All Forum Posts by: Elvis Methoxha

I agree with most of what is said already, tenant needs to abide by the lease and keep things simple and clean, legally and physically. However, this is a question on how YOU want to run YOUR properties. 

Personal experience: Rented a 3 Bedroom to 4 people. They told me 2 of the adults would be room mates and I didn't want to ask any further. This apartment has a dining room, however. It didn't occur to me what they would do at all. My tenant decided to turn my dining room into a 4th bedroom! I didn't authorize they putting up a wall and a door but they did it and now I'm stuck on what to do next. The damage is already done and they have already taped and painted the wall. 

Questions: Should I bump up the rent to compete with 4 Bedroom units in the area? Should I give them notice to quit? Should I ride this out and give them notice to vacate the lease is completed?  

Recommendation: Every situation is unique, because no 2 tenants are the same. You need to decide what route works best for you. However, if you don't want to be sued for unequal housing rights, you have to treat ALL your tenants the same, in person and on legal documents. 

Thanks Brian, good to have this card in my hands if I need any assistance purchasing any new assets in the near future. Keep us updated once you expand into MA! 

Hello everyone, 

Can anyone give me, and others who are curious, some details on how the Landlord - Tenant Eviction Process works for residential homes? 

I have a basic understanding of the CT process and have done in myself over a dozen times. However, something tells me MA is a bit more complicated. For example, and correct me if I'm wrong, but MA doesn't have a "grace period" for tenants to pay rent, which means if rent is due on the 1st, Notice To Quit can be issued on the 2nd if rent is not paid. Then there is multiple types of Notice to Quit, right? 

One attorney said an eviction can take 3-4 months, before COVID slowed down the courts. This can't be accurate, can it? I've completed eviction processes in CT on average around 1.5 months. 

What is the process for evictions?

I've watched a handful of YouTube videos on the procedures but wanted to ask if anyone on this platform has experienced it first hand and if they recommend an attorney. I'm not intimidated by the process and can file everything on my own but if you guys have an eviction attorney in mind in Melrose/Everette, let me know! 

Thank you for your thoughts and time

! 

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $820,000
Cash invested: $120,000

Owner-Occupied Investment. Potential for additional cashflow if I rented my unit.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Sweat equity and good cashflow opportunity.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Self-negotiated, on market.

How did you finance this deal?

FHA

How did you add value to the deal?

Sweat equity mostly in cosmetic renovations, few major renovations.

What was the outcome?

Property bringing in steady cash flow and super low interest rate with FHA.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Buying in a seller's market is not easy and not cheap.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Yes, I worked with ELVIS METHOXHA! He's licensed in Connecticut and Massachusetts!! He knows properties and has a developer background. Helps a lot when looking at homes. He gives ideas on how much certain items might cost if we see it needs to be renovated. I.e., He counts the number of outdated windows and gives us a local estimate cost, for example, window replacement of $300-350/window.

Hey Dorian Jones , I always have five different marketing strategies when I’m hunting for the next deal. Here are a few that have worked for me: 1: Driving for Dollars: This takes up a lot of time because it requires you to do follow up research and send out letters or make phone calls. 2: Bandit Signs: Putting up signs in high traffic areas is a great way to get attention. Be careful, however, officials may have a problem and fine you. I always put them up on Friday night and take them down Sunday night because town officials don’t usually work during these days. 3: Network: Go around and talk to attorneys, find out what they specialize in, and let them know what you do. This is a fantastic way to gain leads, attorneys help with divorces, foreclosures, deaths in the family, etc., because in events like these, real estate is usually always handled by an attorney. 4: Newspapers: This is my least favorite, yet most helpful way you can find leads. Read the arbitrary section and kindly reach out to the families of those who have recently passed. With the upmost respect, introduce yourself and let them know what you do for a living (no pun intended). Don’t push too hard, let them come to you when they are ready. Also, offer to pay for their attorney’s fees (for the real estate sale transaction), they probably have a lot of things to pay for during that time. 5: Local Businesses: I print a small simple description of what I want the public to read on the top half of a normal 8.5x11 piece of paper. The second half I fold up and tape or staple the sides in order to create a pocket. In the pocket I leave business cards. I make 20-30 of these per town and leave/pin them in as many businesses as I can around town. Most stores have a designated area for marketing material, and it’s free! If I see a lot of potential, however, I talk to the owner and tell them that for every lead I receive and purchase who uses the owner’s name / business name, I will donate $500-$1000 to a local charity. (If they have kids around the business, which I can strongly relate to, I offer an option to purchase them a EE bond, which is a bond used for education expenses.) Alright, that’s all I’m giving away for today! I have many more ways to gain leads but it won’t help you very much at this point. I would recommend that you pick and stick to a handful of strategies, focus your time into them, and do them full heartedly. Once you feel that you’ve fully exhausted these strategies, you could move on to a new set. Good luck! -Elvis

First: I would recommend that you continue to network with professionals in different fields: investors, developers, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, RE attorneys, etc. Second: A mentor is less likely to take you on due to a lack of knowledge and finances. If you are not a millionaire, as most of us aspire to be, then I strongly recommend you educate yourself on multiple levels. This will add value and lower the risk from a mentors perspective. One, learn about the market through the (free) help of experienced real estate agents. Two, get out there and network with contractors. Learn what the different processes are for building, constructing and grasp a better understanding of what the costs are for each type of job. Third: Through BP’s guidance, it is very easy to find money, especially in NY. They way you do it is by looking for a GREAT investment opportunity, create a portfolio which includes market values, all possible expenses, selling costs, and net profit. If the NET PROFIT is 20% of selling prices or at least $20,000, I can almost guarantee that you won’t have an issue finding private lenders. Finally: You can find private lenders through networking with attorneys and real estate agents, as well as other investors. Best of luck on your endeavor! -Elvis

