All Forum Posts by: Gustavo Gonzalez

Wondering if anyone can offer some input for an on-site manager compensation for a 45 unit building in California that I just closed on?  

The previous owner had a relative live in a 2 bedroom 2 bathroom unit rent free.  There was a management company involved but this on site manager did take care of small day to day repairs.  The on site manager plans to leave California in 3-6 months so they will not be an option going forward.  

My management company suggests hiring a part time on site manager at the rate of $15-20 per hour (higher pay depending on willingness of job responsibilities).  The on site manager will be hired under contract by my property management company.

I also plan to place the on site manager to a 1 bedroom 1 bathroom unit.  The property has an office that is currently attached to the 2 bedroom 2 bathroom unit that can easily be "walled off" so I plan to separate it (drywall) as a stand alone office.  

Thanks!

Thank you all. Very informative.

Wondering if anyone has any input on implementing RUBS for their property.  I'm soon to close escrow on a 45 unit building in Central California (Bakersfield) and of course I'm looking to reduce expenses so I'm considering RUBS.  Any feedback/advice much appreciated.

Gustavo

Jack Orthman thank you for your pearls of wisdom.

Gustvo

Thank you all! Very helpful tips.

Gustavo

Hello All!

I'm currently under contract for a 45 unit apartment building in Central California. This has been a goal for mine for some time now and although I do have experience with rentals, my portfolio up until now is made up of SFR, duplex, triplex and fourplex. It has been easier to tract profits and losses for smaller units but I'm now looking for a more sophisticated process than mostly paper and pen.

Can anyone recommend a software program or excel sheet that helps me keep track of profit and losses for apartment buildings.  The property will be managed by a property manager and of course they will keep those data on their end but I would like one that I can use separately.  

Thanks,

Gustavo

Hi BP Community:

First order of business, my apologies as I'm not trying to act naive but I'm wondering why everyone is talking about apartment investing syndication as the best way to enter the multifamily unit space?  I do get that under a syndication larger deals (i.e., number of units and high price listings) can be taken down but what I'm wondering is how profitable is this once everyone takes their share?  I read and listen to different sources that of course talk about syndication for  150 +, 200 + and get how one individual unless your exceedingly wealthy can't do those deals alone.  But what if an individual just single-handedly takes down the smaller apartment buildings say 20-40 units?

I have some money set aside and have been monitoring the 20-40 unit apartment space but it seems that the new buzz word is syndication.  Am I missing the obvious?

Gus

Jo-Ann:

Thanks for the suggestion.  Why do you suggest Visalia and Salinas?

Gus

Hi Chris:

Great question and one that I keep going back and forth on.  It's probably best summed up as just my comfort boundary especially when taking on a new type of investment (i.e, apartment building).   My criteria is that I'm able to drive/fly to and from in within the same day in the event that something comes up.  Of course, I will be using a property management company but there is something about being readily available to see things first hand.  I think once I acquire my first apartment then I will be much more open to other states.  I did travel to Phoenix earlier this year to become familiar with that market - that met my fly criteria.  

The investment properties I hold are all in Bakersfield and your right in the sense that I really don't have to be present for day to day operations so it's as if they could be in another state.  Perhaps I'm making a bigger deal about an apartment but in the end it is all trial by error.

Gus

Hi All:

So I'm looking to venture out to Northern California for investing in apartments.  I'm interested in a 20-30 unit apartment building and I'm specifically looking in the Stockton area but I'm also open to Sacramento.  

I mostly have experience in investing in 1-4 unit rentals in Central California/Bakersfield but I'm now ready to scale up and would like to connect with commercial realtors that know the Stockton and Sacramento area(s) very well.  

I live in Los Angeles so any input or tips about these areas is much appreciated.

Gus