All Forum Posts by: Garrett Bradshaw

when one of our tenants wanted the same thing, (due to inherited lease the significant other was able to stay 23 nights out of a month. They had originally worked out of town, but were not one the lease). We had to wait for the renewal process before we could add them, but we were looking at the option of background check then an addendum. 

we are giving our tenants a small gift basket, which will include Toilet paper, soap, air freshener, a couple of other little things. Just something simple and nice from us.

not in Columbus, but Texas. As of this moment our tenants pay electric, We pay sewer, water, gas, trash. though when leases renew we will be passing on the cost to the tenants. 

i would be looking over your lease. Ours have a grave period, and terms of late fees in it. 

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Kilgore.

Purchase price: $105,000
Cash invested: $26,000

purchased this duplex, with tenets in place. each unit is 625sq/ft. 1br/1ba.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

we were looking to invest in a market close to home. we were looking at single family homes, and well as multifamily. we invested in this because the numbers worked.

How did you finance this deal?

conventional loan. 5/1 arm. 25% down. with the seller giving around 6000 in credits.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

so far we have learned that nothing is ever easy, and that even though problems will come up, we can always find a way to work around them. (the mortgage process was not a smooth one. first couple of banks we went to said one thing, and then by the time we got home they emailed saying that some of there information was wrong, and was actually going to be something else.)

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Carman Hamilton at EXP reality was/is amazing. Our Lender( willie Sullens, Regions bank) we ended up with in the end was hardworking/competent/caring all the things you want.

 that was our rough draft, when we have our finalized version, I will defiantly upload it to fileplace.

 thank you for the input. it has been very insightful. 

we are closing on a property very soon, and are going to put a letter to our tenants explaining a few things. would love to get yalls thoughts. it is a duplex that has both units rented out. 

"Hello tenant, We are excited to introduce ourselves. We are XXX properties, and we have purchased your residence from your previous landlord. We are looking forward to building relationships with you, improve upon the property, and serve you in the best ways that we can.

It is Friday,  month year, and I'm sure you have many questions. Where do I pay rent? How do I make maintenance requests? How do I report emergencies? Who are these people that are my new landlords?

Well to answer some of the questions you have, we will be using "service" to receive payments, and make requests. After the documents have been verified we will be adding you to the online profile. As far as emergencies are concerned, we will be providing contact information for owner, and owner, at the bottom of this letter.

Well your new landlords are the owner, and the owner. We are East Texas Natives, born and raised. Both of our families have been part of our respective communities for generations. Our goals for this property is to provide great service to you, through great landlord/tenant communication, preventive maintenance, and property improvement. We strive to be hard working, honest, and trustworthy in every one of our endeavors. If you have any more questions feel free to email us at email.

To give you an update on some of the things we have planned for the property coming up. In the coming weeks we will be coming by to do maintenance on the yard, and surrounding trees. We will also be having some of the surrounding trees trimmed back. We will be getting bids for some general outside repairs.

We look forward to continuing on this journey that is life with you. Thank you for your time."

I would try to make my month to month increase able to cover future vacancy if they decide to move out. Though I have heard of people offering a reduced rate, or an incentive for the year lease. Instead of a "punishment" for month to month. just depends on the approach you want. 

 thank you, one week (my next off day after close) after close we will be cleaning up the yard, cutting back trees. ect. before the end of august we will be adding heating to the units. the previous owner took out the gas, and never replaced them. (last winter they used space heaters.), and well as having the siding replaced.