All Forum Posts by: Frank S.

An exterior water spigot.

There may be no payback on the toilets within your 5 year holding goal.  First of all,  what toilets do you have, 1.6gpf or 3/5gpf? Water cost varies a lot thought the country.   When needed,  replace for pressure assisted units. Shop around. Go manufacturer representative direct. 

Do check and fix all leaks in the toilet flappers, shower's mixing valves, and faucets.

If 1.6gpf toilets, drop one brick wrapped in plastic or a water bottle in the tank. Test and see if that helps.

Your next best option is to also replace the sink and lavatories aerators (not the faucet)  for 1.0 gpm at the sinks and 0.35gpm at the lavatories. 

Cancel all hose bibs or remove the handles. Your place is not a "car wash"

What's your water pressure?  Consider adding a PRV (pressure reducing valve ) to limit the pressure to 25 psi at your most remote and highest fixture. 

Good luck, 

Frank

Explain to them this is an issue and remind them you will be used a reference for their next place. Ask, "what reference can I provide if you always pay late?"

Unfortunately,  you are not getting late fees.

Good luck, 

Frank

I'm sorry about your issue, I hope you can figure it out. 

Are you absolutely sure about your ARV? What's the DOM in your area? You may want a second opinion on the ARV. As noted above, you may need to take a loss or rent the house.

Can you rent both houses and move to a cheaper place  to avoid defaulting on your mortgages?

You may need to cash out the 401(k) loan and take the penalty.  

Best of luck, 

Frank

There is great advice above. 

Is a 38k house rented at $650 s good deal? What about Capex? I don't think it looks good from the get-go, but I don't know your market.

Mold in the basement drywall and insulation requires a gut job or at least removing 24 inches from ther bottom,  maybe more.  Is it a finished basement?  If so,  assume a few thousand dollars in demo and $55 per sheet of drywall painted.  Then, add trim costs. What about the floor condition? 

You can clean small areas with vinegar and borax,  never,  ever,  ever use bleach on mold. Mold will react to the attack and release spores.   Then,  concrobium or mold system 1,2,3. Apply with a fogger. 

Mold remediation can be very expensive if done by professionals,  but it isn't that complicated if you research. 

Good luck, 

Kudos to the tactical listen advice above. Yes,  you have two eyes,  two ears,  and one mouth.  Use them in that proportion. 

However,  even if you know why they are selling  and when they need to sell, the seller may have an irrational idea supported by emotions that may kill the deal.  That's pretty much impossible to crack and you may have to accept this could be a dead deal. 

Recently,  we tackled a deal where we got tons of information during our 1.5 walkthrough.  However, the seller is still $150,000 above what we want to pay -  and that is a fair market value offer!! 

He is disregarding his upcoming retirement and a 1031 deadline. He is set on a price that nobody will pay. Well,  who knows,  someone may do it.

Go talk to them,  listen them out,  see if you can "help" them,  and ask for their consideration to buy their place. 

Best of luck, 

This was a 700 sf, 2/1 unit on the first floor. I hired people for a lot of things,  but did most of electrical,  plumbing,  floors, etc.  The hardest part was getting people to show up, managing the schedules, getting materials (100s of trips), and figuring out how to solve some construction issues. 

The entire 2 flat project with an addition at the top took me about a year.  The first months consumed planning and getting to know contractors. It was intense. 

Best of luck, 

Heavy duty floor paint

Way too long - 4 months, probably. I coordinated (and did) the work on weekends and evenings,  no full time crew. 

I don't think I'll get that involved on a full gut like that, I rather pay more. 

Not flips, buy and hold.