All Forum Posts by: Jezelle John

Looking to transfer my property into my LLC and looking for assistance in the Cleveland area. Welcoming advice and tips.

Will do ! Always open to more lending options. 

So, I purchased a triplex in Cleveland, OH and I closed in my personal name. I am now establishing my LLC and my trust. However, my current tenants and property management agreement must be transferred out of my name to the name of the LLC. I looking for an attorney to assist me and recommendations for anything else I may have missed in this process.

REI is a challenge but I think people forget some are is still new to the game. Have you checked the neighboring listings ? Are they renting or selling or just sitting like yours? Be prepared to have to wait. Research other voucher programs and find out what other owners are doing in your area. If we are in different markets we definitely don't understand what's going on in yours. Focus your search to the specific market, city, town that you are in? Try not to get discouraged, the market is ever changing. I listed my property and had no real offers, once it was fully rented - I realized there is no need for me to list it. It's paying for itself. But that was after terrible property management experience, overpriced renovations, and other hurdles that delayed the property being fully rented. We are pivoting to a buyers market again so it's time to get creative. Also speak to wholesalers too.

Hi,

I was using pest responders but I cannot recommend them. I found them on Facebook. My property manager now handles the repairs pest control. 

I welcome section 8, meet all the requirements and inspection needs and it is a steady check. You will never please everyone but you can give your best effort. Have regular pest control before the tenants ask for it too. Are you self managing? 

Best advice is ensure you have reserves. Real estate is interesting because everyone has a different strategy. Some like tenant occupied because it means the unit is livable. Some prefer unoccupied to do a full gut renovation. I own a triplex in Cleveland and I’m on my 2nd property manager and thankfully I’m only paying for water & sewer , while the tenants pay everything else. It’s smooth sailing now but that’s not how it started. Work on getting your boots on the ground - handyman, contractor, pest control, your PM should be able to assist for a fee but do your own due diligence. Plan that as soon as you close on the property , the tenants are going to complain about something. Have reserves- get new smoke/CO2 detectors, lead inspection documents, find out the property taxes- somehow the previous owner for my property paid for 2021 but did not pay for 2020 or 2019, so I got the bill after closing. Are the tenants on voucher programs, if so get all that information to call so payments can be switched to you or your PM. I like Cleveland - not much appreciation but ok cash-flow as long as your tenants pay their rent. The renovations are what will eat your cashflow so try to stay ahead of it.  

I utilized a HELOC on my primary home with the intention of doing a cash out refinance to pay back the HELOC and do it again. Then reality set in. It took forever to renovate my first property- triplex in Cleveland and more than double my budget. Then the next year I bought a STR - which wasn't crazy to set up but it definitely at a good chunk of my HELOC for setup. Then the market did a turn and now the cash-out rates and amounts I would get back didn't make it worth it considering the fees, the new interest rates, and how much it would actually pay down my HELOC. Thankfully the properties are paying for themselves and the remaining HELOC is sitting as my emergency fund so there is no personal funds coming out of my pocket - however reusing my HELOC is not an option for me at this time . Luckily I am only in year 3 of my 10 year draw. As the time approaches that's probably when I will refinance and try to pull out all the money I can but it won't be enough to payback a 400k HELOC as I hoped. My advice is start slow and have reserves. Prepare for market changes as well. I did not foresee interest rates going up so fast, I'm not confident they will drop again for a really long time (years). So I'm looking into creative financing outside of my HELOC to acquire more properties that will hopefully help pay down the HELOC .

My experience was relaying on my property management- they oversaw the money and the draws. I hated it and felt the PM and contractors were in it together to rip me off. The contractor was never in contact with me. Everything was done on word documents from the PM and when I asked to negotiate, it was declined. The budget was double what I planned. The job was basic and that’s when I realized - this PM is not a good fit, so I got a new one. Next time WILL be different. I did everything wrong because I was new, nervous, wanted to get it done and rented but it never feels good being ripped off by your PM and contractors. 

I am an out of state investor with a property in Cleveland. Looking to purchase more properties and I am interested in which small banks are popular in the area. I’m based in NY , looking for what is popular in the area.