All Forum Posts by: Hans Christopher Struzyna

 My wife and I are doing the same. We rented for years and saved as much as we could. We now own our home in Alameda (got it off market from a client) and own four investment properties (two in Cleveland Oh and two in Tacoma, WA). 

Regardless of where you look, you might consider trying to buy property and rent by the room. With prices the way they are, I am seeing that as an opportunity to make solid cash flow in better zip codes. Obviously it takes more work as you have to manage it more actively but the numbers may make the extra effort worth it. Good affordable rental options are few and far between so you may be able to make this work well. 

One final thought is whatever you end up doing, allow pets. You have to screen this carefully but that goes without saying. Very few rentals allow them and you can charge a premium. In my experience, tenants tend stay longer and are grateful to have their pets with hem and end up taking care of the place. 

Hey all,

Im looking for an attorney referral who can help me set up an entity for my Ohio rentals. Thanks in advance. 

Best,

Hans

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $145,000
Cash invested: $41,225

Contributors:
Kristin Struzyna

It's a two floor duplex with an unfinished basement and attic. We are considering finishing out the attic. We are simply looking for a solid cashflow machine. This is it!

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

It's hitting our COC and cash flow returns.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

It was on the MLS and we wrote a strong offer.

How did you finance this deal?

25% down 30 year fixed.

How did you add value to the deal?

Raising rents, getting tenants to pay the utilities, and the paint/finishes.

What was the outcome?

We are at 10% COC and are very happy.

Hey there @Fareed Fityan. I have a great handyman for you. Shoot me a DM and I'll get it to you. 

You have to talk to @Amanda Han. She is amazing!!!

My wife and I manage our Tacoma properties from CA as well. It it completely legal and actually easier than most people think. We use Cozy for rent collection and have a tenant who is a handy man take care of repairs and service requests for a rent credit. It works out really well. At a certain point its hard to scale that model but I think you have to get 20-30 units before it becomes too hard to manage that way. 

First Question: Do you want a licensed contractor who can GC the job or do you want a few trades people who can work well together but you have to manage. 

Second Question: How high end will this be? What neighborhood is it in and what do you anticipate charing for rent? 

Katie is spot on here. You may even consider calling the rental board and describing the situation to them to get their take. 

The first thing you want to do, as many other have mentioned, is read the agreement with the property management co. Boilerplate agreement in Tacoma usually suggest they can spend upto $500 on repairs but have to give you some kind of statement or invoice showing what was spent. They aren't holding up their end of the agreement, you have grounds to break the agreement as they are in breach of their end. 

I would hold in your back pocket the fact that you are more than happy to share your experience on the internet if they try to hold you to the term of the agreement. If all else fails, my father is a real estate attorney in Wa and has helped me with most of my contracts. Id be happy to make an introduction. Shoot me a DM if that would be helpful. 

You have to refer back to the lease and the security deposit clause. The property manager should be responsible for enforcing that lease. If you do not have a security deposit in place, figure out why not and if that was the fault of the property manager, fire them. 

It all goes back to the lease so start there and let us know what it says. I may be able to make a recommendation if I know the context around the leases language of security deposits.