled, as you set the climate conditions and not a tenant (or offer non-climate controlled)

- A small number of property managers can manage a large number of units

- Potential to also sell ancillary supplies for profit (boxes, packing goods, moving supplies, etc..)

- Potential to sell your own insurance for your own facility units (legal hoops with this I am sure but a large number of facilities have this)

Cons:

- High price point to obtain a facility, you can't just buy a handful of units within a facility (that I know of)

- Vacancy rate is relatively high at ~8-12%

- Current supply trend for facilities is outpacing consumer demand in most markets

- However, investor demand is very high which is driving up price/sqft of many facilities

- Potential for turnover is higher with tenants, unless marketing towards businesses storing excess goods/supplies

- Large facility with a lot of sqft to maintain and upkeep

Would be great to get some feedback from you savvy investors! Of course just like with the housing market, this varies based upon your geographical region..

This is by no means a conclusive list of everything that would go into owning a facility, but below are a few of the resources and current market reports I used if you would like to explore..

2019 self-storage market report

2019 self storage investment forecast

2018 second half storage report

2018 Q4 results