All Forum Posts by: J. Martin

@Kevin Auyong , I agree with you. Some place not so loud. I'd also like more seated space. I think a different location would be better next time. Hopefully I can talk to you more then!

@Joey Budka , glad you enjoyed it! Bring me some cheap MF in Richmond, and I'll consider them! But 2-4 w/ 30yr fixed is just my thing right now..

@Viet Nguyen , nice meeting you briefly. More next time!

@Michaela G. , I wanted to ask you about your new non-RE venture too, but maybe next time.. ?

@Ken Lau , We can chat more next time. Don't remove the monitoring on this forum, and I'll post the next one here, probably for Wed, Jan 15..

@Ralph E. , hopefully you'll be there next time too, so I can finally talk with you!

@Sam Magi , it was great having such a variety of people, and glad I got to meet you after chatting on here. Congrats again!! I'll be in touch..

@Account Closed , your buyer (Christopher?) mentioned that rooming house 4plex in Richmond. There's probably about a 50% chance I've talked to the listing agent for any 2-4 unit on market in Richmond..

I was thinking about buying the same agent/seller's duplex on Bissell (+lean-to shack in the back w/ someone living in it). But he seemed to want full $/ft & rent for the deteriorating "handyman special" shack in the back.. so I just couldn't do it. I think it was Nathan..? He also mentioned that 4plex, and I had already asked him about the leases & tenants. 4 units. 16 leases. down in the low avenues. some slow-paying tenants. I just can't quite imagine what kind of strangers want to live with 3 others, sharing 1 shower/kitchen/LR per 4 heads.. :-/

Not my style (or I would do it myself & save $100K), but it sounds like this seller has a few... shall we say.. "resourcefully utilized" types of properties.. The headline GRM looks nice! But rent rolls might be a different story!! He said he's moving to SoCal in 5-6 months or so, just a heads up! Maybe you can squeeze him more later!! I might try the same with his duplex later.. shhhhhhh!!!

@Chris Music , glad I got to talk to you and @Denise Madrid before you two took off! I have a good feeling about Oakland prices in 2014, so looking forward to hearing the good news!

Next meetup probably on Wed, Jan 15. Will post link on this forum! Thanks to everyone who came out!!!!

It depends!!!

I use lower-cost contractors (or my handyman) for my jobs, but the rates will vary from area to area, and more importantly probably, from contractor to contractor. @Bill Jacobsen is right about estimating per foot for many things like flooring, or just on average, but all depends what it looks like now, how nice you want it, etc.. Any structural, wood rot, plumbing, or electrical issues.. All can cost a lot potentially.

I got some decent laminate installed w/ padding for about $3/sqft ($1/ft for laminate materials). Granite countertops on very small galley kitchen was about $1,300 apiece installed if I remember correctly. For paint/materials and labor to repaint a 3br w/ 2 coats, about $1,200. Cabinets can be big depending on the size of the kitchen and quality ($3-8K+ installed). Heat, A/C, or HVAC working? I recommend going to look at some other rentals on Craigslist (or whatever they use there) to see what kind of finishes, features, prices landlords have for the college rentals, unless you're already very familiar..

Of course, you will have college student tenants presumably, so get big deposits/cosigners and/or be an amazingly good judge of character! I have a relative with a college rental and they have had so many headaches/small claims court for damage (even w/ cosigners.) So also get stuff that's durable!!! Damn kids!

Good luck!

It was nice meeting you last night @Melvin Yuen ! Wish I could have chatted with you more.. Maybe if I have a real big rehab job, I can give you a call. And good luck on your foray into flips! I'll bug you with 2 questions based on your profile:

Since you seem to like the free and clear properties, I'm really curious what you think about my blog post, entitled "If cash is king, then leverage is god." I try to take some perspectives on the balance of leverage, ROE, and risk - and quite a few questions about identifying how and when (if possible to predict!?) to delever.. It's just so hard for me to pay down principal when my 4plex is at 3.25% on a 30yr fixed. Inflation is going to average about 2% over the long term if the Fed gets its way, and the interest is tax deductible, so it's almost free "real", after-tax dollars over the long run.. What do you think?

http://www.biggerpockets.com/blogs/4579/blog_posts/32645-if-ca-h-is-king-then-leverage-is-god---loans-cash-roe-roi-and-risk

Also a quick test question! In the current cold weather, the ceiling in several rooms of one unit are forming condensation, to the extent that they actually drip water to the floor in the morning. 1986 good/averagish quality construction w/ insulation in attic. No light fixture holes or visible unsealed areas from attic to rooms.. Still drips when there is no rain, and no spots in attic, so almost certainly condensation, and not a leak. After checking to make sure there are no openings between the ceiling and attic, do you think some small, air-driven fans near the attic vents would help prevent condensation from building? Any other suggestions? Do you hate moisture? lol

Welcome, and thanks Melvin!

