All Forum Posts by: Jon Reed

Once the city has you on their radar then they will be coming after you for that money. There is no way around it, you have to get permits before starting construction... never after.

+1 for @Aaron K.

We are here:

Agree with all of @Nathan Gesner comments. Just one addition, never give a tenant a lease that you have already signed and they have not signed. If you do give them a lease to review make sure your signature is not on it because it is not legally binding until both parties have signed it. 

I self manage my properties... so take this with a grain of salt. I believe you are not being too demanding by any means. Most likely the property management company has a few hundred (or thousands) of other properties they are managing so the person who has just 1 property with them is just not high up on their priority list. 

I think asking for updates and pictures are just fine. You are paying them 10% a month (guessing) to be responsive and take care of your property. If it is a local property then I would just drive out there yourself and see if it is done or not. 

1. Educate Yourself

2. Set a Goal

3. Find a RE Agent, Banker, and RE Lawyer

4. Buy your first deal

Starting out in Real Estate is not easy. We currently only have 3 properties and it is still rough trying to get enough cash together to grow and finding the next property. 

In Springfield, MO our cost per sq/ft is extremely low compared to other markets and a lot of outside investors are starting to come to the area and buy up multi-family which is driving the price up. So... what did we do? We focused in on single family homes that needed to be renovated. These SF units are not very cost effective for out of state investors so there are still a few good deals out there to buy up.

Moral of the Story: Don't get discouraged because Plan A isn't working. There are opportunities in every area, but you may have to change your investing method in order to find them.

@Will Barnard

I read "get out of it" as in getting out of RE all together... I may have inferred the meaning of that statement incorrectly.

Sounds like you got a bit sick of Real Estate based on this first deal. Personally, I would scratch option #3 from the choices. 

As far as option #1 or #2... it all depends on if you need more cash in order to invest in the next property and what your personal risk tolerance is. 

Wow... we will not be able to help you at all with the question 'does this remodel financially make sense'. You are going to need to get in contact with a few contractors in your area and get bids on the renovation. Then you can figure out what the total income will be before and after renovation and find out if the ROI is worth it.

You should also look into your local city building and zoning codes because it sounds like you are making a single family home into a multifamily home which may go against the properties current zoning.

Best of luck!