All Forum Posts by: Leanne J.

I was just doing some research and fell over Fannie Mae HomeReady loans. I haven’t had a chance to evaluate it yet for myself, but you may want to take a look.

I was just reading a book with the quote that went something like, “Experience is what we call mistakes we’ve learned from.” It sounds like you’ve learned you’re the kind of guy that needs a buffer between him and his tenants. That’s not a bad thing it’s just a thing you know about yourself now. If you’re the type to do self assessments and self improvement, you may want to contemplate why you feel you have to solve the problems of people you have no personal relationship with; why you have to come off as the good guy to yourself. Sounds like there may be some lack of healthy boundaries that working on would help you develop into being a better landlord.

Hi BP! I'm new to REI. I moved to Maryland earlier this year and am in the process of turning my GA home into a rental. I was reading that for depreciation on SCH E they go by either our tax assessment or an appraisal.

Since I've made a ton of improvements to the home since I purchased in 2009 (new roof, new patio, new kitchen and currently working on updating the master bath), I'd like to get a real idea of the appraised value so I can use that towards the depreciation instead of the tax assessment should that deal come through. 

I'm hoping you all might have an appraiser in the Decatur area you have used and would recommend? Also, anything I should be aware of that I wouldn't know as a newbie? 

Mikayla, 

I don't have any experience with Charleston, but just recently left Atlanta after 10 years for a promotion. I would definitely recommend buying in Atlanta (suburbs). There are so many great suburbs that are appreciating well there. 

One thing I'm doing now is driving to different neighborhoods on the weekend and saying "Do I want to live here?" I also ask everyone I meet that's a home owner 1) Where they live, 2) How's the commute. Not sure where you live now or what your budget is, but areas I was starting to look at to invest in before my move were McDonough (south), Cobb County/Smyrna/Kennesaw(North) and Ft Belvedere/Decatur/Edgewood (East).  When I purchased in 2009, I took some advice I heard somewhere and decided to buy close enough to be in a trendy area within 10 minutes, but far enough I could afford my mortgage on the premise that the trendy area will overflow into my area at some point. Not sure if that has happened, but my area has appreciated nicely.