All Forum Posts by: Kendra Mattson

I have a single family home in San Diego, CA (Clairemont). I've been managing the rental myself up until now, but between working full time and going back to school, I don't really have time to manage the property myself anymore. I'm looking for some recommendations for a good property management company that will take care of things for a reasonable cost. Also, any tips about what to look for/avoid would be welcomed!

Looking into it a little, Realty Management Group (https://choosermg.com) looks pretty good. Good reviews and only $99/mo. Anyone have experience with them?

1 Vote

San Diego, California

I have 2 properties I manage myself in HCOL areas in California. I'd like to expand my portfolio by finding cash flow out of state. I've been looking particularly at NW Indiana, but am intimidated by the distance and lack of familiarity - ex. what potential issues are there in places that snow? I have no idea because I'm a Californian born and raised. So I'm likely going to go for turnkey management at least for the first one or two out of state properties. Do you have a company you would recommend in Indiana? Any specific cities to look at or other advice for turnkey or out of state investing would also be welcome.

Thanks in advance!

3 Votes

@Nick Foster Good points. I'm not overly worried about having to tow them, but something to cover littering/dumping and liability is a very smart suggestion. Just because they wouldn't be IN the property doesn't mean they wouldn't be ON it

0 Votes

@Matthew Paul Valid! I will ask about their plan for that

0 Votes

I'm currently house hacking and have an ad up to fill a room. One of the responses is from someone who lives in their van with his wife. He says they wouldn't need any hookups or access to the house at all and is willing to pay a few hundred a month for the spot. I asked him about his van to see if it would even fit in the space, but I'm not sure if there's anything else I should be thinking about. I currently have a truck the lives in 1 of 2 spots, so I could easily just start parking on the street. I don't really even see the need for a contract or a background check since they wouldn't have access to the house and it wouldn't change/hurt my situation if they left at the drop of the hat. I guess my only concern is if they just park it there, never move it, then never pay. I'm not sure what recourse I would have for that. I'm in San Diego and the SD parking Enforcement website addresses illegal parking in public areas, and vehicles abandoned on public or private property for 30 days, but if they're living in it for that time I wouldn't think it would be abandoned. Have anyone had this kind of rental before? Any advice would be appreciated.

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@Dan H. Yes, you're correct, I inverted the numbers. I needed the house to appraise for $504k!

@Charles G. @Matt Mayo My interest rate is pretty good, so I didn't refinance I just had the PMI removed.

@Wayne Brooks my PMI would automatically be removed at 75% of the original appraisal, but I could request it be removed when the balance equals 75% of the appraised value.

Sorry for the delay, but here's my update since the appraisal: I went with the mid-tier appraisal option, needing it to come back valuing at least about $505k (504k and change). It appraised for $560k, so I was able to get the PMI removed! This saves me $177/mo (@Josh Dillingham the appraisal cost about $450, so my ROI was even better than you listed!), so I'm pretty happy. Thank you everyone for the input!

1 Vote

San Diego, California

Originally posted by @Dan H.:

Originally posted by @Kendra Mattson:

Originally posted by @Dan H.:

@Kendra Mattson

Do you have assets that you can use to bump you over the 20% equity if the appraisal comes in low so that it does not reflect 20% equity? I would much rather pay into equity than pay towards a PMI that I will never use.

The posts that indicate to get an unofficial appraisal from an RE agent is good advice and RE agent appraisal should be free (or worded better, provided in hopes of attaining good-will so that if you list your RE in the future you would consider listing it with them). However, realize that, in general, the RE agent appraisal will be based on what they believe the RE can sell for and typically refinance appraisals come in less than purchase appraisals. I would think you would need a RE agent appraisal that shows 25% equity to have a pretty good chance of getting a refinance appraisal that reflects 20% equity.

Good luck

I don't have the money to bump up the equity unfortunately.

I spoke with a realtor this morning, and after discussing the comps and lowering the estimates to where I felt comfortable, we landed at an estimate of approx $540k/550k. The mortgage company said I need it to value at at least $504k - do you think that's enough of a buffer to justify spending the money to move forward in the process?

