All Forum Posts by: Shawn McCormick

@Aspen Lenzen

I live in Orlando, the 'capital' for STR's. I have helped dozens of people buy and sell functioning homes. I market them as basically a 'turn key small business'. In my market, that is a desirable attribute to have it already up and running. If it is performing well, the buyer pays fair market value for the home and enjoys the benefit of some future income with rentals you already have booked.

Although your reviews won't convey, the buyer can have some peace of mind that with future revenue that the first couple of months mortgage are covered while they make adjustments, build up some reviews and work out any nuances they need to. If you have a website, Instagram or other social page for the house, having those convey as well are always welcome.

Our market is heavily driven by STR near the theme parks, so not sure how the SLC market works, but to me, having it still operating is a must. Side note, The calendar can get tricky to work out inspections, appraisers and closing dates as the home may have guests. Your agents will have to work closely with you to make sure no guests are interupted but the buyer has access to the home and you close on a date with no guests that day and the following few days while they go in and take inventory, set up utilities etc.

Hope this helps, best of luck! 

@Brent Warner welcome to the forums!

Depending on what your overall budget is and how much you want to be involved in the house, there are many areas of Orlando that would be a good fit. You could get new construction with your VA loan and when you move on in a year or so, have a virtually brand new home that will be very little upkeep to maintain when you put tenants in there and typically, you will get higher rents in a newer construction home.

If you are handy and can do rehab/updates yourself, you might consider something that you could add value to. In this scenario, you have to make sure the house conforms to VA guidelines in regards to its condition when you purchase.

Happy to talk in more detail whenever you like, I've helped dozens of other B.P. members purchase homes here.

Best of luck and thank you for your service!

hi @Prithvi Raj Sendi I would be happy to talk thru the market here in Orlando. Cash flow has not been easy to get in the last few years due to the appreciation home saw due to the Pandemic.;

I think you'll find this in any big metro in Florida. Insurance and taxes are a big part of the equation too. I believe one way to help combat that is buying a newer home or even new construction (which most are offering great incentives right now). You'll be able to hedge your capital expenses due to having warranties and all of your systems being new. 

We can dive a little deeper on your needs on a call if you like. 

Best of Luck!

@Gabriel Alfaro I would suggest you check out CFRI, the local chapter of the National REIA. We have over 1200 local members and business members with about 20 meet ups every month. We offer education, networking and benefits to help you get started.

We are actually having one our premier events in October called Junkers to Jewels, a 3 day in person classrom and bus tour to learn about flipping, rehabbing, estimating etc on actual deals with local investors. 

If you want some more information check out the website CFRI dot net.

Best of luck

Quote from @James McGovern:

The purchase price in many jurisdictions determines how the property will be taxed. If a buyer wants lower property taxes, do agents tell buyers of new builds to suck it up and accept it?

You really don't have a choice with the tax rate. When the builder sells it to the end buyer, it's been being taxed as vacant land. The county then comes in an assesses value based on purchase price and adds CDD fees if they apply and any non ad-valorem taxes. We get a trim notice around this time of year where you could argue the case your taxes are too high if you choose. So in effect, yes, you have to deal with it. Unless you quit-claim or buy sub2 and do it correctly, you could avoid the transfer of sale and keep the previous owners rate. 

Builders are offering lots of incentives right now in the form of permanent rate buy downs and closing cost incentives. Some will offer 'sale prices' on inventory homes (homes that are withing 60-90 days of being complete or are complete to get them off of their books). However they won't come off of the advertised price. If another buyer was under contract with them and the deal fell apart, they may discount the home, but not outside of those situations. 

For those examples, I'm speaking of the National and big regional builders like Pulte, Lennar, DR Horton etc. You may have some luck with indy builders, but likely the same result. They want to keep the appraised value as high as they can so the next house they build can sell for a little more each time. 

I have relationships with several builders reps that I get lists of homes with incentives and sometimes builder models that come up for sale or cancelled contracts which gives me a slight advantage over others that are just searching MLS. Most builder only put a few homes in MLS so that the public can find them and come in to the models. The discounted ones are only advertised to agents and on their websites.

Hope this helps. 

@Jon Greves although Windsor Hills is one of my top 5 communities when factoring in all aspects of what other communities nearby offer, the homes are older (2004-2006) and compete with mostly 2015-2024 homes with more modern amenities, finishes and just cleaner overall. You'll have to factor in the age of the roof, mechanicals, furniture, appliances and deferred maintenance and the pool likely needs to be refinished too. 

All that being said, Windsor Hills does have a pretty loyal following, heavily from UK clientele that have been going there for many years. So if the house is head and shoulders above the rest and you can reach potential guests outside of the big platforms, you can still do okay. You should be able to do much better than a long term rental income, but the amount of work and time to put into a STR is much more than most consider.

There are a lot of motivated sellers in our market, so if you intend on purchasing here, make sure to research and don't pull the trigger on just any home. I'm happy to talk thru this in more detail if you like, reach out anytime.

Best of luck!

Try Ed Meiner Law (407) 625-8404

@Amauri Campos Welcome. I'm in Orlando, let me know if I can be of any help. I have a great tax deed contact. I'm also on the board of CFRI, the local chapter of the National REIA. If you ever want to come out and network with other local investors, let me know.

Best of luck!

@Shane O'Neill Let me know about your property in Orlando, I may be able to help you sell it to my investor list. Maybe we could have a call to discuss the details. 

Best of luck in Knoxville, not sure I have investors in that market that could help, but I do know a couple of agents that could provide some perspective.