All Forum Posts by: Luke Neubauer

Hi Adam,  Welcome!  I was a JCPS middle school teacher and started my side business renting single family houses in 2011 before eventually transitioning full time into investing in 2017.  You can absolutely build a side business renting properties while teaching to supplement your income and eventually replace it if that’s what you want to do.

There is a lot of information out there to help you build your business, but I think one of the most important aspects is to build a community around yourself of people that will encourage and inspire you.  

Rob mentions KREIA has a meeting tomorrow night.  He and I will be there along with many other local investors, if you can make it, you should come out.  Check kreia.com for more info.

Additionally, Thank you David Espinosa for recommending our meetup at the Manhattan Project.  If you can make it next Wednesday night from 6:30 to 8:30pm, we welcome any new or experienced investors every month to our free meetup.  On meetup.com we are the Louisville Real Estate Investors Meetup Group.

I absolutely love this stuff, feel free to reach out anytime!

@Roxanne Lucas by saying you are re-applying does that mean that you were denied once already? If so, do a study on the percentage of houses that are owner occupied vs tenant occupied in the neighborhood around your house and present that percentage to BOZA at your hearing.

A guy did this in Butchertown and was able to get his conditional use permit approved after being denied initially. I think it was in the last BOZA meeting, I would check the previous ones and watch his if you haven’t already seen it. Good luck! Always tough trying to get these conditional use permits especially if within 600 ft of others and if you have neighbors speaking out against it.

@Clifford Merritt welcome! Louisville is great for real estate investments. Have you considered the BRRRR method? Downside is they usually require more remodel work up front, but the good thing is you can take most if not all your money back out and reinvest into other properties if you have solid numbers. I have done this many times and wouldn't have near the portfolio I have today without utilizing this strategy.

As for meetups, I like KREIA even though it does cost money, $30 a time for non-members and when I started going, it pushed me out of my comfort zone to try to talk to people I didn’t know who had way more experience than me.

Also, @Raphaelcollazo and I have started a relaxed, free local networking event once a month at a bar/restaurant called the Manhattan Project at 2101 Frankfort Ave 40206. It’s always the last Wednesday of the month from 6:30 to 8:30 so if you want to come out and meet other new investors and full time investors, we try to share as much info as we can. Find us on Meetup.com and it’s called the Louisville Real Estate Investors Meetup Group.

In my opinion, networking is huge to be successful in this business. I wish you the best beginning your investing career!

Rob is right, there are definitely plenty of options out there. I have done multiple BRRRR houses in Louisville. My suggestion is to network with as many local investors as you can. I used to be a public school teacher and didn't have much money when I started so I had to BRRRR to build my rental portfolio. Harder to find good deals to BRRRR than a few years ago, but still doable for sure and the opportunities are out there. Good luck!

We have been through this several times over the years.  I suggest having an attorney send the 7 day late letter for you and handle the eviction process completely if rent is not paid within required timeframes.  It will cost several hindered dollars but it’s money well spent.  Most attorneys will charge $35 to send a 7 day late letter but it’s worth it.  Also, I never take partial rent payments.  I have done this in the past but I have learned that lesson the hard way.  On the flip side though, with a good attorney, the process just takes a little time.  Let me know if I can help in any way.

You need to go to the old phone directories and criss cross directories down at the public library downtown.  You will need to find several years for your address, two years from the 1970’s and one from early 1980’s would probably work and one from each decade to the present.  I would also call planning and design.  The more conversations you have with them the more you will learn.  I have called them quite frequently lately and they are pretty helpful.

If you were going to try for a CUP I would keep the tenants why you wait to get approved that way you know before you get any more vacancies what you are looking at.

As for finding locations of properties with CUPs, ask that question to planning and design and I bet they can either tell you where to find it or look it up for you.  Good Luck!

Congrats on your first property under contract!  I recently had to get nonconforming rights to use a duplex as a duplex because the lot size was to small for a duplex even though it had multi family zoning, the density didn’t allow it.  If you can prove it has been a 4 plex since before the city wide rezone in 1985, you should be able to get a non confirming rights case approved.  You could also go for a zoning change, but that would take much longer than a non conforming rights case, about 6 months, where non confirming rights would take less time.  Either way, you definitely have risk buying this as a 4 plex.  I can show you how to see if it’s been used as a 4 plex since 1985 and how you can prove it.  And so can planning and design downtown.

As for the Airbnb, rules just changed and I wouldn’t bank on that.  The 600 ft rule is in effect now and there may be another Airbnb with a conditional use permit already operating.  I would check all CUP permits already approved and see if any are within 600 ft of you.  Also, for residential zoning, you can only rent a single family or duplex on Airbnb, I don’t think they will let you do a 4 plex.  Also a good conversation to have with Louisville metro planning and design. Send me a DM if you have questions, always happy to help and discuss this stuff.  I have three properties with CUPs and have a 4th in the works.

Congrats again on first property under contract!

Hi @Christopher Kelly, Welcome! As others have mentioned, there are a lot of networking events in the area and I strongly suggest attending as many as you can. I owned 13 SFR rentals before I ever attended any networking events, and the first one I went to was KREIA. It's been a little less than two years since I attended my first one, but I have learned so much from networking. I tell everyone I know, if you want to accelerate the growth of your real estate business, you need to surround yourself with people who are doing great things in real estate. Step 1 is to show up to as many networking events as you can, and Step 2 is to talk to as many people as you can while your there, and listen. Consistency is key and give it several meetings to start feeling comfortable and start learning. The most important part is to show up. Hope to see you out!

Deals looking good Barrett, thanks for sharing these!