All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

I'm currently looking at multi-family properties to buy. A lot of them already have tenants in it, so I'll have to inherit the lease. I heard that some sellers like to intentionally put "bad" tenants in prior to selling, and raise the rent (because those bad tenants get rejected elsewhere) to make the property look like it's performing better. Is that an actual risk or exaggerated? And how do I protect myself from these situations?

1. If a unit is occupied, what happens with the tenant lease? Does it just continue with the buyer being the new landlord? If the seller is using a property manager, do I have to keep using it, or can I use a different one?

2. Do 1 bedroom units have a high turnover rate (compared to 2 or 3+ bedroom units)?

I'm from San Jose. I would like to meet with fellow out of state investors. If there are any real estate groups nearby, feel free to let me know. Thank you. 

I've been trying to get started on real estate investing for almost a year and a half now. I've been doing research on the basics, trying to learn specific markets that look promising, and even contacting agents to help me buy my first rental property. And so far, I still haven't bought anything. The pros make it sound easy. They keep bragging about how they buy everything at 30% below market value, and their CoC return is over 25%... and yet I can't find anything that cash flows. At all. I have no idea where they get their magical deals from. (Unless I look at really cheap properties, but then I hear about the nightmare tenants associated with them...) People keep telling me not to settle for a mediocre purchase. Well, I was about to "settle" for one that "only" gives 6% CoC return... only to have my agent tell me I messed up the calculations and the real rate of return is like -13%... so I can't even find a property to "settle" for! Go figure.
I also have no idea how to figure out the market rent for a property. (And the ARV for that matter, but the rent's more important.) I was told that Zillow is not reliable and I should contact a property manager. Well I tried doing that and most of them just ignored me. Even the ones that didn't just gave some vague useless advice. Actually, one of them told me that they just look at Zillow as well! Awesome.
I also keep hearing that the market is overheated right now, so I should be looking at off-market properties for below market value, using the BRRRR method, etc. Except I'm trying to buy my first house as an out of state rental. That's already a huge hurdle, if I say so myself. The last thing I want is to make it even more complicated and more likely for something to go wrong.

I'm sorry for sounding so frustrated right now. It seems more and more like real estate is some exclusive club and I'm an outsider trying to get in. Because nothing I've tried has worked, I keep getting vague cryptic advice, and I have no idea what to do anymore.

Can anybody recommend me a good property manager in Indianapolis?

Recently, I started working with an agent to find a rental property in Indianapolis. I keep hearing that it's one of the best markets for cash flow, and yet, I can't seem to find a property where the numbers work. I'm looking for single-family homes with 3+ bedrooms in good areas (good schools and low crime rates) and my ideal price range is $100,000 to $150,000. I looked at a few properties and the rent seems to be around 0.8% of the purchase price, at least according to Zillow. I ran some analyses with the Biggerpockets rental calculator, and pretty much any property ends up having minimal or negative cash flow.
Is there anything that I'm doing wrong? (I am new to real estate and this is my first time trying to buy a rental property.)

1. How do I know whether a property manager is good or not? What kinds of questions should I ask them?
2. Should I contact a property manager while I'm still searching, or after I closed on a deal?

1. How criteria should I use to determine who is a good agent? Should I rely on online ratings? What kind of questions should I ask an agent?

2. Should I rely on my agent to refer a lender and property manager, or find them myself?
3. Should I tell my agent that I am a new investor?

4. Is it a good or bad idea to use an agent that is also a property manager?

If I'm understanding things correctly, turnkey properties already have a tenant and property manager in place. Does that make them appropriate for a new investor (because a lot of the "hard work" has already been done)?