All Forum Posts by: Athena R.

Hi Issac, Welcome to BiggerPockets! Real estate investing is a great wealth building tool that can lead to financial freedom. Before you jump in and start investing, I definitely recommend educating yourself on the various methods and strategies for investing. Start with BiggerPockets podcast Episode 1, and begin listening to them while heading to and from work. I also highly recommend reading "Rich Dad Poor Dad" by Robert Kiyosaki. Also sign up for your local real estate investing association. The first meetings are usually free for new investors, and is a great place to meet other local investors, contractors, insurance agents, realtors etc. Best of luck to you!

Hi BP. We are in the middle of a flip and just found out that our sprinkler guy does not have the correct licensing to pull permits or do the work, and got a quote from another sprinkler guy who was an hour late and had a litany of additional issues. If anyone has a referral for a good, licensed, dependable sprinkler contractor, please let me know. Thanks!

Hi BP!

My husband and I are in the process of acquiring our second fix and flip (first one was an accidental flip) as well as some rental properties in the Destin/Fort Walton Beach/Niceville, Florida area.

Can anyone recommend a CPA and a Hard Money Lender in the area that has experience in working with real estate investors?

Thank you!

Hi Jennifer! Welcome to BiggerPockets! There is such a helpful community here filled with tons of resources, and the podcasts are nothing short of amazing! I think you actually helped my husband and I look for a house several years back - we are now selling our house to jump in head first to real estate investing! We are just starting out ourselves, but let us know of we can be of any help!

@Arianne L. - Hi Arianne!

Thank you for the suggestions! We will definitely reach out to all of those contacts. Looking forward to seeing you and Chris at the next P.I.G. meeting! :)

Hello!

We are looking for suggestions for a home appraiser, professional photographer, and professional home cleaner in the Destin/Niceville, FL area. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Thank you!

Thank you for all of the replies! @Max T. very true - we've gone this far already, and yes, the old bathroom would definitely be out of place compared with the rest of the  house. @Mike Hanneman we live in an older, mostly unrenovated neighborhood, and our house is one of the homes on a lake with a private deck. There is a home down the street that was just renovated and went under contract after about a week on the market. Its a good comp for us, and it is not on the lake. And you are very right that bathrooms and kitchens sell houses - we went all out on our kitchen, so should do the same on our bathroom. @Daria B. and @Thomas S. yes a lipstick type reno may have to suffice. At this point, we've wrapped our heads around redoing floors, vanity and fixtures. We have a shower only, and it has the plastic insert, so are still debating whether to tile it, or leave it as is. @Valerie Hiscoe, you're right, just because we're in reno mode, doesn't mean our buyers will be. They will likely want a move in ready home, and an unfinished bathroom might be a deterrent. Thanks everyone!

My husband and I are selling our primary residence (our first accidental flip).

We have previously gutted the home and rehabbed the entire kitchen, floors, dining room etc (bamboo floors, chandeliers, stainless Steele appliances etc.)

There is a guest bathroom at the front of the house that we are in the process of renovating as well.

And then there is the master bathroom. Very small, one vanity, not so appealing tile, old mirrors etc. Next to it is a huge walk in closet. 

Do we spend the money redoing tile, getting the double vanity with nice faucets, stylish mirror, repainting etc.? My fear is that it would be wasted money and effort if the buyer will likely knock out the adjoining wall of the closest to make an ensuite.

Any thoughts would be much appreciated! 

Welcome to BP Cathy! The forums can seem a bit daunting when first starting out (I know because I felt the same way!) I found topics that interested me and just started chiming in on the forum thread. People on BP are very receptive and have great advice to share. Good luck on your journey! :)

Welcome to BP Bryan and congrats on your recent graduation from a fellow legal eagle! Sounds like you're definitely on the right track. My husband and I recently joined BP as well and would recommend listening to all of their podcast, starting at show #1. The podcast provide such a great wealth of information and the BP Ultimate Beginners Guide is a free download on the BP site that is extremely helpful as well. Lastly, I would recommend getting involved with our local Professional Investors Guild. They have meetings in Pensacola as well as Destin ( I believe the next one is at the Emerald Coast Convention Center in May). Their first meeting is free for new members and we recently went to one, watched the amazing presentation from Matt Robinson and met a ton of other local Investors/wholesalers etc. Just a few tips that have helped to get us started as well. Good luck and keep us posted on your journey!