All Forum Posts by: Kwok Wong

Quote from @Chris Seveney:

@Kwok Wong

Have you spoken to a local realtor or investor? Have you physically seen the property?

Many nightmare stories about house next door a drug house, or issues with that location or street that would not be known until you visit

Hi Chris, thanks for your response. I spoke to a local realtor and that's the listing she sent me. No, I have not physically seen the property because I live out-of-state. I understand the neighbors is also a factors. I checked with the agent and a property manager and they are okay with the location. What else can be done to avoid the nightmare stories?

Aloha, I am a new investor trying to determine the ARV of a fixer-upper and looking to BRRRR the property out-of-state.
The URL attached is a CMA Summary Report with on all recently sold properties, active listing, and pending sales as well as my comments/through process.

I followed a three-tiered system to determine the ARV:

T1: Stay within one-miles radius, sold for fewer than six-months.
T2: Size of the properties are within 200 sqft., must share certain attributes (bedrooms, bathroom, etc.).
T3: Compare property type

I came to the result of above 200k and am looking for advice/comments from experienced investors on my decision. Did I miss anything? Also, what is the purpose of "pending sales" when determine ARVs?

Additional comment will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance for any input.


Mahalo Nui Loa.

Aloha, I am a new investor trying to determine the ARV of a fixer-upper and looking to BRRRR the property out-of-state.
The URL attached is a CMA Summary Report with on all recently sold properties, active listing, and pending sales as well as my comments/through process.

I followed a three-tiered system to determine the ARV:

T1: Stay within one-miles radius, sold for fewer than six-months.
T2: Size of the properties are within 200 sqft., must share certain attributes (bedrooms, bathroom, etc.).
T3: Compare property type

I came to the result of above 200k and am looking for advice/comments from experienced investors on my decision.

Additional comment will be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance for any input.

Mahalo Nui Loa.

Hello guys, I am looking to brrrr out of state in Indianapolis and talking to a brokerage about refinance. The loan officer came back with questions that I need advice with. Currently, I do not have any property under contract or any property that can be refinanced. This will be my first deal.

The purpose of me talking to a loan officer is to find out the loan amount I can qualify when we do the refinance.
Am I taking this step too early?

Secondly, the loan officer is assuming that I might be closing in an LLC.
I do not have any LLC, was thinking to close in my personal name. This will be my third property under my personal name.
Also, why did the loan officer make the assumption?

Lastly, I am located in Hawaii. Should I establish an LLC and close in it at this stage of my investing journey? If so, How can I do it?

Thank you very much in advance for any input.

Very useful information here! Thanks everyone!

Aloha,

I recently purchased a studio in Honolulu, Waikiki. It's a low-rise, walk-up building. Two weeks ago, my tenant noticed that there was water coming down from the door and a bubble on the ceiling. Two weeks later, I had the building plumber inspected the issue and confirmed that it's the AC unit above causing the water leaking problem. The building manager and property management company are aware of the problem. It has been three days since the inspection, I am not hearing anything from the landlord (or may be the tenant) above and still waiting for response form the property management company.

As a landlord who is self-managing, who should I do to comfort tenant? How does a professional/experienced rental property management deal with this kind of problem? Thank you very much for any input.

Mahalo,
Kwok

Quote from @Chris Seveney:

@Kwok Wong

Also as an investment property you will

Most likely need 25% down. At this time it’s a waiting game until you can pay more down or save up enough to buy another asset

Some will say to go seller financing with little down but I am risk averse and when I see people get over leveraged where all their assets are 90%+ leveraged it can end very badly. You have no exit strategies at that point if you have a life event or markets soften. All of which can and do happen.

Hello Chris,

Thanks for you advice. I am not sure if I should pay the HELOC first or save up to buy another asset first. That's where I can't make a decision.

Thank you,
Kwok

Aloha,

I recently purchased my first investment studio unit in Waikiki Oahu using HELOC and some of my saving. Now, I am looking for advice for my next move. Any input will be greatly appreciated.

Purchase price: $210,000

HELOC: $200,000

Interest rate: 3.6%

Rent: $1,500

Cash flow: -$67.50

I was planning to refinance in the next one or two years, put the unit under a 30-year fixed mortgage loan, and pay back the HELOC. That would be the best scenario that I could think of. But it seems like interest rate is not going to go down anytime soon, at least not low enough for me to refinance and cover all expenses. I want to pay off HELOC because I would like to use it for my future deal.

Secondly, I do not want to sell the unit in the next five to ten years, would prefer 1031 exchange it, but if it makes more sense to sell, I would do so.

So, I do not see that I can/should refinance or sell in the near future. Thank you for any response in advance!

Best wishes,
Kwok

Hi guys, thank you for your input. I have learned my lesson.

To add more details on this story. The tenant replied via text message on one day before my entry. She states that I’m liable for any damages, including theft. Therefore, I want to avoid any future disputes by providing proof. Or it’s unnecessary?