All Forum Posts by: Jessica F.

I own a duplex in Philadelphia and my tenant downstairs calls to tell me that they have a mice problem--they can hear them in the walls and catch them in the kitchen and basement. I have been inside of their unit several times and they are not the cleanest tenants--often finding food, crumbs, dirty dishes, trash etc just laying around the house. I put down some traps in the home (kitchen and basement) to help get rid of them.

I've live on the 2nd floor and I have never had a rodent, bug, or insect problem--until recently. I've noticed a rodent problem but they appear to be stuck in between the walls of my home. My contractor says that they must have ran up through the pipes from downstairs. They cannot access my unit because all of the holes and corners are sealed up and I keep the home clean but the noise drives me insane because they are scratching away in my bedroom closet and I am paranoid that they will scratch their way inside.

Is there anything I can do to get rid of them scratching away between the walls of my home? is there an affordable fix or resolution without having to spend hundreds?

Scott is correct--there is no way around that FHA requirement but the good thing is that after a year, you can move back and rent out the unit that you temporarily occupied. If you are living at a home your family owns, explain to them what you are trying to do. Maybe you can sublet temporarily.

Unless you will begin seeking other funding such as hard money lenders which can be a bit of a pain.

Good luck to you!

I agree with Andy. I work in King of Prussia so I have passed through Norristown several times over the years. It's an area that I tend to stay away from overall. You can go visit the area but I would do so at your risk (esp. if you are going at night). The area is bad and personally, I would never invest in an area that I don't feel safe or comfortable either driving or walking through. The market makes Norristown a lot more attractive to make up for the fact that it is a bad area. I would rather take my funds and invest in a place in Philly somewhere.

Good luck!

Congrats and great job!

I am partial to University City (West Philly area) and its surrounding area have gone through a great deal of gentrification and it has such great potential but the homes (mostly multiplexes) are usually pretty expensive but well worth their investment. I would love to invest in UC soon to do some buy/hold in that area. I also love NoLibs (Northern Liberties/North Philly) but once again, they are not cheap!

Since you mentioned that you want to do more flips, I would probably suggest other areas like Frankford, East/West Oak Lane, or Fishtown to do fix and flips. But keep in mind that you do not need to have a property manager if you buy (1) property. You can manage a few properties on your own even with another job. If you begin to have several properties (more than 10 or so) under your belt, that is when you would probably want to get a PM.

Best of luck to you.

Research is of course the best place to start. Finding out what part of the city you want to invest in and get an idea of similar properties in that same area. I use Realtor.com to give me an idea of neighborhoods and then I look up info on that neighborhood. The Philly real estate market is a pretty good investment right now. Good luck!

I was just about to post about needing a handyman as well. Please let me know if you know of a good one.

Hi Beverly,

I can suggest someone for you. I will message you his contact information and feel free to reach out if you are interested.

Best,

JF

Thanks for asking this question! I was just wondering the same thing about how to collect funds.

Welcome to BP! I am relatively new as well but I have to say that the podcasts are a great resource with a wealth of information. Congrats on your eight properties!