All Forum Posts by: Julius L Evans

I'm curious if anyone runs their real estate investment business like a traditional business and if so, how have you addressed the need for business insurance? Or do you have business insurance? Do you need business insurance? Is there a benefit to have it (of course it supports and expands the protections provided by the LLC), but I would like to know how others would answer that question.

@Jocelyn Borg, @Cristhian Huamani, @Bill Kenny, @Beth L., @Emmanuel Taylor I've been reading the thread and I wonder if anyone would be interested in providing an update to where they are in their investment journey.

I just started in REI and I have found that, well, let's just say that this has been interesting. But I am not discouraged. I have two deals in the making. Once I get my contractor bid/estimate, I will be able to negotiate a fair price on my first multi-family deal. It will require rehab, but I hope to have tenants in a nice, newly rehabbed building of which they will be proud to call home. My second property, I have local building inspector providing me with a comprehensive report which will help me decide if I am going to purchase the duplex or not. The first property is also a duplex.

I would like to ask the group if you wouldn't mind contacting me if you can refer a trusted general contractor. I don't know that I will stay with the one I have and I just want to have a back-up plan in place. My goal was to have one duplex in my brand new portfolio by the end of the year. It looks like I may have two, but I am proceeding methodically. As @Cristhian Huamani has said, it is critical to do your due diligence. 

Greetings. 

We are on the cusp of making our first deal. Maybe our first two! While driving the neighborhood looking at properties that we found online, we drove past a FSBO sign and called the number. I scheduled an appointment and met the owner a couple of days later. He showed us around and told me his price. My wife and I, who are partners, considered the deal and thought it might be a good entry into the real estate investing business. We scheduled a contractor and unfortunately, the first one was a no-show, but this morning, a different one came and we are now waiting to receive the report.

While getting all this together, earlier during the week, we found another FSBO and we saw it today too. (Don't worry about the timeline, this all transpired over the course of two weeks, with the second viewing of the first property this morning and the first viewing of the second property this afternoon. The second property is 90 minutes away from where we live). We looked at #2 and it looks good. I've been running different scenario analysis on both properties and no matter the numbers I use, the analysis on both properties look solid.

We are interested in buying them both. But should I get a mortgage on both properties? One requires rehab work. One is turnkey. I don't want to spend ALL our cash - but our financial position would support financing the purchases. However, there are two separate properties, so we are just a little cautious about how we should proceed. 

The higher priced property may have an opportunity to be seller-financed. Property #1 is below one hundred. Property #2 is below forty. Any insight or wise words would be most helpful in helping us make our decisions.

@Trey Williams Thank you for the information you provided about real estate in this area. I'm actually looking at a low cost property near Frostburg. The owner lived in it for many years and now wants to get rid of it. I am trying to locate a contractor to survey the property with me this Sunday. 

I have a general contractor for a property I am considering purchasing in Hagerstown, and we (me, the contractor and the owner) are going through it tomorrow, Thursday, 28 May. But I don't know anyone who services the Frostburg area for my Sunday property viewing. You and @Cristhian Huamani make good points about being cautious and I want to take your advice. Would you mind emailing me? 

Hello. These are great points. I meet with the FSBO and the general contractor at the property tomorrow. Based on the bid the contractor provides (well, I asked him to provide an estimate and a bid on the job), that will be factored into the offer price. This is my first investment property so I'm excited about the process. I am banking on the contractor providing enough information, once I receive the report, that will allow me to make a purchase decision. Are there any specifics I should keep an eye on?

Good Morning Everyone! I am new to the forum and I must say that the information I have gained on here has been invaluable. The first property I looked at, I contacted a realtor with what I thought was a deal that was too good to be true. It was a fully occupied, rent generating triplex that had been on the market for like 283 days. The owner was offering seller financing and this was to be my first step into the arena. Long story short, after contacting the realtor and our communication was daily, to next thing I know, she is no longer returning my calls or texts and the property is now pending. Now, I don't know what happened there, but suffice to say, I am working with someone else and I have kissed that property goodbye.

Next property was what seemed like to me a good deal and that's the one I originally mentioned on here. It was a duplex with all the trimmings, but as it turned out, only one side was for sale. The listing made it look like the entire building was for sale.

These are learning lessons upon which I am building my toolbox. That brings me to today. While driving for dollars (a termed on learned here on BP, but have always done it), I found a FSBO duplex, vacant, and as it turns out, it's a property owned by the husband's wife and they just want to get rid of it. We walked the property and it needs work. I've placed an ad on Angie's list for general contractors and once I get three different contractors to provide estimates, I will have an idea of what to offer the seller for the property. As we were leaving the property the seller says, "Now listen, the price I asked, don't let that scare ya. We're done with this. Now, I'm not going to GIVE it away, but if you are serious, don't just disappear." He indicated to me that they want to get rid of the property. He also indicated that he owns others. (A potential for another purchase down the line). I have a few funding options and I believe the local banks will roll the construction costs into the mortgage. (This has the potential to be a true no money transaction).

So, my question is First off, is it authorized to share a link in here? Second, do these numbers raise any red flags to you? If you cannot get this, can you contact me so I can pick your brain? Thank you.

https://parrotpg.com/analyzer/...

@Odie Ayaga, thank you for your thoughts. That makes sense. The money is a part of the team. Great logic.

Greetings. What a powerful working tool. You ladies and gentlemen are a wealth of knowledge. These are all valid points and very well regarded. I have funding lined-up already and we are very specific on the type of property we want to pursue. We will drill down even more closely, just to ensure that we aren't spinning our wheels. I think one of the problems with a new investor, because I have cash, is that everything looks attractive. So @Bill Kennyand @Bill Goodland, thanks for the advice. Going forward, I think we will resist the urge to look at buildings that are out of our core focus. I would like to ask some specific money questions and I understand they restrict those type questions in this forum. Would you object to receiving a private message? 

Ms. Joyner, good morning. So you're saying the Harrisburg, PA is a good rental market for single family homes, but what is your opinion on the multi-family homes (2, 3 and 4) and (6-16) units/buildings? When you say that $200K can purchase 3 - 4 SFR are you speaking of the down payment on each?

Hello Joanne, it took me a moment to figure out the hard money and private money lending acronyms, but I got it now! Thank you for replying. Let me assume that you are saying that I should have both things lined up first, right? I agree. I was thinking to line up the contractors - in fact, I texted my general contractor first. That brings me to another question.

My contractor has worked on a few things in my house, (replaced shingles on my roof, cement in my basement, something in my garage), and when I asked him tonight if he is interested in working with me, he agreed, but he asked if he has to be licensed and insured. Now, I would imagine he must be, right?

And thank you for the clarity on my previous question.