All Forum Posts by: Laura Dawson

I am looking into doing a couple renovations at once would like to stay in budget with both. Has anyone used a tracker app like HomeZada? If so what was your experience? Do you recommend it? Thanks in advance

Hey Folks,

I am looking to get in contact with an Real Estate attorney in Colorado to help me draw up some papers on a bankruptcy/pre foreclosure. This is way out of my expertise, hence the need for help. Has anyone used an attorney in Co who they really like? Are there any here in the forums? Please let me know.

Thanks so much for your help.

Hi @Brian G.,

I can only make a guess on what kind of equity I forced and I believe it to be around 15-20k. However, I'm not totally sure at this point because I had some issues with my first tenants and property management company and I believe I either broke even or lost a couple hundred dollars my first year. After the tenants left, the property was left in pretty bad shape and then there were some major issues with property management not securing the property correctly and all of my window A/C units were stolen. After switching PM, I opted for central heating and air which ran me about 6k + another 4k to bring the property back to being rentable. The central heating and air definitely added value to the house, but at the same time it probably added as much value as it cost so I'm a little unsure how to calculate that. 

As far as getting a lot of rehab done for the budget, I think I did pretty good. It was a lot of hands on learning and doing things on my own with my brother and my dad offering lots of advice. To the best of my knowledge the budget is fairly accurate, but I definitely was learning to get my feet wet with real estate at the time, and now I keep much better records! Second investment is almost complete at this point. It was a combo of house-hacking and a live-in flip for 2 years. Keeping my fingers crossed that I ran my numbers right and by mid to late summer I'm hoping to be onto investment three. :)

Hello @Audrianna Wake! What kind of investing do you do or are you interested in?

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Springfield.

Purchase price: $37,500
Cash invested: $35,000

3 bed, 1 bath craftsman home located walking distance to down town and university (10-15 min walk)

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This was my first deal and I think it was a combination of some luck and interest in dabbling in RE.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I found it on the MLS for 45,000 and thought I'd offer 30,000. When they countered for just under 40 (which my agent thought was a good deal) I decided to split the difference and they accepted.

How did you finance this deal?

Cash

How did you add value to the deal?

Complete remodel. Gutted the bathroom, expanded the kitchen, knocked out a wall, added two closets. It was listed as a 2/1, so made the front room a third bedroom.

What was the outcome?

I currently have the house rented in a year long lease.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I learned so much on this deal. First, I learned how to analyze a deal on this house and while I ran all the numbers (this was before I new about BP) I don't think I fully grasped the concepts. The second thing I learned was how to remodel, including demo, working with contractors for the things I couldn't do, like some plumbing and electrical, and general home ownership things such as taxes and basic maintenance. And currently, I'm learning how to manage property managers.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment in Eureka.

Purchase price: $195,000
Cash invested: $7,000

1940's cottage style 2 bed, 1 bath home in Northen California. I bought this home as a live in flip with and am finishing up interior and exterior renovations with the intent to sell this June. During my time living here, I house hacked by living with roommates, virtually cutting my housing expense to zero if I average it out over the two years.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I have renovated one other house and was looking for a less expensive way to live in California. I realized I could live for free with roommates and force some appreciation if I modernized the home.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I used a local Real Estate Agent who found it on the MLS. There were multiple offers on the home, so I offered 5k above asking price with a couple contingencies, such as new roof, covering more closing costs and permitting the newer water heater.

How did you finance this deal?

I used a 0 down VA Homeloan.

How did you add value to the deal?

Updated the inside by adding new closet in one of the bedrooms, updating the bathroom and adding tile, updated the kitchen with new countertops and some new cabinets, new appliances, layed laminate flooring through the whole house and painted both interior and exterior.

What was the outcome?

I'm finishing the last little bit of the remodel now and will be listing in June.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

It is difficult to find roommates who are ok with living in a construction zone. I initially bought this home to be a long term primary residence and didn't run the numbers as well as I could, but due to a strong market I will make some money.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Janna Walsh with Mikki Moves was my agent and did a fantastic job helping me purchase site unseen and Tara Johnson with Summit Funding was instrumental in helping me make sure my finances were in order for the VA Loan.

@Scott Stephens, those one ways! haha... I think they get everyone for a while. My experience of owning rental property out of state has been a mixed bag. They aren't joking when they say you have to manage the property managers! The first year, I lost money due to poor management. They rented out to tenants who's "parents pay [their] bills" which, as you could imagine, was a big problem when their lease expired. There was a lot of damage to my property and no way to track anyone down. Then, the PM didn't secure my house and all my window units got stolen. It ended with me spending about 10k out of pocket (I decided to put in central heating and air, instead of replacing window units) and then had to have drywall replaced, refrigerator, and the whole house had to be painted because they locked their dog inside. I switched PM after that, and it has been much smoother this time. They would screen the tenants and then gave me the options of whether or not to consider the tenants. I check in about once a month now. Also, it has been great having feet on the ground out there, who help me keep up with the market trends, and possible investment options. All in all, I would say if you want to invest out of state, find a market you're interested in and start plugging in with people. There is definitely a learning curve to the passive income bit, but I totally recommend it. 

Hi @Scott Stephens! How long have you been in the Eureka area? 

That's great that you are still finding and making deals happen! The Campfire hit everyone so hard. Good luck in your ventures! Thanks again for saying hi.

Hey @Andrew Newlon, Thanks for reaching out. I am definitely interested in checking out the local REIA. When/where does it meet? I'll be out there in May for a quick trip, maybe if it works out I can check it out then. What kind of investing do you do?