All Forum Posts by: Kwanza P.

@Rajesh Kasturi My favorite MTR market for cash flow AND appreciation is Portland, OR. 
Since our book, MTRs exploded and got very competitive in some markets. I have an excellent agent partner who is an MTR manager there with 24 units. All of them are full and she says there is a healthy demand for more, happy to connect you to her. Of course, you need to choose your areas and decor wisely, so I recommend working with someone experienced who knows what the clients there are looking for.

I can answer your first question: Logan is home to the stunningly beautiful - and extremely popular - Hocking Hills State Park. It's also located near many other State Parks, Nature Preserves and Forests giving access to a lot of good hiking. 

We were looking to invest in the area, but ultimately decided not to for 3 reasons:

1) The area has become too popular. Hiking trails are so crowded that the most popular ones are one-way and you can find yourself waiting a long time to get through some spots on those trails. We wanted something we would use frequently and we have found ourselves drawn less to the HH area for this reason.

2) Lack of critical infrastructure. If it can be used as a STR it's going to have septic, well water and need Starlink for internet. High probability you won't have cell phone reception if you're close to HH Park.

3) Our money could buy something nicer in the Red River Gorge. It was a true trade-off as the Logan area is more limited in STRs and new builds so ADRs are higher and likely to stay there compared to RRG where the market is headed towards being flooded and there's the potential of ADRs going down like in Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge area.

@Kwanza P. We have an STR in Mexico. It's been awesome, not only from its performance but it's our go-to place for vac or long weekends.

@Kwanza P.

Recommend exploring as many sources as possible to get referrals AND cross-reference them to get as much accurate information as possible.

Check out NARPM.com, BP’s Property Manager Finder (BiggerPockets: The Real Estate Investing Social Network), etc.

Also, encourage you to learn from the mistakes of others - by reading posts here on BiggerPockets about owners not having their expectations met by their current Property Management Company.

To avoid going through the same poor experience, keep reading.

Even if someone gives you a referral here, do NOT make the mistake of assuming that the PMC will meet your expectations, just because they met the expectations of the referral source.

In our experience, the #1 mistake owners make when selecting a Property Management Company (PMC) is ASSUMING instead of CONFIRMING.

It's often a case of not doing enough research, as they don't know what they don't know!

Owners mistakenly ASSUME all PMCs offer the exact SAME SERVICES and PERFORM those services EXACTLY THE SAME WAY, so price is the only differentiator – so, they often select the first PMC they call or that calls them back!

So, the first question they usually ask a PMC is about fees - instead of asking about services and HOW those services are executed.

EXAMPLE: PMC states they will handle tenant screening – what does that specifically mean? What documents do they require, what credit scores do they allow, how do they verify previous rental history, etc.? You’d be shocked by how little actual screening many PMC’s do!

This also leads owners to ASSUME simpler is better when it comes to management contracts.

The reality is the opposite - if it's not in writing then the PMC doesn't have to provide the service or can charge extra for it!

A well written management contract should clearly spell out what is expected of both the PMC and the owner, to PROTECT both and avoid misunderstandings. Why do you think purchase contracts are so long and have such small print?

We recommend you get management contracts from several PMCs and compare the services they cover and, more importantly, what they each DO NOT cover.

EDUCATE YOURSELF - yes, it will take time, but will lead to a selection that better meets your expectations & avoids potentially costly surprises!

P.S. If you just hire the cheapest or first PMC you speak with and it turns into a bad experience, please don’t assume ALL PMC’s are bad and start trashing PMC’s in general. Take ownership of your mistake and learn to do the proper due diligence recommended above😊