All Forum Posts by: Joseph Schweizer

Hi @Tim Adams!

Separating business from personal will definitely make the accounting easier. It is very easy to set up a separate bank account. Additionally, depending on how the rent is paid, you can avoid giving out your personal bank account number. I have one property so far and I have a separate account for it.

HI @Sean Humble!

I wish I learned about house hacking before I bought my first (current) primary residence, it is a great strategy if you can make it work. Since I already had a primary residence, I decided to dive in with a long term rental out of state. I have had the property for over two years now and things are going well and I have learned a lot from purchasing the property. Much more than I learned from any books or research. Post below is back from when I first bought the property. 

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/850/topics/895660-my-first-investment-property-an-out-of-state-deal

Hi Cameron!

I was in a similar position to you, limited time outside of my full time job and limited capital outside emergency savings. I also live in Philadelphia, which is not the most expensive area, but also not the cheapest, and also has some stricter requirements for rentals compared to other areas. This led me to looking out of state and I decided to work with a turnkey provider for my first investment and I have learned a lot more than I did from reading by going through the process of buying and owning a rental. The books give a good foundation, but taking action is where the real learning starts. My post below gives some more details about my property and experience if you are interested. Happy to discuss more!

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/850/topics/895660-my-first-investment-property-an-out-of-state-deal

@Joe Maris

No problem!

There are going to be pros and cons to both in house and 3rd party PM. You really just need to make sure you do your due diligence on the property, the turnkey provider, the PM, etc.. My experience with RTR has been great and although I have not had an issue with the PM specifically, anytime I reach out to RTR with random questions about my property specifically or investing in general, I receive a timely and helpful response. For the PM, so far the experience has gone well. There was a tenant in place when I purchased the property so I have not been able to test the PMs ability to market for and find tenants yet. Otherwise, communication has been good and no issues to speak of at this time. The PM right now is RentersWarehouse. 9% monthly fee, one month's rent for new lease, $350 lease renewal. 

Happy to answer what I can!

Hi @Joe Maris!

I check in with the PM a few times per month, but this is also my first investment property. I want to make sure I am on top of things and don't miss anything. My communication is all via email and does not take up a significant amount of time. Expenses are all defined in your PM agreement. I can see when a request is submitted via an online portal and I can see what the request is for and how the PM is handling it. If repair work is required, I request an invoice for the work and pictures before and after to make sure I have a good record of what is going on. I have had very few requests so far and some did not require anyone to go out to the property and were handled via email or phone call with the tenant. My PM specifically holds $400 to handle minor maintenance requests if there arise and replenish the $400 with the next rent payment. 

If relationship breaks down, RTR would be happy to help you find a new PM if you would like, even after 3 years. If you wanted to find a PM on your own at that point, that would be fine as well. The PM agreement will spell out what is required to terminate. 

Happy to clarify anything I said or answer any more questions you may have about my experience so far.

Hi @Adam Fox!

It really depends on what kind of return you are looking for on your capital and how passive you want it to be. All strategies will require due diligence on the property, neighborhood, and team you are going to work with. Some of the more passive strategies are lending, syndications and turnkey. Each of these will have different levels of "passive" so you will want to understand each of them. I work full-time outside of real estate and like you I have no specific skills related to real estate. I decided to go turnkey for my first investment (see post below). I communicate with the PM on a semi regular basis (few times a month) to make sure things are going as expected. 

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/850/topics/895660-my-first-investment-property-an-out-of-state-deal

Best Wishes!

Hi @Trish Giassa!

I went with a turnkey for my first investment in October 2020 (see post below). I plan to go turnkey for my next investment as well. I am on track to make my second investment this year. Happy to share more about my experience if you have any questions.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/850/topics/895660-my-first-investment-property-an-out-of-state-deal

Best Wishes!

@Andy Ramdeen

RTR has a list of great lenders. I put in applications for quite a few of the recommended lenders and then selected one I thought would work the best for my current financial situation. Happy to discuss more, feel free to ask any questions you may have and I can answer the best I can based on my experience buying and owning this property.

Best Wishes!

Hi @Jose Aguilar!

I purchased a property in 64130 in October 2020 and it is going well for me (see post below). I agree with Craig that the prices have been going up steadily, so it will probably be harder to find properties in that price range that make sense. You are definitely going to want to make sure you have a stellar PM and the property is in excellent shape for that price range.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/850/topics/895660-my-first-investment-property-an-out-of-state-deal

Best Wishes!

Hi Eric!

I thought turnkey was a good option for me to get started in real estate as well. I purchased a turnkey investment in October 2020 and so far things are going well (see post below)! You definitely want to do your due diligence on any turnkey providers or anyone else you might work with. I would make sure you find reviews and talk to investors who have worked with the provider long term and also investors who have invested with the provider more recently. Also, if you take the next step and make a purchase, due diligence on the property and neighborhood will be even more important.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/850/topics/895660-my-first-investment-property-an-out-of-state-deal

Best Wishes!