All Forum Posts by: Gerardo Dominguez

@Joe Splitrock You are a marketing genius!! lol

@Nathan Gesner Thanks for sharing.  This is definitely not in the manual lol

@Andre Sanchez Congratulations on your first deal.  Good luck!!

@Natalie Schanne And yes, Illinois is cold right now.  Thanks for reminding me lol

@Account Closed I ended up talking to my contractor and HUD Consultant (this is a 203k loan) and they assured me my risks are minimal. To your point, the SOW already included new electrical, plumbing and HVAC. At this point, any issues should be external. For example, a bad line from the house out to the street. That would a be a city repair, not mine. Will likely eat up some time but at least no add'l cost. Thanks!

Hello BP nation!  I have a property under contract and the seller is pushing back on some stuff.  The thing that worries me the most is that they don't want to turn on the utilities.  I'm doing extensive rehab (SOW is ~120K) so I can't afford any major surprises.  I'd like some input here...Should I close on this thing without having the utilities turned on first?   Yay or Nay; why or why not?

@Chris Jensen Before I got my license I used to use Redfin to do my initial research. Now I work for them. So yes, I'm biased when I tell you that I recommend using that site over either Zillow or Trulia lol Redfin is an actual brokerage so we're constantly pulling data from the MLS. Whereas, Zillow and Trulia will always have a delay. I don't trust the property value estimates on any website (including Redfin). Trust but verify when it comes to that; better to run your own CMA. I still use Trulia regularly because they have a crime-heat-map feature which I love. Zillow is pretty much useless to me. Ideally, the best source of info is always going to be the MLS. That's my 2-cents :)

@Dee Sams Definitely report that agent.  That's unacceptable behavior.  I'm sorry that happened to you :(

@Roger S. I don't allow pets.  I'd rather not deal w/ the additional damage they'll likely cause.  If I had to allow pets, like if my area demanded it, I would rather charge pet rent.  

@Kelly Kormos Hi and Welcome to BP! It sounds like you already have your answer. Whatever is on your checklist is what you should be checking for. Decide what numbers would make you think this investment is a good risk to take. The main difference between how you look at personal residences and investment properties is whether or not that property will make you money! Make sure you look at property taxes, monthly debt payments (if you use any debt to get into this deal), utilities that you can't pass on to the renter (water, common areas, etc). From there I would suggest at least 25% of gross rental to be set aside to cover a combination of property management (even if you self manage now), short term/day to day repairs and cap-ex. The previous expenses are basically a given on any deal. Additionally, make sure you account for any other expenses that may apply to your specific rental; for example any HOA's or pest control services. Basically, account for EVERYTHING that's going to take money out of your pocket and make sure you save some healthy reserves for any unexpected items that may pop up in the future. Good luck!

@Amy Marie   I was actually just in Cleveland (aka, "the mistake on the lake" lol) for a wedding.  Anywho...Welcome to BP! Make sure to check out the BP beginner's guide. Also, look for a local REIA so you can start networking with like minded people. Best of luck to you in your investing :)

https://www.biggerpockets.com/courses/a-beginners-introduction-to-real-estate-investing