All Forum Posts by: J. Martin

@Bob L.,

I have some small studios I rent out in San Jose furnished and over 30 days. There are travel nurses and student types that would be looking for a bedroom, and renting those out individually might do well. Some business travelers. And interns during the summer. I don't have any houses, but the people I've spoken with have said it's been harder to find 30+day tenants for multi-bedroom houses.. 

Summer is always busier than winter. 

@Ernie Espinoza, 

Congrats on getting a property where you can make some money while you live there, and making a little sacrifice to live in the in-law instead of the more spacious main home. Good work. I have some property in Oakland also. 

I am not an accountant, and you should check with one on IRS stuff, rather than take advice. Just be sure to document all the income and expense for now.

Basically, any expenses related to your rental property portion are deductible. And any portion related to your principal residence is accounted for slightly differently, as a non-investment property. 

1) Repairs to the main house for rental purposes are deductible. Longer-lived assets may need to be depreciated.
2) Yes, rental revenue is income. 
3) It's not called renters' insurance (that's for the rental). But you can get a "landlord" policy. Importantly, get umbrella insurance coverage. 

4) I wouldn't worry about the owner-occupant requirement on the loan, IMHO, if I were living at the property. 

As @Barry B. stated, there will be differences in capital gains exemption on the sale, or you would need to do a 1031 exchange. But the tax on sale can be either avoided or postponed.

Other advice) Understand rent control for Oakland. If there are 2 units on the property - even if one is non-permitted - the units are considered under rent control. You get an exemption from rent control if you stay for 2 years (while you live there), but doesn't sound like that's your intent. @Amanda Han, who wrote the tax book for Bigger Pockets, will be out in October on Oct 7. Read her book first, then come pick her brain with any follow-up questions.

Here is BP's tax guide: https://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2015/05/2...

Here is Oakland's rent control info: http://rapwp.oaklandnet.com/

Good luck Ernie! :)

 James, 
I have about 20 of these, which is why Arlen tagged me here.. 
There's a market here for it. Definitely slower in winter. Busier in summer. 
Travel nurses, business travelers, etc. Travel nurses will probably have a harder time affording a place in Emeryville, so will probably have to target business travelers more.

One way to test out is to start putting the monthly discount on your listing - and also try not to take a bunch of single reservations that would break-up a long-term stay. For example, don't book short stays so far out in the future. If you have a booking during the potential long-term tenant's requested stay, your listing won't show up in the search results. So you have to give them the chance to send an inquiry by leaving the calendar open. 

I'm in Seattle for the summer. But feel free to reach out on my BP profile, or come out and say hi in person in Oct in Oakland!

@Ashley Watkins,

Congrats on your first house/home! I studied economics and finance and decided real estate was the way to go too ;) (although I'm not that great at accounting!) Have some properties in Oakland and Richmond, and have rented out bedrooms also. 

As you noted, there are ton of great people here in the Bay and on BP around the area. Check out the networking events in the community section of BP, and there are other on meetup.com . A big group of us from BP will also be gathering in Oakland in October, and there will be apartments investors out there too to network with. Do you know where you plan on looking at multifamily properties? Locally or out of town? We'll also be raising over $10K for an orphanage in Vietnam at the event :) I know you said you like giving back, so if you want to volunteer, we'd be happy to have your help! :) 

Congrats again on your deal, and on your upcoming CPA license :) I never did it, but I know it's a lot of work!!

@Zach G.,

A lot of multifamily (apartment) syndication folks are here on BP. Do some research on the people and the companies. They'll find the deals, and you can look over the offering. You don't have to do anything active to manage it or find it. 

Like @Jason Monroe said, a bunch of us will be gathering in Oakland in Oct for the weekend to talk about these investment styles, and get better connected with people 1 on 1. I know you're busy, but is a great way to consolidate a LOT of networking down into one weekend, and get on your path, without getting a bunch of sales pitches. 

There are also some great free meetups in the Bay to meet other apartment investors (although again, I know you're short on time..) 

