All Forum Posts by: Irv Rollman

So I asked a "how to" question about 20 days ago. I got a few replies that pointed me toward a starting point. Nancy Neville was one reply, and was extremely gracious in accepting my apology after I insulted her. No, I wasn't drunk posting, I have no real excuse other than I am uninformed and frustrated. 

My situation is as follows:

• I have one property just acquired that I will be self-managing.
• I intend to purchase more properties, not quickly, that will likely be managed by a property manager. (Nancy's product page states property management is not supported.)
• On a scale of 1-5, I'm about a 2 on Quickbooks expertise. I own a copy of 2015 QB Premier.
• I learn best via a reference book, not video courses or learning modules. (Nor do I have the time for that.)
• I want to get everything set up correctly now.
• My budget is in the $100+ range, not $1000+.
• Templates would be ideal - QB company file, chart of accounts, forms, etc.

So....... suggestions?

Thanks!

Nancy,

Forgive me for two things: First, my not so tactful and apparently humorless use of the word "shamelessly" (although, if you have a good product, you *should* be shameless about it). My sense of humor is sometimes, shall we say, interpreted incorrectly.

Second, I did a search and your name came up frequently (hence my comment). I'm still getting my feet wet here, and I thought I was searching "Forums", when in fact I was searching globally, which includes "Marketplace".

For an older guy, I still apparently have a lot to learn. Which, recognizing that, is hopefully a good thing.

Well, I just bought my first rental property, and will have it leased out shortly. Now it's time to set up the accounting. I have a copy of QuickBooks (2015) from another business I own, and would like to use that. For now, I'm self-managing, but hiring a property manager at some point would be likely. (Hot sure that's relevant or not....)

What I'm looking for is a resource - printed preferably, as i'm not a big fan of sitting through video tutorials - that I can use to get things set up. Chart of accounts, how to set up properties (as "Customers"?), tenants (as "Jobs"?), how to issue receipts, statements, etc.

Nancy Neville seems to shamelessly (or at least prolifically) promote her materials here. Are they any good? Are there other resources?

This post is NOT about what to use, I already have QuickBooks and am somewhat familiar with it. It's about how to set up what I have.

Thanks!

A year or so back I did some research on PMs in ABQ, when I thought ABQ was the correct market for me. I came across a company called Realty Pro, Jim Meek. Out of the 3 or 4 I interviewed, I liked them best. They seemed to have a good set of systems in place.

Couture came in second on my list.

Edited to add - I'm still very much a noob investor, being in the process of acquiring my first property as we speak. So take my recommendations for what you paid for them....

;-)

Well, I am officially past the "paralysis by analysis" stage, and made my first offer on a property, which has been accepted. Woo hoo, and now the ride begins?

Inspections are happening today. Sewer scope revealed a problem (low spot that wouldn't drain, unknown reason without snaking it out). Waiting on results from general inspection. Fingers crossed, I'm hopeful.....

Wish me luck!

To add a few details:

I'd definitely use a property manager for a few reasons, among them I'm not local, and I want to insulate myself from the management (i.e., I can be a softie).

First purchase "major"? I'm looking at single family homes in ABQ NW or Rio Ranch SE retailing (is that the right term) at about $175K. I'd like to find a deal, but I'm not in a position to BRRRR, and I'm not particularly "connected" in ABQ. Actually, by personality, I'm kind of a loner, so I'm not really "connected:" anywhere. Yeah, I know, I should work on that....

Nike: Yes, I want to "just do it", but I want to be smart about it, or at least not dumb. I've already got my mortgage guy upset at me - I'm fully qualified for two mortgages for my target range, but haven't moved forward. I've looked at properties on a recent trip there, but as I alluded, they are retail pricing, and cap rates on them are ~1%, less than optimal as I was advised in another post here. On the other hand, my goal is buy and hold, so that may not be completely bad.

I have an umbrella policy already, which my insurance company says covers me as a landlord. 

I will be engaging an attorney, but I’d like to have an idea which way to jump when I do. Or at least what questions to ask. And I’m trying t avoid the Nike “just do it” approach. I’d like to proceed in a planned way.

So, my gut, past experience, and research tells me LLC (or some other form of protection) is the way to go. I know I need to talk to a local attorney. What about buying the property? Buy it AS the LLC, or transfer it to the LLC.

Background: I have enough cash to buy a property outright. I'm still struggling with what property - mostly, the deal I can get, cap rates, etc., but also logistics of buying remote, structure of purchase (personal vs. LLC), and other things. My plan is buy and hold, as I want income to supplement retirement, which is in about 10 years. In the meantime, I'm working full time, unfortunately, on the other side of the country from Albuquerque, which is where we'll finally "settle".

So, what’s the best way to own a property as an investor/ landlord? I’m assuming some sort of LLC or similar. Is LLC the proper vehicle? Do I buy and quit claim to the LLC, or does the LLC need to buy it? Any other thoughts? Property location would be New Mexico, likely Albuquerque or vicinity.

So how about approaching it another way. What's a good cap rate in ABQ right now? I'm assuming I'm at least asking one of the right questions.

Backing into it, what would be a good target property cost if rent is expected to be about $1200 per month?

My goal is to have and hold for several years, and the location is in ABQ NW or Rio Ranch SE, roughly the Paradise East area, give or take.