All Forum Posts by: Dustin Beam

I'm not walking out of my job yet, but agree that paradigm shift about what you're "supposed" to do is a big one. Without that revelation, a person will rarely ever do the things necessary to to retire substantially early. I hope I can by early 40s, similar to you. When people scoff at the extra work it takes to do REI, I always think about how much extra work (and time) they'll devote to not doing REI. To me, it's well worth an extra hustle now to gain 25-30 years of not working. I barely remember beyond 30 years ago.

Congrats on succeeding in your transition, enjoy your time! 

Jmo, but it's a good time to buy if the deal cashflows well. There are other reasons it may or may not be for other investors, but for me at this stage in my investing career, that's the primary metric that matters to me. 

It's not silly to accept that many of us, me included, have to risk security in order to grow. I've done the math to figure out how I was to reach my goals without leverage... It wasn't pretty. If I knew a realistic way to do it without leverage, I would do it. I could try, but then my new risk really just a new one (not ever reaching my goals because I was scared to leverage). 

In any event I say congrats, Frank! From what I've read, I love your story. 

Don't buy a used dishwasher. People are typically getting rid of them for a reason. A leaky reason. And they are likely already removed. 

I might feel a little differently about a fridge or stove that you could more easily test. 

Property that commands a $5k rent tag should attract tenants that can afford a $5k deposit. The same is true for a $500/mo apartment and $500 deposit. It shows at least some level of responsibility for their income. 

I would never consider skipping the deposit entirely. If they pay perfectly for 11 months and skip  the 12th, you'll have gained $3300 in extra rent but net a negative $1700. And then you get to go in and hope the place isn't trashed. Even if it isn't a full month's rent, you still need a healthy enough deposit to encourage the tenant to take care of the place. 

I'm of the opinion that the best deals are made by buying other people's problems, from what I've seen anyway. 

If the area is decent, the market rents are high enough, and the purchase price reflects the deferred maintenance then I think you should go for it.  You don't often find great property with excellent tenants at a good price. You want a deal? You usually have to fix some problem. 

I'm in a similar boat except I've been working as an engineer about 10 years and went to much less prestigious school haha. I'd hate to compare transcripts :) 

But anyway, I've contemplated finding a way to insert my skills into the RE world, and haven't yet. I actually have a skill set applicable (not saying you don't), I graduated in ME, but am more of an architectural engineer now. Cut my teeth in HVAC design and some light plumbing design. I'm a project manager now, though. My point is that although I have related skills, I still haven't seen any windows that would keep my pay similar, my skills used, and within RE. If you think or find something that does, please PM me. I haven't found anything yet. 

I haven't owned any long term to truly say how well they hold up over decades, but so far so good. When existing carpet needs replace, it always goes to LVP, and that was after reading lots of posts here from people with more experience. It does cost more than carpet up front though. 

Also when it comes to color, I'd attempt to avoid trends and go w/ a medium brown without significant amounts of gray/red/yellow whatever. Just a nice neutral brown. If it lasts as long as they say, it would suck to have to replace simply because it's out of style. JMO

Like was said, I would just do a good online review of properties that are near yours and of similar type. 

I had a similar issue with my townhouses after renovating. I wasn't exactly sure how much they would go for. So I set the price a little higher to see. I did get it rented to great renters (so far) at the higher price. But it took a shade longer so I ended up dropping the rent a little for subsequent units. But IMO, it's worth testing the market so you know instead of just guessing. 

I would visit. I'd also give whatever minimum amount of notice you have in your lease (or state/local rules allow). If they know you're across the country, they probably aren't worried about drop ins. Plant the seed that they never know when you might be around.