Welcome! .. from a little further up in the East Bay..

I believe @Pete Tam had organized a meetup in San Jose if you're looking to meet up with some BP members, in addition to SJREIA as mentioned above..

And had the opportunity to meet @Account Closed at our East Bay BP meetup last night. Listen to him! He knows his stuff! PS: Sent you an email w/ a good contact and some loan tips to email on your profile..

Great meetup everyone! Thanks to everyone who came out to share their thoughts with the rest of us, have some tasty beer, and withstood the chill of the patio to chat with some good people! I'm thinking about Wed, Jan 15th for the next one in a similar location near BART. Continue "monitoring" this forum for details on the next meetup.. Some shout-outs below (and BP "votes" for those I had the opportunity to have some good conversations with), and some forgotten, but it was great meeting everyone!

@Bill Bockwoldt , was nice talking to you again, and thanks for the tip on the attic fan for temperature difference issues. I'm looking at options, and might use a combination of that and great stuff in any little cracks, light fixtures etc to reduce the flow of air from the room to the attic. It's just when it's really cold. But amazing that it's actually enough condensation to drip.. One of those weird things you deal with as a landlord! (damn you a thousand times moisture!)

@Michaela Graham , I always enjoy your forums/posts and wanted to talk to you more! With so many people, I get distracted easily and didn't get a chance to circle back around. Hopefully next time, and out on the forums until then! I'm bad about voting for people, but your posts always remind me!

@Jaren Barnes, it was good talking to you again. Bring me an offmarket 2-4 unit in Richmond below 8 GRM so I can put some $ in your pocket! Let me know where to send pre-approval and loan broker contact info if you think you can find me one..

@Ralph E. , I barely even got a chance to say hi this time (and just a little last time also).. Third time is a charm!? I'll be sure to chat with you then, and on the forums of course..

@Denise Alberto and @Chris Music , let me know how everything goes on the flip.. Did you get an expensive bottle of champagne to pop yet? (Sometimes I wait to see how much I make before deciding which to buy lol). I really like the look of the place and the layout after you took out that wall. Good luck, and hope you get to pop a bottle soon! ps I get very animated sometimes around cool peeps! ;)

@Sam Magi , congrats on the close! Besides enjoying some champagne, I like to have a wonderfully delicious and pretty expensive meal.. Somehow just tastes that much better! Interested to hear how it all goes over time.. I'll send you some numbers on the types of deals that I've been prospecting for over here and we can chat. Send me a message as a reminder, and I'll give you my phone number. (I'm always nervous about getting some crazy spam posting it publicly online. Does anyone know of an easy/free phone number service that can give me a new local "throw down" phone number to forward straight to my cell? In case I need to ditch the number without changing my cell number?

@Jessica Yau , it was nice chatting with you about your property.. Would have liked to hear more! Over time.. I'm jealous, you bought in an area I've had my eye on for a long time! With all said and done, I'm happy with everything I have up here. But I'm almost certain I will own a property in West Oakland in the next decade - as an investment, or possibly even (gasp!) a primary residence! Good luck with the rents/tenants, and don't forget the power of picking up the phone and calling around to ask questions about what you can do. Amazing how friendly and informative people can be when you're not the 10th person to yell at them today!

@Arron Sweeney , I thought I saw you early, then did I miss you later? Or am I tripping? Anyway, hopefully I'll get a chance to talk to you next time!

@Cory T. . , Nice meeting you, and sorry I couldn't talk to you more also. So do rents go up in Palm Spring in the winter as the temperature plummets further past the arctic freeze we're experiencing? ! Maybe I'll talk to you about renting it someday in the off-season next time I have a job down in the Palm Springs area. (But erratic and infrequent when I am down there..) I was almost going to challenge you to a tennis match! ..but I was only at a modest proficiency when I last played a match a year or so ago, so I don't think you want to play tennis ball pickup for an hour! lol Good luck, and rake it in while it's freezing!

@Andy Kaufman , was nice talking to you, but again just not quite enough time.. Post on this thread or message me when you decide to put together the work group thing you were talking about.. Interested in hearing more.. And thanks for coming through on the nametags!!

@Amit M. , it was nice hearing from an SF investor and sounds like things are going as they go in SF... up!! You're so right about the city's laws and systems, condo lottery, rent control, ellis act, etc etc create a crazy world, and potential windows of opportunity for value creation.. if you get the golden ticket!! (well it's up anyway, but much higher if you can hit the lotto.) I wasn't aware that they switch the system, so maybe more of those opportunities are gone now..

@Minh L. , last but not least! It was a pleasure staying late to talk to someone who can really hold their own on their knowledge of real estate, metrics, financing, and strategy. And the two "C's" that were evading us were the most obvious! Cash flow & collateral! Don't be afraid to shop around on your variable rate loans.. If I had deeper pockets or in a few years, I might think about it more, but still lovin' the 30yr fixed at these rates.. I'd have to cry if I started prepaying or paid off my 3.25%.. lol I think I have a job down in the Monterey area in Q1, and maybe something on the peninsula later.. I'll get ahold of you and see what you're up to next time I'm around in your neighborhood..

