All Forum Posts by: Kelvin Duen

@Jared W Smith, would there be an issue with the size of the gas line coming from outside since the property was set up for cooking gas only?

I may be tackling a smaller multifamily project in the Bronx soon. The property has cooking gas but its heat is from oil. Since it is always better to offset the cost of utilities to the tenants, and because the oil tank may need replacing soon, I was thinking about converting the property's heating to gas and installing a boiler for each unit. I know that oil to gas conversions were a good idea in year's past, but with the cost of oil going down, would it still make sense to do such a conversion? I do plan to hold onto this property for a while. 

The wrinkle to this project is, Con Edison had removed the gas meters due to non-payment from the previous owner (not 100% sure on this being the reason). I've heard of the difficulties people in Brooklyn and part of Queens have run into with turning on new service with National grid. And there is currently a moratorium for new service in Westchester with Con Edison. Has anyone in the Bronx or Manhattan had difficulty starting new service with ConEd?  My concern, and the real reason for this post, is not being able to get gas services after converting my heating system from oil to gas. A realtor told me to consider an oil to electric conversion (heat, hot water, and cooking) because it may be THAT big of a pain to try to turn on new gas service. This doesn't sound like a good economic choice for my prospective tenants (large electric bills). Has anyone done an all electric conversion? What are your thoughts BP? Anyone have recent experience with starting new gas services in NYC that they'd like to share?

@Greg Miller, Thanks! I'll def update when the times comes

@Ray A Delfi, I'm seeing you everywhere. haha. Thanks for the advice. Shot you a text. 

I have been doing  some direct mail marketing and cold canvasing which resulted in my first solid wholesale lead. After the initial phone call, I can see that the owner is motivated (kept asking if we could close in two weeks). The owner was trying hard not to mention the property would be up for auction soon, even though it is public information. I have a cash buyer lined up so the closing period would not be an issue. Purchase price was not agreed upon but I put out some feeler questions to see where the owner stood in terms of price. I will be viewing the property really soon but I wanted to turn to the BP community for some last minute advice/tips/motivational rah-rah comments. Is there anything I should remember to do or avoid when I'm ultimately negotiating the purchase price. The property is in a desirable area. 
Should I determine what my cash buyer is willing to pay and work backwards from there, or use the 70% minus construction cost rule-of-thumb to reach a target range? Do I mention that I know their property is going to be auctioned away? Any and all advice is welcomed!

nicely done @Gabe Viteri. What city in Westchester?

Best of luck to you @Philip Lee. I'm also a new investor in Westchester, NY. I don't know of any wholesale friendly companies, but if you ever need a buyer for your wholesale properties, feel free to send me a message. Keep us posted on when the next meetup will be.

@Darrell Lee, your "bigger fool" theory is interesting. At times I feel that is the case in NYC. But people just continue to buy and buy "high". I noticed your property you mentioned in springfield, vt was a REO. I am getting ready to place a bid on a REO property. Is there anything you know now that you wish you knew before bidding/purchasing an REO?

@Todd Rasmussen, I agree. I feel like I'm heading towards out of state investing.

@Jaysen Medhurst, thanks. I DM-ed you.

@Todd Rasmussen, outside of BRRRR investing and flipping, how are people investing in HCOL and VHCOL areas like California and NYC. Are people forcing cash flow by making large down payments on properties? Forcing appreciation on distressed and mismanaged properties still yield unattractive returns. I know there are players in these area who need to park their money somewhere so they buy property, outright, in cash. But what about the other investors?

@Darrell Lee, do you think there was anything you could have done to avoid those issues? 

@Jaron Walling, I'm definitely looking into more affordable markets. I was just hoping someone could provide insight on how people  are currently investing in HCOL and VHCOL areas. More of a curiosity thing for me. 

@Darrell Lee, what was it about your first partnership that made you swear off of them? What factors made you choose Vermont out of all other areas?

@Jaysen Medhurst, that's one thing I'm struggling with right now. I can't seem to decide what area to focus my attention. How has your experience been dealing with partners? Would it be ok if I direct-messaged you?

I recently agreed on the sale price of a MLS listed "for sale by owner" property in Philadelphia. I was able to get a good price because no agents were involved. What are my next steps? How ensure the owner doesn't sell the property to someone else as I'm performing due diligence? Who do I hire to draft up a sales agreement? Title company or real estate attorney? I'm still new to real estate investing so any suggestions/guidance/advice is greatly appreciated.