I agree with everyone so far: pay off your debt before you think about investing. Remember to make those necessary sacrifices and save a few more dollars today, in order to afford what you need tomorrow. One example: choosing to buy a box of instant coffee which has 50 servings for around $10 versus going to Starbucks or Dunkin’ and buying 3-5 servings for around $10. Set up a schedule and stick to it. I recommend you make a list of your debts in order from highest interest rate to lowest interest rate and payoff as much as you can afford. Paying off your high interest loans first is the key to success. Once your loans are paid off, you should be able to save money at a much higher and quicker rate than you are saving now. If this is your first time buying a home, look into opportunities like a 203K loan. They require low down payment and could even provide more money than asking price if the property you want to purchase needs work. These loans tend to hold low interest rates as well, usually. Make sure you talk to small local banks as well as big banks in order to see where you can get the lowest interest rates. The more you know the better off you are. Looking into BP for some type of guidance is great, but it’s not your only option. The internet is a gateway to an enormous amount of information. It’s up to you to mine through it and learn what you need to know in order to succeed. I hope this helps! -Elvis

It’s good to know and network with as many as you come across. You do need to make sure you know the rules of each contract, however. You should network and get to know as many as you want from every field; carpenters, attorneys, electricians, plumbers, etc., this includes real estate agents. However, many of them have different rules and contracts they stand by. For example, you may know 2-3 attorneys, but usually only one will be able to legally represent you per deal. On the other hand, multiple contractors can be hired for multiple job types within the home. Most (full-time) real estate agents earn a living by representing buyers and sellers, which is why they would ask you to sign a contract “exclusive representation” for a specific length of time. They are investing their time into helping you find a deal and they need assurance that you will allow them to close on the deal on your behalf in order to earn the commission. Some agents make you sign a contract stating that they will only send you listings of specific areas or specific addresses. This means you could ask another agent to represent you in other markets. This option is the best in my opinion, because an agent is most experienced and familiar with their own market. Investors tend to dabble in multiple markets at the same time. So, to summarize: Yes, it’s ok to network with many agents. Yes, it’s ok to work with more than one agent as long as your contract with each agent does not overlap. Most agents can easily determine if they can legally represent you. As long as you’re up front from the beginning about who else your working with and at what capacity, you shouldn’t have a problem. Good luck! -Elvis

Hey Thomas, From a visual point of view: After reviewing your Trulia listing, I would recommend taking down photos that seem a bit random, like picture of the drawers and closets (7,10,&11). Only put up one, maybe two pictures of the most important rooms (kitchen and bath). I don’t think it’s necessary to take photos of every bedroom. When it comes to pictures, I believe that less is more. If you can, try and make the photos all the same brightness and of the same high quality. Look at how bigger companies advertise their homes and what angles they take their photos. First impressions are very important. Also, think about staging the home if you have some extra furniture. If you do, I recommend staging the master bedroom (a second bedroom is optional), the kitchen, living room, and bathroom. Do your research and make it look like the Bed and Bath advertisements. Look on Pinterest for inspiration. From an incentive point of view: Hiring an agent to list your property gives you access to high marketing and low effort. Another way you could attract attention is by offering a month (or two) of free rent to anyone who is approved and signs the lease by November 15th, for example. If you choose to do this, I would recommend asking for maximum security deposit and money first month’s rent down at signing. From a marketing point of view: We have access to so many social media platforms, it would be a shame if we do not take advantage. Share the link within your community pages in Facebook, share it on LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, and even on BP. Look into how to better utilize social media to your advantage: free advertising. I hope this helps! Best of luck to you. -Elvis

Dear Boston Investors, I’ve invested in CT for a while, since 2012 to be exact. I’m now ready to move to Boston, Massachusetts. I’m starting from scratch and hope to meet new and experienced investors soon enough. I’m in the process of transferring my real estate license from CT to MA in order to start analyzing and understanding the new market with a strong set of tools. I’ve done as much research as I can without access to the MA MLS or being there to analyze the market in person. Looking at a handful of for-sale prices in different markets, I’m still having trouble determining and understanding how to gauge market value. There are many aspects to market value, like square footage, # of bedrooms and bathroom, quality of building material, parking spaces (if any), types of amenities, quality of the view, and overall supply versus demand. If there are any classes or webinars on this topic, specifically tailored for cities, please feel free to send it over! I’m in the process of acquiring a pre-qualification letter in order to see what I’m qualified for and at what rate. I have a handful of private lenders who are willing to invest with me in Boston as well. This is where I ask the BP Community for professional advice. - Has anyone invested in or around Boston? - What areas in or around Boston should I consider to invest in? - What are some key aspects to think about before investing in or around Boston? - Are there any mentors who are looking to partner up on a deal? - Should I rent or buy a condo as my first property in the city? Any and all advice is helpful and very much appreciated. If there are any investor groups within Boston, feel free to send me the information. I’d love to get involved in and be apart of the Boston community. -Elvis