All Forum Posts by: Ian M.

I use Wilke and Associates too. David Cooke and his Associate, Carla specifically.

@Matthew Hicks just a thought, but rather than going right to having it towed, why not try the entrepreneurial route and find out who the owner is and negotiate a deal where you let them park there for b/w $25-50 (going rate in the burgh depending on location and amenities/garage). It's a great way to have vacant land make you some money

As far as management fees those are about the rates I pay as well but my new management company is much better than the old. That said, I have always had an issue with paying a full months rent to place a tenant, just based on principle. Why isn't it a flat rate? I would argue that it's actually harder to place a (good) tenant in a $450/month property than in a $1200/month property so why do I still need to give up a full $1200 to have that tenant placed? Unfortunately it doesn't matter what I think it matters what the market dictates. That said if anyone knows of a GOOD management company in the burgh that will not take a full months rent I'm all ears. @Michael D. I would be interested in hearing who you are utilizing. If you would PM me, I would appreciate it. @Jerry Kisasonak I think the last we spoke you were managing yourself, correct?

Josh Hyman if you are at the beginning and looking to understand REI, terms, etc... go to the "Learn" tab at top of the this page and click on The BiggerPockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing that Joshua Dorkin and @Brandon Turner put together. I haven't read it, but if its got 1/2 of what the website has , it will be all that you need to get started. I know its gotten great reviews as well and from the looks of it, it is very comprehensive and will be great way to clear your mind on what track you want to go down. Then stay active on the site and read all the posts/newsletter articles.

Michael Bevan you may want to start by joining ACRE of pittsburgh (local REI group) to get your feet wet. you can find them at acrepgh.org. Frankly though, subscribe to BP's newsletter and learn as much as you can here. its one of the best places I have found to get unbiased and FREE advice that is worth WAY more than you pay for it (nothing). ACRE is good, but it does tend to become a guru/sales fest at times. just make sure you take at least one thing away from the meetings/newsletters each time and you will learn something that could save/make you thousands of dollars. Good luck.

Michael D., I also left Win Rental recently, about 6 months ago. I am now working with MACE, so far so good for me there too.

Ryan Nguyen You may be able to short circuit the whole due on sale discussion that is taking place - the way I read your initial post, you are planning on taking out an FHA 3.5% loan, then turning around to a renter and never living in the property. If I read that accurately, you can't do that. It's actually mortgage fraud.

How about fixing then a cash out refi (if the newly refi'ed mortgage still provides cash flow). You generally have a 6 month seasoning period, but that's not bad compared to the 12 months for a 1031. Im a big fan of "if i work hard enough to find a good deal, why give it away"?

Michael G my first suggestion would be to read, listen to podcasts, whatever you can to learn about the different types of investments that are available to you (you are just focused on one at the moment - paper assets). While i admit, that answers sucks and I hated when people said it to me, it is a lifesaver b/c you yourself want to know why you are investing in something (and just as importantly if not more so be able to explain it to your spouse!) As an example, inflation was mentioned as were mortgages. 2 of the several reasons, i really like REI. It will beat inflation to death and the mortgage (leverage) will allow you to control more money AND have tenants pay it off for you. 2 very simplistic and not very thorough explanations, but that would give me carpal tunnel. If only they had taught me something, anything other than "paper assets" in business school! That's what most of the magazine and schools teach (stocks/mutual funds), but I strongly believe its not the best investment. HOWEVER, there is more work (not necessarily physical labor) involved in REI or any other investment. Mutual funds are just a click away.

Joshua Dorkin and @brandon turner have put together a list of books on the website that would be a great start, not to mention the podcasts and newsletters.

as far as the turn key provider @ali boone has written several articles on that topic and i know she is a big proponent and can provide some advice.

Luke Ward I use Rentometer and I like it for ballpark, but NEVER rely totatlly on it. Use Craigslist. its a (little) bit more work to come through them, but every landlord i know uses it b/c 1. we're trying to keep costs down (its free) and 2. the customers (prosective tenants) use it all the time. So its a great source for getting to know your market

Wade Guy i would be very careful about how you screen - your post dances the line of a fair housing discrimination suit. If the housing authority ever got wind of that, it could be very bad news. Your post alone may encourage them to "test" you in that regard. Just a word of caution.

As far as the lockbox issue, if you are managing your property, that is your perogative I suppose, but I what about all the things that could go wrong - what if a crime takes place in your unit while you left the unit open? Guess who's liable. As far as the PM - what is the point of paying them to rent the unit? That's what you are paying them for, otherwise you could do it yourself. Clearly this is a huge timesaver and entreprenuers/REI are all about efficiency, but they are supposed to be calculated risks and the risk on that one, would be a bit too high for me to swallow ----ESPECIALLY if i am paying a PM to get it rented.