There are also real estate investment trusts (REITs) that some passive folks invest in.  Many are publicly traded. Fewer of those are apartments though, so be sure to get something aligned with your goals. Being an accredited investor gives you a lot more options in what you can invest in, so the field is wide open... Do your research! :)

@Matthew Orme,

Like @Ariel Smith recommended, I would check with @Chris Mason here on the site. 
Check out his posts. He provides a ton of great information on the nitty-gritty of what you can do with various loan types, and understands the investors.. 

@Tracy P., 

Thanks for the kudos :) It's nice to be able to live the life I want in my early 30's. I thought it would take me a decade+, but really just took some sacrifices and pursuing what I really wanted (of course, it also meant abandoning my 9-5 career!)

For wine country.. 

I think @Adam Menconi is up in Santa Rosa, but believe he deals with some high-end stuff in the area, and may be able to help you out or point you in the right direction. @Bill Bockwoldt is up there and might have a good contact. Has done some conversion work on his property. You might also want to stop by Michael Morengello's Bay Area Wealth Builders (in Marin?). There are a lot more wine country folks out there. And also be sure to make it to the East Bay meetup. Whether or not you can make it to the Summit, be sure to get out there and meet investors in person! 

I would be cautious about getting rid of the use permit until you know what the market really wants. Unless it can be easily obtained later, getting it is the issue. You can always remove it, right? It would probably also be more valuable if you can find out what is legally buildable (height, footprint), what logistically works on the lot, and possibly even some ballpark quotes and contacts. Making the "vision"/dream as easy as possible for the retail/non-sophisticated buyer may really open some opportunities. You're not just selling your existing house. You're selling the dream ;)

I don't think I caught whether or not you were looking at a 2-4 unit, or 5+ units for the multifamily in the East Bay. Usually totally different agents dealing with 5+ (commercial) vs 2-4 units (residential). 

@Account Closed,

I don't think I ever saw this last one.. I've been diligently checking, and she's definitely a girl!! lol ;)

We'll be heading to Chiang Mai for the lantern festival in Nov, Bangkok, Phuket, then Tokyo, after I go to India, after the Summit. We've enjoyed all the time together :) 

Stop trying to pawn me off to other BP members!!! Lol

@Tracy P.,

Welcome to the forums after checking out the podcasts! You're in the right place :) 

I own some property in the East Bay and have furnished rentals up and down the peninsula, SF, and East Bay also.  Quit my job last year (no commute!) and just travel around the world while running my business (officially, have my place in SF.)

Congrats on going through the fire, building your first place. That's a lot of stuff to deal with!! Curious.. are you planning on living in the multifamily you're talking about purchasing? 5+ units? Or more typical 2-4 unit residential? 

Also, do you know what the highest, best use of your Sonoma property is, given its current zoning, user permit, and existing improvements? Is that why you're asking about a commercial real estate/investor in wine country? Might end up as a development deal? (if not for future development, you'd just be looking for a residential agent, right..?) (These questions should help us get you some good contacts)

Hopefully someone will pay up for the LEED Gold, but sometimes homeowners spend more on their "forever" home than may be justified by a pure investor-builder trying to maximize profit. Hopefully timing was on your side also, and added value through the construction price on the home.

I agree, the podcasts are awesome! A bunch of the interviewees will be coming out to Oakland in Oct if you can make it. (check signature) Lots of great networking in the Bay also. That's how I got to my goal in real estate, so I highly encourage everyone to get out there and meet people in person. 

I agree with @Account Closed's meetup in Berkeley. I'd be out there if I weren't up in Seattle for the summer! Looking forward to meeting you in person when I get back and hear some about your home build. Sounds like there might be some interesting stories there!

@Senika Levias,
Thanks for helping spread the word :)  It's going to be a great group!

@Sergey Tkachev,
Thanks for the shout out about the event! And @Account Closed, 
So it sounds like you'll be able to make it out this year? That's awesome! 
We're tight on speaking space, but I'm sure we could have you lead a break-out session or hop on a panel if you're up for it :) Thanks again for cooking dinner for my gf and I out in Lake Oswego! I also got to visit my friend in Portland. And Seattle has been beautiful this summer also :) 

We drove down to the totality near Salem to camp. Here's a pic from the full eclipse!