All Forum Posts by: Herwin G.

@Christine Kankowski, @Daniel Melcher, @Thomas Bouchereau - many thanks for the help, have reached out to a couple of you and your referrals! 

@Mark L. - thanks for the inside perspective. I'm out in Phoenix and we've seen a similar dynamic. No doubt, returns aren't as promising as I'd like them to be here either. Hopefully this visit will prep me in case we see the market / cap rates start moving... or perhaps I can tap into off-market deals. Are you investing in other markets right now? Or on hold across the board?

Hi - anyone have recommendations for an investment focused agent / broker in the Las Vegas area? I'm interested in cash-flowing SFH and multi-family opportunities. Las Vegas is a new market for me, so hoping to get an overview and caught up on trends. I'll be in Las Vegas (and available) on Mar 3-4.

Any recommendations?

Also happy to connect with ambitious investors

Hey Miles, I can recommend my agent: Aladin Abdin. We were new to Phoenix and he did a great job helping us narrow down to an area that suited us for our primary residence. I can't post his phone number or email here, but a Google search will help ;) Good luck!

@Jim Sestito - the average rent-to-value ratio in Phoenix / Scottsdale area is 0.6% from what I've observed. I'm with you on mindset, would be a lot easier decision if I knew property would cashflow in case we have to rent it out. Current rents wouldn't cashflow, but to @Kevin Haskins point, perhaps they will in the future, especially given how hot the market is. Phoenix is experiencing in-migration with net increase in population, so keeps a healthy upwards pressure on prices for time being.

@Zack Niemeyer - yup, same boat. Want to make a sensible move. Looked for investment property all year and numbers didn't work. For personal residence, we're willing to take a calculated risk b/c rental inventory in North Phoenix / Scottsdale for the type of home we'd like is very low... Also considering renting, but even at 0.6% rent-to-value, we're looking at paying 7.2% annual rent-to-value - which in my calculations is slightly more expensive than owning (including interest, taxes, capex, etc). Not by much, but this is a personal residence, so not purely motivated by profitability.

@Bob Okenwa - for some reason, people seem to think investing in Phoenix is a no brainer... until you show them the numbers. Given the crazy prices, I think @Anthony Harmon has a good point about buying modest and keeping money on hand for investments in case prices drop or we find a good investment opportunity.

@Bob Okenwa, many thanks for the perspective. Agreed, no such thing as a recession proof area, but good for an area to have some level of resiliency. Creates a bit of hesitation when I see how poor rent-to-value ratios are in Phoenix / Scottsdale...

@Thomas S., yup, personal residence is indeed a liability, but owning can be cheaper than renting (less negative cashflow even when accounting for taxes, HOA, transaction costs, etc). Like the point on affording the home comfortably... to your point, it's easy to overreach.

@Chris Tran Any particular reason you'd target a single story home? Personal preference or you think it helps for resale / preserving capital? Am indeed working with an agent :)

Hi team - wife and I are evaluating homes for our personal residence in Phoenix / Scottsdale. We're concerned about the market being too hot, but it'll still be cheaper to own vs rent. We're looking at homes in two areas - which of the two do you think would fare better in case a downturn materialized?

1) Modest Neighborhood - newer homes (2000), 3/2  plus den, 2100 sq ft, single story. Nice pocket (6 out of 10), 10 minutes to nearest shopping center. Lowly rated public schools, but highly rated charter schools close by. Prices around $310k. (Eagle Summit, 85024, AZ)

2) Upscale Neighborhood - older homes (1987), 4/2.5, 2100 sq ft, two stories. Upscale pocket (8 out of 10), 5 minutes to nearest shopping center, and 10 minutes to another upscale shopping center. Highly rated public schools. Prices around $430k. (Arabian Views / Original Desert Ridge, 85254, AZ)

What area would you choose? or what else would you want to know before deciding?

Thank you in advance!

Hey DeWitt, welcome to BiggerPockets! You'll surely find some great resources here to help you narrow in on your niche. Welcome and good luck!

Great advice - It sounds like the old adage of 'you get what you pay for'. Definitely need the guidance and advice this time around (just moved to Phoenix) so will stay the course of a full-service agent. 

I have nothing against paying for the value I'm getting - but struggle when compensation is price based... if I buy a more expensive property, it doesn't necessarily mean the agents' doing more work. Glad to hear from @Jay Hinrichs that some businesses do work on a sliding scale.

Definitely will focus on negotiating property price.

Planning on joining (+1, Sonia). Looking forward to reconnecting!

Hey BP, a friend recently mentioned that there are some buyers' agents that offer commission rebates of 1% or so. And since the commission is already factored into sale price (as the seller pays the commissions) thought this could be a straightforward way to keep more money in my pockets. Anyone have experience with getting commission rebates from buyers agents? or any referrals to agents in the Phoenix area that are open to negotiating rebates?