You never indicated what you owe and therefore it is hard to tell your equity. However, using $540K you would have 25% equity if you owe less than $405K. I would want some margin on my 25% equity would equate to 20% equity on a non-purchase appraisal. So if you owe less than $400K I suspect you have a good chance to get an appraisal that shows you have at least the 20% equity required to ditch the PMI. I do want to add I have seen some refinance appraisal so bad that even 5% equity margin would not suffice. Just over a year ago I appealed a refinance appraisal and got a $60K adjust on a single item (which by the way was still verifiably low).

I do not have much confidence in appraisers but they will typically find comps that work to justify a purchase price. No such effort for appraisals that are not to justify a purchase (at least none if no target value is specified).

When you request an appraisal you typically can indicate a target value. The appraiser could cut short the appraisal if it is not appearing to come in at the target value, saving the writing of the appraisal and saving a little of the cost. If you truly have no money that you can add to bring you to the 20% equity goal I would definitely indicate the appraisal target value. I probably would indicate the target value regardless. In addition, I have wondered if the target value is provided if the appraiser is more likely to use comps that can justify the target value. I think they should not, similar to I think purchase appraisal should value an RE the exact same as refinance appraisals.

Good luck

Oh I'm sorry, I thought I'd mentioned the balance. It's in the low $380k's and the mortgage company told me the house needs to appraise for ~$405k+ (they have a very specific number down to the dollar). I'm a bit worried because the mortgage company is the one that selects the appraiser/realtor (depending on which "appraisal" option I choose), so even though I pay them, I'd think the appraiser would be motivated to find a way to get the appraisal under the target so the company can keep more money/the appraisal can get more jobs from them. Or am I being too pessimistic?

0 Votes

San Diego, California

Originally posted by @Dan H.:

@Kendra Mattson

Good luck

I don't have the money to bump up the equity unfortunately.

0 Votes

San Diego, California

Originally posted by @Jon Holdman:

Here's the thing. You don't pick the comps. The appraiser does. When you're doing your own evaluation you do not want to cherry pick the best comps. The appraiser will not. You want to look at all possible comps the appraiser might pick. If only a few of those support the number you need to hit, you're probably not going to be happy with the appraisal. If most of them do, you're in good shape. You can certainly select some comps and hand them to the appraiser. You can also point out the work you've done. At the end of the day, though, the appraiser will chose the comps.

I appreciate the reminder, but if anything I've been cherry picking the most low-end potential comps to be as conservative as possible. I figure if I can estimate a "bare minimum" estimate and it's higher than I need, I'll be golden

0 Votes

San Diego, California

Originally posted by @Anthony Ciulla:

I'm not well-versed in appraisals but a few things stood out when I read your post:

I believe you purchased this house 4-5 years ago for and it reappraised a year later in the high $400s. If its been 3 years since then, you may well naturally be over the $500K mark since the SD property values are growing nicely year-over-year. I don't think new windows or pipes will make much of a bump.

AND I'd look into that garage conversion. if it was done "illegally" then it might be a problem for your appraisal. Was that garage conversion done with the proper permits and inspections and is it up to code as a livable space? I'd first confirm that before spending money on an appraisal or else your appraiser might need to include that in his report and it may bring your value down to include the costs to revert to a garage or bring it up to code.

The garage was definitely permitted, I asked about it when I bought the place. The only real downside of the space is the fact that it prevents me having a garage

0 Votes

San Diego, California

All Forum Posts by: Kendra Mattson

Kendra Mattson has started 15 posts and replied 63 times.

Post: San Diego, CA Property Management Company Recommendation

Post: Recommendations for Good Turnkey Companies in Indiana

Post: Van Dweller Requesting to Rent my Parking Space. Advice Requested

Post: Van Dweller Requesting to Rent my Parking Space. Advice Requested

Post: Van Dweller Requesting to Rent my Parking Space. Advice Requested

Post: Need advice for PMI removal

Post: Need advice for PMI removal

Post: Need advice for PMI removal

Post: Need advice for PMI removal

Post: Need advice for PMI removal