All Forum Posts by: Jeff Fountain

Shane, you can probably keep your HELOC open and continue it as a "go-to account". Pay down your current HELOC principal with your cash as suggested by Chris and have the HELOC for your emergency fund. Odds are you will not need your emergency cash. I get the warm and fuzzy provided by having that cash on hand but you are probably paying a lot of money for that scenario. Reduce your costs and maintain an avenue (HELOC) for immediate cash.

Amelia,

Try a small local community bank that knows the area well. Large national banks can often be your worst enemy because of their strict black-and-white policies. Often, you will find smaller banks do a number of portfolio (in-house) loans. In other words, they take into account all of the dynamics of your particular situation. You have to stay in the grind until you get what you want. It will happen, keep pushing. 

@Matthew W.I live in St. Simons Island, GA; somewhat of a hidden gem and one of GA's barrier islands. I have invested here since 2017 and continue to ride this market. What most are unaware of is the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) on the mainland in Brunswick. FLETC churns their visiting instructors from 6 to 12 months at a time with most wanting to live on the island, paying daily government Per Diem. Between that scenario and the STRs, the place booms year round. One hour north is Savannah Airport and one hour south is Jacksonville, FL airport. Great location. This place was NUTS during COVID as we received so many folks relocating and or investing. I have several properties here, many with SIGNIFICANT equity increases. Ref insurance. Remember you will not control mother nature. ALEXANDRIA, VA/D.C. area got hit with an earthquake several years ago so don't let mother nature convince you beach communities are your only risk. Carry a good insurance policy and keep investing. Feel free to PM me.

@Matthew W.I live in St. Simons Island, GA; somewhat of a hidden gem and one of GA's barrier islands. I have invested here since 2017 and continue to ride this market. What most are unaware of is the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) on the mainland in Brunswick. FLETC churns their visiting instructors from 6 to 12 months at a time with most wanting to live on the island, paying daily government Per Diem. Between that scenario and the STRs, the place booms year round. One hour north is Savannah Airport and one hour south is Jacksonville, FL airport. Great location. This place was NUTS during COVID as we received so many folks relocating and or investing. I have several properties here, many with SIGNIFICANT equity increases. Ref insurance. Remember you will not control mother nature. ALEXANDRIA, VA/D.C. area got hit with an earthquake several years ago so don't let mother nature convince you beach communities are your only risk. Carry a good insurance policy and keep investing. Feel free to PM me.

@Akshay

Yes, my first rental was out of state. You goal should be to minimize risks while continuing to moving forward. Remember, analysis paralysis kills. I maintained a rental property through a year long military deployment later followed by a 15 month deployment, and again followed by a two year deployment. Not sure a person is going to be busier that a person deployed abroad. Managing property out of state/country can be done. Here is the trick. You own, at least a Class B asset and you put NO ONE in your property that does not have good credit.NO EXCEPTIONS. Anything less than that and you are asking for multiple challenges. I still own that very asset in Northern Virginia (D.C. area) and live in Georgia. Have had that asset for 20 years and it has been an out of state rental for me for approx 15 of those 20 years. I also own property in FL that I manage. If you have the right renter, have an agreement where they give access to the repair person while you handle the repair coordination and payment. I am coordinating repairs, from out of state, as I type. I am away in another state and have two separate issues on two separate properties, working through each with minimal pain and aggravation. You will have minimal tenant requests if you spend the money and keep your property up, fix things and do preventative maintenance. If you slack on repairs, you will have requests and aggravation. Here is an example. I was contacted yesterday about the lamppost in the yard of one of my properties not working. We think it is as simple as the lightbulb needing changed. I asked her to not get on a ladder that I would have someone check it out. I responded immediately, I will fix the problem. Don't allow problems to fester and be responsive. You have to be willing to burn some midnight oil. If you're not, by all means, give your profits to a management company. 

Michael, 

Check out St. Simons Island, GA. I have several properties on the island, most are long term and often Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) rentals. The returns are some of the best in the country. Hidden secret. Most of the Federal Law Enforcement agencies send their new recruits to FLETC for their qualifications; also do continuing education/training. Many of the instructors rotate in for an average-minimum of six months to a year at the time. Most of those instructors want to live on the Island - St. Simons. The instructors are paid Per Diem. (AUG-FEB $161; MAR-JUL $206; Daily rates). As a REI, you charge the Per Diem rate (set by the government). The renter pays you, not the government. This simply means the government will pay that renter UP TO the daily per diem rate. The renter pays you after you provide them the invoice. While there is a ton of cash flow, there is a down side. The FLETC instructor - renter signs no leases and you pay for turn key operations. Keep your property nice and you will keep your FLETC renter. You will be hard pressed to find these profit margins (investment based on 20% down / conventional mortgage) anywhere in the country. Financially structure your investment differently and your profit margin can be higher.

Hi Akshay,

Manage your own property unless there is a MAJOR reason you are unable to. You will save a ton of money and you will learn A LOT about real estate investing. Easiest way to market your property is throw it on Zillow, minimal fee and Zillow completes your backgrounds as well as makes your lease signing very simple. For repairs, network with friends for handymen or use Angi. Remember, don't make owning your first property a science project. If you have a nice property, you will not have a 3 month vacancy. My guess is it will rent within a month if not within 10 days. Keep it simple and keep moving forward. Note, I did not say, don't do homework. Keep it up. REI pays off!

Morgan, def keep in mind capital gains and don't be surprised by them. Well done on your profit margin. Real estate is addicting especially when you are making money at it. You're hooked now. It's all about the math. 

A for effort, B for judgment. I am with Jim. You are probably legally correct, but I am far from a lawyer, just someone with an opinion. Can you imagine the stress that you and everyone else is about to go through? Ask yourself is it worth it. Let's say you do fight it and the one that backed out ended up becoming the landlord, can you imagine what your clients would possibly endure getting anything repaired? Life happens, move on. I have several rental properties with all my tenants who are professional folks. When one wants out early for a valid reason. I allow it and move on. We don't want the turnover but is $1K or whatever the dollar amount is for the turnover really worth the stress of it all. I do applaud you for reaching out and seeking opinions/advice. Don't get me wrong, I am the first one to want to take someone to task and hold them accountable. This particular situation just isn't worth it. Keep up the great work of trying to protect your clients. Now it's time for your persuasive skills to kick in and convince your clients to move forward. And one final note. Look at it as a great lesson. Another first-time real estate agent may have to wait to learn a valuable lesson. Wisdom is where it's at. Money will follow. 

Patrick, I have in my leases that the first month's rent payment, as well as the deposit, is due at time of signing the lease. Review the wording in your lease. Send her money back and go with who you think will be a better fit. For the future, I recommend standing firm on the first month's rent and deposit at time of signing. I painstakingly went through this just recently and learned a big lesson. Be nice, but stick to business. First come, with everything, first serve! What you are experiencing is a microcosm of what is coming down the road. The folks I were "NICE" to delayed and delayed. I was given the deposit but then they dragged their feet with the first month's rent but still prior to move in.I finally received it but had made the decision they would not get keys/code until I had it all.  Fast forward....Later, when I sent a plumber at their request over a minor issue, they forgot about the appointment. Learn from my mistakes. Her actions are speaking volumes.