All Forum Posts by: Jason Martinez

Hi @Sahir Noorani, 

I'm glad to see that you are looking at all your options in your move to Menlo Park. I love the idea of house hacking and I know you could charge quite a bit of rent in that area. 

I think what you need to consider is the down payment as well. What is the opportunity cost here? Could you use that down payment anywhere else to benefit you in an investment move? Will you over leverage with the down payment? 

Considering you will be moving to Menlo Park is there a colleague of yours moving at the same time or maybe already in Menlo that might need a place to rent? Obviously do your due diligence if you have a friend or colleague that would like to rent, but this could ease your mind a bit more knowing your tenant is a friend/colleague that makes good $$ and is dependable. 

Lastly, tenants, yes California is very tenant-friendly. I just sold a home in LA County that was tenant occupied and I spoke to multiple attorneys saying that is pretty much impossible to evict during this crisis. I told my seller to simply pay for keys and offer the tenant cash to move out, we did just that. Back to your concern, you would have to really do a terrible job of screening your potential tenant IF within that 2 years they would stop paying you rent.

Hi everyone,

I am an OOS investor and Real Estate Agent out of Southern California. I would have never thought or even known this type of investing is a thing, but now I am very interested. I feel this would be a niche in the real estate investing market and a way to give back to the community. 

I was unable to find an abundance of information in the forums about this type of investing, so I figured I would create one. 

The little that I know: 

My friend was a Probation Officer in Southern California and they would send homeless parolees to Transitional/Halfway houses to stay. The government would pay the landlord $90 per head per night. Some of these houses were specific for the time of parolee they would allow stay. For example, one company had 3 houses and they would only allow Male - Sex Offenders. The parolees would obviously be assigned a Probation/Parole Officer as well so as far as the parolees getting out of hand and being a "bad tenant" that would be solved. I know that the startup costs would be much higher than a traditional SFR rental as I would have to pay for appliances, all utilities, etc... however, would this be considered a Non-Profit Organization (NPO) that could qualify for government grants?

To sum this up. Does anyone know more information about this type of investing? 

Contacts, podcasts, books etc...? I would love to learn more. 

Thank you for reading. 

Hi @Jayrald Pedro,

Congrats on taking the right steps in learning about Real Estate Investing. Sounds like you are sharpening your tools to get an edge on everyone else. Remember once you pull that trigger don't be so conservative with a few dollars trying to get a "Home Run" as your first deal, just get on base and learn. Knowledge from your first deal is much more valuable than the cash flow you will receive. 

Feel free to reach out with any questions you have! 

As @Nathan Gesner pointed out. Go back and READ that agreement. For example, my PM does not charge me a markup fee for maintenance, but they keep any discounts their vendors give them to do work. In other words I am still paying full price for any work that needs to be done. They also give me full invoices for every charge in detail. 

My property is also in Indianapolis feel free to reach and I can suggest my PM. 

College students always need a rental. However, keep in mind that the turnover is much higher than long term tenants. I have not personally experienced renting to college students, but I am sure it requires more work than a long term tenant. Different types of college students moving in/out constantly. The benefit is that you wont really have to deal with evictions because they pay on time and you can rent per room versus the whole house to one family. It will definitely test your tolerance. I suggest reaching out to some California investors that rent out to college students to increase your knowledge and understanding. 

As far as rehabs there is ALWAYS some that go bad (those that don't do their due diligence) and some that go great (those that do their due diligence). Just like with anything the more wisdom you have (knowledge that you actually apply) the likelihood of success is that much better. Personally, I do not invest nor have I had investors purchase property in Old Towne Orange. I just don't prospect there. So, my knowledge will not do much help there. 

A regular meetup that I go to is in Los Alamitos and the same individual hosts one in Newport Beach as well. They are mostly OOS investors.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521/topics/774757-long-beach-los-alamitos-seal-beach-and-beyond-real-estate-meet-up

Hi @Lloyd Loftis

I am using T&H Realty Inc. for my PM. They have done a great job thus far. Feel free to reach out and I can connect you with their best contact. 

Hi @Kina De Santis, 

I have yet to house hack myself, but keep in mind house hacking in California may be different from other states and this also depends on your strategy. For example, I know people who house hack near Anaheim, CA and market their property for guests visiting Disneyland or conventions. They cash flow pretty well, but of course require more work since they are running a mini-hotel.

 If your strategy is to house hack to a long term tenant typically you wont cash flow, but of course your mortgage is a hell of all cheaper and if you're lucky you can break even. Bet your cards on living for very cheap or near free AND appreciation here in California. Another thing to consider is California is a tenant friendly state, not a landlord friendly state. Read up on the new Rent Control laws AND if you need to evict you need a valid reason. 

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions. Good luck! 

You will have to talk to a lender that handles this, but I have heard of people only using 1 year of their 1099 income to qualify for a mortgage. What about your girlfriend or family member co-signing? 

As you suggested you can also find seller financing deals. Hell I would love to do deals with more seller financing opportunities. Tougher to find, but you can go on craigslist and look at "For Rent" ads and suggest to the landlord, instead of renting the house you are interested in purchasing, but your 1099 income limits your financing options. There are a ton of distressed landlords that want the cash flow, but do not want to deal with tenants. 

Hope this helps! 

Hi @Quinton Huntley

First be mindful of your competition in the area. I was able to achieve higher rents because MOST houses in the area only have 1 bath, but because I have an extra .5 bath I was able to beat out my competition AND increase the rent. 

I believe looking at your market will justify what you need to do to increase rents. As @Andrew B. mentioned If your property is in a Class D neighborhood there is no point in spending on granite countertops and stainless steel appliances. Class D tenants are just looking for affordable living. 

Pets: Obviously, this does not add value to your property, but it does increase your exposure, security deposit, and gross rent. You can limit your liability by restricting certain breeds. 

Hey @Kevin Johnson and welcome! 

First of all, my condolences go out to you and the Astros fans. I thought you guys had it for a second. Haha. 

Anyways welcome to California. You are absolutely right about the prices here. The market is finally seeing a plateau, but still high. I invest OOS and it's the way to go especially as a landlord. CA definitely favors tenants considering the most recent statewide rent-control law. I currently invest in Indianapolis. Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.