All Forum Posts by: Kenneth Kuebler

I did not. The kitchen project may wind up being small enough to manage myself, so I haven’t actually tried to hard to identify a contractor. I worry that the job may be too small for most to be interested.

Quote from @Robert Ellis:

Quote from @Kenneth Kuebler:

Greetings all. I’m under contract for my first fix and flip in Columbus. I successfully purchased, cosmetic rehabbed, and leased a property in Akron (Goodyear Heights) for a student rental this year. I’m recently retired from Columbus Police and looking to do more local deals in the area. Biggest need right now is a kitchen contractor for the fix and flip, starting from an empty (already demoed) kitchen. Biggest thing I can offer to others is general knowledge of the Columbus area, but certainly look forward to becoming more knowledgeable and valuable to others as I learn from this journey. 

is this construction need in columbus or Akron? I can help if it's in central ohio just let me know I'll shoot you a PM

 Columbus (west side). Thanks for clarifying!

Greetings all. I’m under contract for my first fix and flip in Columbus. I successfully purchased, cosmetic rehabbed, and leased a property in Akron (Goodyear Heights) for a student rental this year. I’m recently retired from Columbus Police and looking to do more local deals in the area. Biggest need right now is a kitchen contractor for the fix and flip, starting from an empty (already demoed) kitchen. Biggest thing I can offer to others is general knowledge of the Columbus area, but certainly look forward to becoming more knowledgeable and valuable to others as I learn from this journey. 

Title says it all. Rehabbing a two story, four bed property in Akron for my daughter and roommates at University. Need good painter recommendations for exterior. Will need scraped and repainted.  Hoping to complete the painting project in late spring or early summer but need to get quotes now for budgeting purposes. Also looking for carpet company recommendations and would prefer to go local for that instead of the big box stores. 

Quote from @Aaron Porter:

This is the thought you should be having.  Is the $300/year worth protecting the $200,000 possible loss?  because that is exactly what it is.  a loss if your property burns down and you walk away from it with the "depreciated cash value" you still own the lot which you are required by law to clean up after a fire or flood, and then you can sell the lot.  you are still loosing that $200,000 in appreciated value.  for the extra $300/year you could rebuild the home and sell it for a net gain of at least the $200K as the brand new home is going to be worth at least what it cost to rebuild.  
Replacement Cost Value insurance is more expensive than Actual Cash Value insurance but your claims processes are easier, you have less fights over the value of things such as a roof, and you are protecting your investment which means you are protecting the inflation and appreciation that real estate enjoys. 

@Kenneth LaVoie State Farm has great products, which they should as they are the largest insurance provider in the US.  But they have their shortcomings as well.  It would definitely be worth shopping your insurance portfolio around and seeing what an Independent Agency/ Broker can do.  
I strongly recommend my clients getting replacement cost insurance.  But I also understand that at the end of the day with property and auto insurance it comes down to what do you want to afford?  Do you want to save the money on your balance sheet?  Or do you want the better coverage?  

 Thanks Aaron. I appreciate the well reasoned response. I did wind up going with replacement cost, for the exact reasons you said - specifically it was a small $ up charge for a superior product. 

Quote from @Kenneth LaVoie:

As the day progresses (and more back and forth with our agent), bits and pieces are coming back. We bought many of these properties very cheap and pretty distressed (duplex, all renovated ready to rent for 27K, 11 unit for 180K, couple 7-units fully rented for 160K ea. etc.) The cash value limits were up in the half million range for these properties and I believe at the time it would've been just fine regardless of full or partial loss. But over the decade, we've upgraded steadily, and even though the values stagnated for the first 5-6 years, the uptick in values started in late 2016 and i think that's why I'm suddenly realizing we've a little underinsured. I am considering putting feelers out however.

I recently introduced myself as a first time rental buyer. This 4 bed property is for my daughter and three friends to live in for the next three years while attending college in Akron. Purchase and light reno will put me at about $110,000 all in. While discussing insurance with my AM Fam agent today, he is quoting $1400/yr for replacement cost at $350,000 and $1100 for cash value at $150,000 both with $1000 deductible. 1M liability. 

I’m really struggling to understand why I would want replacement value on a rental. If the whole thing burns to the ground and I’m left with just an empty lot, I wouldn’t necessarily care to rebuild, I could just take cash value and walk away without a loss. But on the other hand, a brand new build would be more valuable if I sold it after a rebuild. And it’s only $300/yr difference for a premium product I guess. I’m a little confused as to what decision to make on this. This property doesn’t have to make me a bunch of money, it’s a learning opportunity for me and a nice place for my daughter to live in for school. Thoughts?

Quote from @Cody Hawkins:

@Kenneth Kuebler being a rookie myself I don’t have any advice or feedback for you. However I did just want to say congratulations. The first step is always the hardest, and just let the momentum from this build up and carry you further towards your goals! 

Thanks Cody. It’s definitely exciting. I recently retired from my career and have always wanted to try real estate and I figured knowing my first tenants would be a good way to start. Not the type of property that’s going to make me rich or anything, but my hope was just to use it as a learning opportunity to get my feet wet. Good luck to you!

Greetings all,

Just wanted to introduce myself. Been a podcast listener for a long time. This is my first purchase. Although I intend to build my portfolio generally in the Delaware, Ohio and Columbus Ohio areas, my first buy was in the Goodyear Heights neighborhood in Akron. My daughter is finishing her first year at the University of Akron. The plan is for her and three friends to occupy the home. Her “rent” is what I’m not paying for her housing. Her three friends will be paying. $400/month each. So $1200/month in income and about $7,000/year in savings for my daughter’s expenses. That puts monthly income at about $1800, so $21,600/year before utilities, taxes, and upkeep/maintenance.  I’m paying utilities. Paid $94,500 for the house and expect to put in an additional $10-15k. Roof, all HVAC and water heater are new since 2019 and I’ll home warranty the house - primarily because I’m out of town. I think the house is worth about $115-125 after I’m done with cosmetics. I paid cash for the property.