All Forum Posts by: Joanne Tsai

@Carlos Ptriawan initially he got me a quote for 19K on one unit, then after I pushed back saying that why did we buy a house with nice hardwood floor just so you can replace it with cheap LVP, and kitchen cabinet (while not the modern white cabinets), they are solid wood and in good condition and can be refinished and sanded, he got me quote last week coming down to 9K. I should also note it's not in class A neighborhood, it's more like c+ and b- the best. I just don't see how these additional work going to make its ROI in 8 or 10 years. I just expect my PMs to save me money when it's not related to safety issues.

and I have met with his contractor before we bought they house. They grew up together as buddies. Shouldn't I be able to see who else made a bid on the project other than his friend? 

@Rick Novotny

thanks for letting me know your numbers, that helps. we are not full time investors, we typically only buy houses that are in good condition, meaning we don't want to do a lot of rehab. Doing some paint job or flooring is fine, but we try to avoid something big since we are out of state. I would expect an agent to coordinate with a painter or a GC or a cleaning lady to get something done quickly between turnovers. and I have never been charged a fee for that. It's a little odd that a PM where I bought a house through, paying leasing fee and future PM fees charge me 10-15% to order a paint job. 

and I agree, the house doesn't need a facelift, it needs some touchup to be rent ready. I do expect my PMs to save me money, not to push work. Right now, we have three units with them, and are scoping out another 6 units, but I am a little hesitant since they seem to want to charge us for every little thing that we don't get typically charged for.   

@Hanna M. hmm.. that's interesting. what I meant to get it rent ready, is to patch up some holes on the wall or get the house painted between turnovers. Most of our houses are not bought in bad conditions. We actually pay fair market price so we don't have to do a lot of reno. I have properties where my husband and I don't have PMs. Agents do this type of stuff for free when they are being paid 1 months of leasing fee. They call up the painters they use, and get us a quote, we approve, they get it done and send us the bill. I'd agree if it's a reno job, 35 dollars seem low, but according to one PM, their bidding process won't change and whoever get the job done, they go and ensure the work is done well before sending payment. I am not finding 5 GCs on my own and asking my PM to be monitoring and managing them.  

Dear BPers:

we typically identify the specific areas we'd like to invest in and find the PMs to serve as our realtors and future PMs.

In this situation, we bought a house through the realtor/owner of the PM, and we are trying to put in the rental market. However, as we are reviewing the contract with the PM, we realize their fee is much higher than any other PMs we have used. e.g. if I ask my other PMs to get the place rent ready, my other PMs would never charge me a "project management fee" for 10-15% of what the contractors would charge me. Typically, the contractor fee would be a pass through. If my PMs charge me anything, it would be a $35 dollars flat fee (but again, never got charged for coordination). After all, I bought the house through the PM, and am paying 1 month of leasing fee, plus all the future PM fees.

I am really concerned that this PM is trying to push un-necessary work to prep this place because he has an incentive for that reno cost to be high (and even better he can give the job to his friends). And it's been the case, I have told him in multiple occasions, the floor is in good condition, even the kitchen cabinet is good, why is he trying to replace all these items and increase the work?

This PM belongs to a national franchise, and as I said, at other locations, the process of bidding on a project is pretty straightforward and transparent and we are pretty satisfied with the franchise in general. This practice just seems a little odd. Since we are out of state investors, should I be considering other PMs now the trust is lacking from our end or should we negotiate the contract?

Thanks!

Joanne

@Eric Weldon-Schilling

She is a squatter.

If someone comes into my property without my invite or permission, I think I can defend myself and my property esp when she carries firearms.

Why should the property owner risk his/her life for some crazy person? Would you? How would you deal with this person if one day you go home and a stranger lives there. I’m sure you’d call 911.

And srsly, in this era everyone claims s/he has mental problems as soon as one has legal issues, like Elizabeth Holmes.

@Dov Klitnick

if she knows what she is doing, and you are not lowballing anyone, you will get a deal eventually. it is unfortunately a crazy market. I am at the point where I don't even ask to see the house in person, but would get an offer accepted first and do a very detailed inspection. that means, I put in a pretty decent offer within a day or two after it's listed. I know once there is an open house, my chance of winning a bid is close to 0 unless there are some major issues with the house.  

my relator is not super fast, and he is busy enough with all the other things he is doing and managing. Sometimes he did forget to follow up with the listing agents, and when I reminded him, the house was already in contract. It probably happened twice year to date, but I also bought a few houses on reasonable terms with him. He does everything else reasonably good, but just a busy man!

No agent is perfect, you need to find someone you trust and enjoy working with. If she is too slow for you, go try and interview someone else. it's also a learning process what type of agents can work best with you. 

@Yolanda W Cuevas

I’d pick the couple. That’s 1800 bucks more in rent with the college kids, but if u need to replace the carpets or repaint the house when they move out, that could be more than 1800 bucks.

I used to rent in a building with college kids in it, I’d say they are kids and once they have some alcohol in, u really don’t know how the party would go ;)

@Allen Lopez

You really don't know if it was your landlord or HOA who was dragging their feet regarding repair. Would you be happier if they asked you to move out 6 months ago?

If there is a HOA involved, typically they are responsible for roof repair.

We love tenants who threaten to sue their landlords.

@Jay Hinrichs @Matthew Irish-Jones

@Matthew Irish-Jones@Matthew Irish-Jones@Matthew Irish-Jones

@John Apple, this is based on our personal experience when we were a newbie in investing. We saw a property we liked on Zillow, and he showed us two houses and then asked us to sign an exclusive representation with him. Given we were newbies, we did and we didn't even like him. We even purchased a house through him because of the agreement. Didn't we learn our lesson? He just pushed his agenda, and in my hindsight 20/20, didn't really look out for his clients. 

I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people feel stuck with their realtors and wish they could be working with someone else. I agree with others, this is a people business, congratulate them and ask them if there was anything you could have done differently. it could be something completely different from what you think.  

On the other hand, I have purchased several houses through one realtor who never bothers to ask me for an agreement. When I know someone is pleasant and valuable to me, I always return and not bc of obligation.