All Forum Posts by: Jason Tham

Hi forum,

I own about 8 units right now, and looking to up that to around 12 units by the end of the year.  I don't like being a landlord all that much, and I also don't like paying property management companies 5-10% of revenues just to collect a check every month.  

I'm seeking automation to some level; I'd like to be the manager of my property, yet extricate myself from really having to do any work at all.  

Does anyone have a good example of how they became a hands-off manager without entrusting a full-service property management shop?  Were there significant economies of scale that you realized?

Things I can think of:

- Online rent collection (auto bank transfers or credit cards)

- Hiring a Virtual Assistant to act as a 'round-the-clock' call center to manage maintenance calls and scheduling showings

- Having a good Rolodex of handymen

- Hiring someone hourly to show the apartment

Thanks for your ideas!

Jason

@Arh Elaine - I started investing in the US before moving out here, so investing from here is much easier given I have a team at home for the groundwork. My partnership is working well.  My partner is someone I know and trust, and that has made things easy. 

@Anjana Vakil I am from the US, and my real estate contacts are still there on the ground even though I am in Singapore.  I set up time to visually see a property before I move on it. - it gives me peace of mind.   That said, it's not necessary if you have good partners.  My  last deal was totally set up by my partner - it was serendipitous that I had a work trip back to the US before we moved on it, so I was able to see it for myself, but I wasn't there for any of the negotiations, closing, or property management setup.  

My advice would be that if you want to invest in real estate in the US (and hold the hard real estate assets), make it a point to take a trip there (to an area you want to invest in), meet with some realtors, property managers, and real estate investors to build a contact base.  Meeting a team in person is better than finding them online, in my opinion.  Then try to check out a few neighborhoods / properties to find one that is worth investing in (try to set up at least 10-20 showings over a couple days in a few different neighborhoods).

@Tim Uittenbroek - I live at the Metropolitan next door.  I'd be happy to share my insights on property management with you.  See you soon!

@Tim Uittenbroek - I live in Singapore too!  I live right by the Redhill MRT.  I've been investing in Wisconsin for 4 years now.  I travel to the Netherlands frequently for work.  Let's get together sometime for coffee or a beer.  I'm also jealous that you got a forum post from @Brandon Turner - I dream of a reply from him someday.

@Dawn Anastasi - More folks from Singapore!

For everyone else in the forum, Singapore real estate is crazy (and that goes for a lot of SE Asia, actually, since there are so many wealthy investors from China and other developing countries). For $2,000,000 USD, you can buy an apartment that rents for $5500 USD/mo (a GRM of 30!). Yet people still do it, and I can't figure out why...

@Douglass Belt - Madison is tough right now. I get MLS notifications for all SFH under 200K and all multi-family residences and apartment buildings. It'd be tough to get a 1%'er multifamily, and a 1%SFH is probably of the question (more likely to be 0.6-0.8%). GRM numbers here have risen from about 8-9 to more like 10-11 for multifamily alone, which is a significant leap.

If you want, feel free to send me deal numbers / locations and we can discuss them.  

Hello!  Do you invest in apartment buildings with 10 or more units?  I'm now going into my 4th year of real estate investing, and my portfolio to date includes multifamily, single family, and an 8 unit partnership.  I'd like to break into the 10+ unit complexes.  My 8 unit has made me realize the synergies (i.e. only 1 building to manage tenants and repairs on vs. many single/multi-families), vacancy buffer benefits, and opportunities to raise rents per door.

Can anyone share their experience with me of moving to apartment complexes?  How did you evaluate the numbers differently?  How did you change your deal evaluation techniques?

I'm also interested in finding investors to cover the capital needs up front.  Anyone have experience with this as well?

@Steve S - I realize I didn't fully answer your question.  I do sometimes look at a property from the perspective of a tenant.  When I'm looking at a property I ask myself, "would I live here?"  It's not necessarily a way for everyone to evaluate a property, but for me, it gives me peace of mind that I can create a good, safe and comfortable environment for my tenants.  It helps me sleep at night.

@Vincent Lang - most of the houses I look at are 50-100 years old.  I have had to turn down a property because of the roof.  I once had an accepted offer and escrow payment made on a place in Madison - the numbers were mind-blowing for the area.  I didn't know about the roof problems until the inspection (I was a first time investor and didn't know a thing about roofs).  The roof looked good to me visually, but what I didn't realize is that there was 3+ layers of shingles up there. Too many layers of roof is extremely dangerous in the case of a fire, since it is so heavy.  If I would have purchased the place, I would have had to do a complete tear-off, totaling over $20K.  I'm happy to have wiggled out of that one!  

Regarding HVAC - I bought a place in 2012 in east Madison.  The place is over 100 years old, and the boiler was much older than me.  I wanted an efficient boiler, so I negotiated a new boiler into the offer.  I love it because it raised the value of my house and made it more energy efficient.

That said, I do like a place that needs some work. For example, a place has a bad interior paint job, or a bathtub that needs to be refinished.  It drives off competing offers, and I know that I can either fix it myself or get someone to do it on the cheap :).

@Russ M. I agree with you on #3.  Windows can easily be checked out from the outside.  I also think windows are a great thing to sneak into your offer to purchase conditions  Just make sure you specify what type of window!

@Lisa Ross - I have heard of people just parking their car on the street by a property and seeing what its like during the day, and in the middle of the night.  Then you can see the noise and what kind of neighborhood you're dealing with.

I invest in Madison, so my criteria are a little different, but I always take my inspections seriously.  First of all, the numbers have to work for me to even consider a property an investment.  After that, the house should:

1. Roof is no older than 5-10 years old, with 10 being on the high side.

2. The basement has to be in good shape.  Or easily repaired.  The basement can doom your property.

3. Make sure you get the chimney inspected by a trusted professional.  Chimneys can become ridiculously expensive.

4. Solid location.  Nothing 'on the fringe' of an undesirable neighborhood.

5. Always ask for a rent ledger / rent roll from the previous owner so you know what you're buying into.  It also sheds light on the neighborhood, and what kind of tenants you can expect.

Feel free to shoot me a message.  I'm still a small time investor, but I'm proud of my investments so far.