All Forum Posts by: Will G.

This is so depressing, but fits in with my theory... Single family rentals are ripe for government picking! I believe it will only get worse, with licensing requirements, continuing education, inspections, fees, handicap compliance etc. Is there any where in government that we are getting more freedom?

Crikey, you don't own anything anyway, just rent from our overlords, and  have to beg for permission to change a toilet. F@ck this!

I think you would be better off applying a rubber mallet to your head repeatedly, cause that will be an easier headache to get rid of. Dude, do you want to have to evict someone and wonder how badly he is going to trash your house?

Hey Justin, congrats on deciding to start on your journey. I don't know your particular market, but I can tell you after having lived in Austin, that Texas in general is very attractive when compared to many other states. Reach out to as many local pro's as you can, let them know what you are looking for and join R.E. invest clubs in your town. You will be able to get feedback on your market and make decisions accordingly. Having said that, waiting for better market conditions costs money too! Maybe prices will soften 10 percent in the next recession, but how much will it cost to wait? On the umbrella insurance thing, I have gone back and forth on these same questions with attorneys and cpa's and the consensus is don't even bother with the llc unless there are positive tax implications. Your liability does not get removed by an llc anymore unless you very,very, carefully setup and manage them, as any "mistakes" in handling will render them useless in court. So the umbrella is the best strategy for dealing with liability. But most important; DON'T BE NEGLIGENT in the first place!

You are providing someone with a home so make sure, house numbers are clear in case of emergency, all window and door locks function so you can't get blamed for a robbery, document that the water heater is set at factory setting so no baby gets scalded, document there are no trip hazards, document there is no danger from falling/dead tree limbs, no culverts a child can crawl into, no access to the attic that can cause a fall, that the garage door safety features are working, that there is a fire extinguisher(required by insurance btw), and smoke alarms that work, etc, etc, etc

Have tenants sign that they will have and hold renters insurance and document EVERYTHING as far as maintenance, complaints and resolutions etc. If you are focused on providing a quality product and a good value you will always come out on top.

Yikes, the reason the acreage is priced well is cause it is in a "cancer cluster" caused by the thousands of gallons of jet fuel and other chemicals spilled by pratt whitney!

Stuart only has a few area's that have a decent cap rate like "golden gate" which is a lower income neighborhood.

To the op's question, affordable housing will never go out of style. Look around for the least expensive housing option, and then see if you can offer more value.

I can save anyone interested in Austin tx the trouble. My years there I was never able to make rentals work worth a crap and as I understand it has only gotten worse in the last few years

What David Dachtera said!

Factors to consider: does beach condo mean weekend, short term rentals? I am guessing yes cause you want to use it occasionally, so much more energy spent in managing lots of turnover.

Whats the insurance like?, condo assn issues? vacancy rates for off season and when hurricanes come through. how about your liability, is the condo itself covered(liability) and are you, in excess of a typical owners policy?

I love this site but if I read another post on investing for appreciation I am going to freak! A few years of above average appreciation and people are assuming it goes up like this forever.

HISTORICAL APPRECIATION= 3 to 5 percent, basically keeps up with inflation, unless you have external factors, such as large population influx, big employee opportunities moving into the area etc. I don't say all this to discourage, quite the opposite. There seems to be no end to the number of folks who get in this without proper consideration.

My "expensive" houses that i so lovingly restored and am proud of just don't"cap rate" like the little dinky, inexpensive ones. Lesson= just cause you love the beach don't mean it's the best place for investment dollars!

All good advice and please, if you ever purchase property with existing tenants, get tenant estopple documents signed as a condition of sale, which is basically declaratory statements on the current terms of the lease!

Please don't count on LL paying for a hotel etc, also do not pay for the rental unit if you are forced to leave for two weeks. Your daily rate certainly should be subtracted from future payments if you return to live there.

Now with that said, many ins policies offer "loss of use" and It would not be unreasonable to ask for the DIFFERENCE. Say your temp housing is $50/day and you were paying$30/day for the rental. Hey, mr LL can I get $20 /day while you fix my unit? He or she is under no obligation, but can't hurt to ask.

This is all based on you returning, either of you can probably cale the contract and you certainly should get your deposit back

There was actually a study done (perhaps I can find the article again) on home values, holding, increasing more in proximity to target compared to wally world!

If it is a trade you seek as opposed to a g/c or handy man, reach out to local custom homebuilders, the guys doing a few houses a year,  in general they like to promote the people who do good jobs for them.