All Forum Posts by: Joshua B.

 Yeah, 1,000 sq ft Livonia ranches are selling for more like $200k than $100k right now. @George P. was the last one to buy them for less than $100k and I don't think he's selling.

@Nick Thomas once you get to 5 or more I’d just contract with a 3rd party entity management company who will handle your corporate renewals for you. That’s what corporate legal departments do and the cost isn’t that bad.

@Fran Dixon usually the sheriff’s deed has already vested and the bank (the owner who’s paying the auction house to auction) can close quickly. However, many of the auctions are cash only so be aware. They’ll let you finance on occasion. Some of them are occupied, too, so that’s another whole ball of wax. Lots of moving pieces and things to know. Again, not a great idea unless you have experience.

@Fran Dixon I've bought multiple houses from auction. Assuming they're sight unseen, it's quite the roll of the dice. The auction companies aren't dumb and there's usually a reason they don't sell them direct of the MLS. I've had some turn out pretty well and a few that scraped by. Not a great idea unless you're well capitalized.

@Alden P Carlson @James Gill good to see some other investors in Ann Arbor on here! I live nearby and have done some flips in AA. Let me know if you have any questions about neighborhoods, etc. I grew up in Ypsilanti, lived for a number of years in Ann Arbor, and live 20 minutes away now, so I’m quite familiar with the area.

I also have a brokerage with four agents who are all BP members.

@John Tran happy to give you more insight into local markets in SE Michigan!

@Jeff Jansen makes showings way easier that’s for sure

@Adrian Langdon Maybe I don’t fully grasp the concept, but I’ve never understood how rental arbitrage works given that any landlord with half a brain would put a clause in preventing a sublease without consent. So either the person who is arbitraging is breaching the lease without telling the landlord or the landlord is fine with it (seems like it’d be hard to find a landlord who’s okay with that).

Very cool. I've been keeping an eye on Whitmore Lake/Hamburg area. I think it's going to be a solid return. I'm currently looking into buying one of the new builds at Green Oak Crossing.

Have you put a tenant in yet? How is/was interest?

@Hongling Lu what brings you to Ann Arbor? Studying at the University? I’m a LS&A grad from 2007.

I’ve owned a few properties in Ann Arbor and in the surrounding area. A house built in 1945 isn’t super old in my book. In fact, by my amateur eye, it seems houses improved by the tail end of WWII particularly with regard to foundation construction. I’m sure there are builders on this site who can explain it, but around that time it seems foundations started being built deeper using either poured or block concrete instead of stone/mortar.

In any event, a good home inspector is a valuable resource and there are plenty around. Hit me up if you need any help.