It's a small world that @Johnson H. introduced me to this site a while back after we met in our 9-5's. I haven't hopped on the out-of-state bandwagon yet, but the headline numbers look good! (Would be interested to hear how things are going in Phoenix & Houston Johnson. - let me know next time you're working in FiDi and let's have lunch! Meeting up with your colleague Benn Dickson next week..)

@Joey Budka, if you get any MF inventory in Richmond in the 6-8 GRM range, or with lots of upside in rents/ value creation / turnaround, let me know. No MF turnkey for me..

I know there were more people there that I met and spoke with, but my mind is mush and eyes blurry at this time of night.. And someone bought me a beer, but can't remember who! Thank you! Owe you one next time ;)

Ken, Tim, Kevin, Daniel, Melvin, and everyone else I'm missing, there's never enough time (even after leaving later than 11PM!). More next time!

Everyone was tagged, then everyone went untagged when I tried to make an edit to one paragraph. Now I can't have more than 1 tagged person at a time. I have this problem all the time when I tag multiple people in the same post, so I'll save my 1 tag for @Joshua Dorkin and the fine folks at BP to see if they can address the issue so you all get your shoutouts (or turn these into tags for now..?).. It's frustrating to tag all those people and not have it work :( (and I'm a paying customer now! ;) lol

Next Meetup:
I envision having a meetup about once per month in the East Bay. I'm thinking about Wednesday, January 15th at 6:30 PM, near a BART station close to Oakland (as a relatively central location), but at a different venue with more room. Let me know if you want to and that works for you, or can take it a day or a few in either direction..

Any input on venue, format/structure, or anything are all appreciated. Feel free to post here or send me a message. Next time, we can at least go around and introduce everybody one at a time - experience, location, what you're looking for in properties or partners etc. I was going to round everyone up outside, but it seemed like everyone was having a good conversation, so I decided to just let it flow.. Looking forward to next time!!

I'm just pasting the details one last time so everyone has it handy if they're checking here for location/directions. I'll see you all soon! Cheers!~

What: East Bay BP Meetup

When: Today, Tuesday, December 10th, 2013 - 6:30PM to 9ish

Where: The Trappist bar, 460 8th St Oakland, 94607 - Food & Beer

Get There: BART to 12th St/Civic Center Oakland & walk down Broadway to decreasing-numbered streets at 8th St.

Parking at 459 8th St, or other garages nearby here:

Looking forward to meeting/seeing everyone this evening!

@Engelo Rumora , you might be the first to do it in LiteCoin! Good luck!

@John Rooster , @Jon (Moderator) said the same that he wasn't aware of any responsibility of the seller to verify the funds either. Good point about getting title insurance though. Although aren't they mainly checking to see if the liens have been clear and the consideration has changed hands? Will they have an issue if the original buyer funds were held in a commodity (BTC, 100 oz of gold, herd of cows, whatever?) As long as there is a record of the sale and conversion to USD? I really don't know about the details of what they are doing. Thanks for tip though. Hadn't thought of that.

btw, my link was removed, probably because of the way I presented it. But BP members are using bitcoins. Search bitcoin on BP if this link gets removed again. It is not intended as a solicitation, just to inform people about the discussion on this forum regarding bitcoins (if you remove the link, please leave the rest of the text): http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/517/topics/108747-first-bp-member-property-for-sale-in-bitcoins-only

My previous posting was edited, so I hadn't been able to make the point I was trying.. This is not a solicitation, but a direct response to the first question that started the post: Can bitcoin be accepted for real estate? I was trying to say yes, there is a recent forum on BP with a member selling their property for bitcoin, and the pricing is exactly as Michaela stated. The bitcoin price fluctuates. Search for bitcoin on BP if the moderator again deletes the link and reference. But the real intent here is to answer the question on the forum, not to solicit anything:

http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/517/topics/108747-first-bp-member-property-for-sale-in-bitcoins-only

@Engelo Rumora , I already own some litecoin too ;)

Hi David, I have long told myself that if ever want to move back to SF, I would buy income properties in the EB, and rent in SF. Rents are pretty low relative to prices, although they are very high at a nominal level. Median for a 1br is $3k in a decent area, I believe. But this might be on a $800k condo. Make sure you get a rent controlled unit (look at sftu.org to determine). Also, Michaela, I don't know if you can make agreements that circumvent the housing laws (regarding getting someone to move..) I think it is like employment benefits. You can sign an agreement saying you waive your right to sick days, but I don't believe they would be enforceable. Tenancies last longer than bad marraiges in Berkeley, Oakland, and SF.