All Forum Posts by: Fene Cartlidge

Perhaps you can consider buying properties in Nashville, then your trips to visit your properties/kids can be a write off.  It a good market here...busy and crowded but there is always room for one more!

I have a crawlspace expert coming this week to give me a better idea for the mediation of the water and mold on the duplex.

I am now also in a contract for an SFR and guess what... they also found water (from a drain leak) and mold under this house. I have requested that the seller give me another week to arrange a mold remediation company to give me an estimate. The numbers still work even if I have to put another 3K into it.

What do other investors do when they find these things...water and mold, in their prospective properties.  Is this customary to find in homes of this age (20+ years) and just another part of the Rehab process?  Or do you all walk away because of the difficulty to remediate?

Thanks for your thoughts.

Thanks Jim that is great advice.  Here is the next scenario in this deal.  I have requested the seller provide a foundation inspection from a certified technician showing where the water is coming from, if there is existing damage and how to solve for the future.

The seller has come back and said they will wait to see what is on the Appraisal for mandatory repairs.  I have been told that the Appraiser will probably not crawl under the house, in which case he will not see the water and thus not call for any correction.

Questions: 

Do I pay for the Appraisal knowing that the seller will probably not do this foundation inspection?

Do I pay for the Appraisal and then pay for the foundation inspection on my own.  Then, depending on the findings, I may be out of pocket for all these inspections of about $1,000 and then no deal if the seller will not repair?

If I do the foundation inspection, do I walk away if it shows a potentially expensive situation?

The numbers on this duplex really show well with a $300+ cash flow each month.  The neighborhood is great and these are really turn-key in every other way.  I could rent them tomorrow.

Thanks for everyone's thoughts on this.  I am just getting started on this path and I've been lurking in Bigger Pockets for a while.  The cumulative experience of this group is truly mind-blowing!

I am from California originally and the homes there are predominantly on slab foundations.  So I have little experience with crawlspaces.

I just received the home inspection of a duplex I am in contract.  The inspector has found standing water in crawl space, and more seriously, water intrusion on the back wall of the crawlspace. No damage to the foundation is evident yet.  He could not determine the cause of the water but saw stains on the blocks.  There is also slight mold on the floorboards so it would suggest that this space has had water for a little while at least.

The inspector recommended a review from a certified crawlspace/foundation company.  I am inclined to write my counter after inspection to include a request for the seller to obtain a report of the existing problem and possible solutions.

Even if the seller fixes it, how big a problem could it potentially be in the future?

Thanks for your thoughts!  I know this is a common problem but would love to hear solutions from experienced investors with more deals under their belt than I have.

Good to know that it is not just me.  I find the tools and rules of thumbs are invaluable but are certainly not set in stone.

I will stay on the prowl. So far I have a duplex in Donnelson and a SFR near downtown. I'll just keep my powder dry and work on my patience...LOL.

You are so right Steve, I have kept looking and I found another home for $90K that was really more what I was looking for.  Better rents, closer to downtown and much faster transition occurring.  It is easy to get caught up and excited about a property but as you say, patience may sometimes present a better opportunity.  I just have to believe the numbers and just a little bit of intuition.

I am a long term hold investor so the horizon for me does allow for patience in my expected return.  But I still want it to make sense in today's numbers just in case.

I still don't know how some people are getting the 2% rule.  My next property is $90K and $1,000 average rent in the area.  I can't imagine this renting for $1800.  Am I looking at this wrong

It is in North Nashville so it has been historically a bad neighborhood.  But I think that is changing quickly.

I love East Nashville, good spot for some rentals - probably no problem in finding tenants to live there.

You know our issue in Tennessee - there is always a church on the corner...what are your thoughts about it being right across the street?  Good, bad, not an issue?

I would recommend Carol Plemmons of Exit Realty. I met her through the local real estate investing group and she has been very helpful with her knowledge of the unique areas of Nashville.

Good luck! 

I would recommend Carol Plemmons of Exit Realty.  I met her through the local real estate investing group and she has been very helpful with her knowledge of the unique areas of Nashville.

Good luck!  I hope we meet up at one of the meetings in the future.  www.reintn.org

I listened to the Podcast interview of Josh and felt the motivation to start sharing on this community that has given me so much.

I have an offer in on a duplex that will cash flow at around $500 per month.  That deal will close in 30 days.  But I just last night looked at a 3+2 in the downtown area that has me considering to pull the trigger again.  Too fast?  But Nashville is a busy market.

I am a little nervous about this new one because the neighborhood in pre-transition but is close to other areas that have been turning bad into good.  It is a 3+2 1200 square feet for $115,000.  The rent average is about $950 and that should cash flow out to about 200 per month with a 20% down conventional investor's loan.

The hesitation is the poor, working class neighborhood (no pitbulls or drug dealers though), that may or may not transition.  Possible section 8 tenants. There is a community church right across the street.  There is also a few boarded up homes in the neighborhood but I cannot see that lasting long in the booming Nashville market.  The rental market is very strong, especially this close to downtown - great 5 minute commute to downtown.

Any thoughts from other investors about this type of situation.  Do I just trust the numbers?  I completed the buy and hold rental calculator on BP.  The numbers seem to work without having to rely on appreciation but that would be a bonus in a few years if this neighborhood follows what has happened just 5 minutes away.

Thanks for your thoughts.