All Forum Posts by: Elizabeth L.

@Erix Mercedes Can I ask you a quick question. I'm meeting with an architect next week at the house and he's going to give me an estimate for his drawings, design, permits to the city etc so I could finish the basement. Can I ask you how much it cost to finish your basement? I know I need to talk to a contractor next but I've all different ball parks from 30k - 60K for the project. Thanks 

@Alessandro Cardito have you met any other investors in NJ or attend any local meet ups? So far I haven't found any close by, although there are some in the city. 

Just curious, have any of you started to see the home prices in Chico start to level back out now from the housing crisis after the fire?

@Wayne Hudson Hi Wayne, did you ever find any local investor meetups in UC, JC, or Hoboken? I have my first two family home I purchased in Union City almost 3 months, I know there are a lot of investors in the area, I just haven't met anyone yet. 

Thanks 

What made you chose Oroville? I'm from Chico and have had two rental properties in Chico that I have fixed up and sold. Oroville isn't that nice but considering that so many people moved there after the camp fire last year the housing market really took off and prices became outrageous. 

@Erix Mercedes thanks for the advice, i'm going to reach out to an architect on home advisor so I can start the process. I don't have anything done yet except and application for the city for a construction permit. Someone else told me to talk to an architect first so that's one of my first steps. I'm not familiar with Radon Gas so I need to look into that. Thanks 

@Erix Mercedes  Hi Erix, did you finish your basement from the ground up? Can I ask you what your process was? Did you let a contractor come in an do the whole job himself, or did you oversee the project and hire individual contractors to do each phase separately to save money. My rental is actually in Union City so right behind Hoboken. It's basically all multifamily homes in the area so I'm sure it's pretty strict on converting it to a legal apartment. I'm just wondering if it's worth the cost now to finish it just to increase the property value or not. Are you going to rent out your basement when it's ready or will you only rent it out when it's legal? I need to meet a good contractor, so far most people I meet want to rip me off. I've started reaching out to some people on Home advisor as well. Thanks 

Thanks @Kenny Dahill, in my area I think a lot of these investors rent out these illegal finished basements and then when the go to sell the home they just remove the appliances so they don't get in trouble. I don't have the skill set or knowledge about finishing a basement so I'll probably reach out to a local architect first to see what my options are. Otherwise I can at least have walls put up so it's more secure and enclosed. I definitely don't want it to cause problems down the road but if I don't find a way to add more value then it won't appreciate as much. I bought this apartment with a 1031 exchange so I would like to 1031 it again 3 - 5 years from now. 

@Frank Chin Wow you went through a lot, I have a feeling something like this won't be possible. The property is actually in Union City NJ, which is currently a pretty hot market, and it's mostly two family homes. They're all very old built in the 1900's. Before I found my property I saw a lot of these two family homes with a finished basement that were being rented out illegally, so I saw the potential in my unfinished basement as it already has it's own separate entrance and a really old bathroom, and kitchen hookups, but the whole place is just concrete floor and open walls so it's basically starting from scratch. My home inspector said it could cost 50k to finish if not more. So maybe it's not worth it. Even if I had it finished and rented it out I really wouldn't want to get in trouble. I did a 1031 exchange to buy this property so I need to find ways to add value to this one so I can hopefully sell in a few years and move on to a bigger one. 

So after all the trouble you went through you couldn't even rent it out for extra income? I don't get how  so many of these other landlords out here getting away with it. 

@Alex Furini @JD MartinThank you both for the helpful information, definitely a lot to think about and if this project could be worth it. I'm going to reach to and talk to an Architect first, I'm sure he'll be familiar with the area. I see a lot of these two family homes that come on the market with a finished basement they rent out illegally but I just wouldn't want to get in trouble later on down the road. I also found on the city's website the application for zoning determination so I might as well submit that as well and go from there. 

Thanks!