All Forum Posts by: Joe Sadusky

@Christa Kirby I agree with @Cory Carlson. Providing value to the homeowner is definitely important in standing out from the other calls they may be receiving that may seem strictly like a sales pitch. 

We also follow up with our leads on a regular basis. Around the holidays, we will send "Happy Holidays" cards and also call after the holidays to wish them well and see how things are going.  Its important to listen to their needs.  Take notes, and follow up. 

Best of luck! 

@Account Closed ... own it. 

I became a landlord not too much older then you.  It will feel weird and you may feel intimidated.  Ultimately if you structure your investment the right way from the start, things will work out. 

One strategy that you can do- and I have seen discussed on here multiple times... is to present yourself as the "property manager".  You report to the property owner. All business decisions are made on behalf of the owner, and you are just enforcing the rules and regs. 

I personally felt that managing from a far is much easier then when you are living in one of the units.  It all depends on your personality type.  

Make sure you do your homework, have a clear and thorough lease agreement, and enforce your rules.  If you start off on the wrong foot- that is where you may not be taken seriously. 

Best of luck!

@Troy Johnson

Know the market and what the house value of the property renovated is. 

Find out the homeowners needs- Why are they selling?   How much do they owe on the property. 

Determine the middle ground between what you can offer (that satisfies what they owe), an investor will be willing to pay, and room for a few bucks in your pocket as a wholesaling fee. 

Its a numbers game.  Most important thing is to know the numbers that work for a particular deal and stick to them.

Best of luck!

@Casie Nicholson welcome to BP!

I highly suggest looking through the forums. Lots of good advice posted on here from hard lessons learned.  

BRRR is a great strategy. I also have benefited from house hacking, but that can be challenging when you have kids and a family.

Best of luck to you guys! 

@Cameron Feldhaus at a minimum, I would touch up the walls so the paint is fresh. 

I personally am not a fan of carpet and do not put in my rentals. I think that installing laminate wood floor is the way to go. That way you do not need to worry about stains and frayed carpet.  Laminate floors should be able to make the turnover easier on you. 

We try our best to  clean up the rental as best as we can so it is more desirable for higher quality tenants. 

Good Luck! 

@Bashar Salah at first glance, this property doesn't have the cash flow numbers that I like to see. 

I look for at least $400/month cash flow on my deals.  I don't get too caught up with the capex and whatnot. 

As long as I have a nice buffer and am able to put aside 15% of rent for emergencies, I feel comfortable with the investment. 

Now one other thing for you to consider... you are basing your numbers off of you essentially living in one of the units for free, correct?  What are your long term goals?  What will your numbers look like with both units rented? 

Best of luck!

@Sheltocks M. i agree with @Michael Ablan 

How thorough of a lease do you have?  

I also have some rental properties in NJ and my lease agreement is pretty thorough and spells out the expectations of rental payment. 

Based off your comments saying that you had to take him to court to get rent....that sounds like he has automatically been in violation of your agreement!

Moving forward, make sure you properly document all issues with your tenants.  You never know when you may need to present the facts.... 

I would not renew this tenants lease. 

Best of Luck!

@Shaye Mora awesome story man!   congrats on your success. 

I completely agree with both of your lessons learned, especially finding a good Realtor. 

Getting into REI can be tricky... especially if you have no idea what you're doing! A good realtor / investor that has learned some hard lessons can save you from making the same mistakes that they made.

It sounds like you have a bright future ahead of you.  

So whats next?!

Good Luck! 

@Rick Antezana i agree with @antoine martel

have your wife interview with different Brokers in the area. There are some Brokers that do not have additional fees that can get a bit pricey (especially if your wife does not plan on doing a whole lot of volume). 

@Shazia Chiu 's suggestion is great to reach out to her RE class instructor to see if maybe they could help steer her in the correct direction. 

One other thing to keep in mind- there are MLS and other licensing fees that will be required to keep her license active. So this means that even if she is not finding investments for flips and such, as you mentioned, she will be required to be out of pocket some costs just to have her license active.

Best of luck!

@Kristopher Govea  do you have any connections with a local real estate agent? 

Agents can quickly do a search criteria for properties that are not occupied using the public records on the MLS.

Maybe worth making a good connection with an agent if you haven't already and offer to buy them lunch for their time. 

Good Luck!