All Forum Posts by: Mackenzie Grate

I agree with Eric here. I'm not saying it will never crash because markets go in cycles, but whether the market is up, or the market is down, if you can buy right, and hold it through the hard times, there is no reason not to continuously be adding to your portfolio. 

And don't get me wrong, this seller's definitely isn't sustainable, but the solutions needed right now (ie: more inventory) isn't a quick fix. Those who own homes and have low mortgage rates are not in a hurry to swap that out for a higher rate. And inflation is looming over us all. Even if they stopped printing more money this second, we still haven't had the full impact yet based on how much was printed and distributed. So as long as you continue to buy right and have reserves, you should be able to weather any storm that comes your way. Just make sure you have the reserves ready to go.

This year I'm officially building a team and intentionally looking for amazing women to be on that team. I've hired a new badass CPA, I have an incredible female bookkeeper, an awesome and inspiring coach who is also a rockstar investher and I'm looking for a top-notch VA.

I think as women we sometimes try to stay small (guilt as charged). Putting ourselves out there is just more difficult. We tend to criticize and second guess ourselves more and feel guilty when we shouldn't really. So I'm trying really hard to grow my business, put myself out there and surround myself with more empowering women. I see how powerful the changes are already and I'm going to continue to do the work because we need more women owned businesses and landlords in this world! :)

I have a couple lenders I could recommend. For some lenders you will be on the border with your DTI income, others are more flexible. It does help to have a signed lease on your apartment that you plan to rent out, but long story short, this entirely doable. There are a lot of moving parts, and it will take some persistence, but it can be done. :)

I have some people I can put you in contact with if you are interested and I'm happy to help as well. I'm a realtor too, but I live in Brooklyn and I have a strong network of realtors who can help you out with this. DM if you want me to put you in contact.

Good luck! I'm rooting for you! 

Yeah, this was stated before, but set your criteria first and list it in the listing. That is super important to avoid violating any fair housing issues. If she doesn't meet the criteria first, and provide proof, then she cannot view the home. That is your first line of defense to weed out any potential discriminatory accusations. Additionally, since we live in such a litigious society, keep everything on file. Even if someone does not end up getting the place, hold on to the documentation and note what aspect of the criteria they did not meet so that you have that ready to go should they come back later and file a lawsuit for discrimination later. Lastly, ensure your criteria meets state and local laws. One way to help establish this is call other landlords who are in the area and ask them what criteria they use to qualify their tenants. This will help give you a baseline of what is and isn't permitted.

In this case, it sounds like this lady may have done this before. There are a few red flags here. Don't be too hard on yourself. Just work on setting up your clear systems now and apply it 100% of the time from here on out.

You got this! Good luck!

Usually service animals are exempt from this. I would ensure you get it in writing with the insurance company. Explain that the service animal is on their exclusion breed list and ask them if in the event of something happening, would your property still be covered? Get them to put it into writing that they would so you have that in case anything should arise later. If they are unwilling to do so, continue shopping for insurance and go with someone else.

I suspect more people will stay put for a little bit, thus adding extra stress on to the seller's market. If you are a homeowner, now is not a good time to trade up with low inventory and then swapping a mortgage out for a higher interested one unless you find a killer deal. I imagine that most people will stay put for a bit longer unless they absolutely have to move for circumstances that are beyond their control. Just a guess... interested to see how this plays out....

When you say "comfort animal" do you mean a licensed service animal that comes with the paperwork? If so, it will probably be significantly more difficult to evict based on this. Definitely consult a lawyer if that is the case to make sure you follow local laws exactly as outlined. If there is no paperwork, you will have a lot more leeway in order to address the situation.

Document everything. Send all communication via email, not texts (because they tend not to hold up well in court) and if you speak in person regarding the situation, document it with a follow up email "as per our conversation..."

Hope this helps a little bit. Good luck!

This is absolutely true. I got a credit card with my dad when I was 16 and that helped me tremendously to build credit. With that being said, make sure whatever you do, that you pay it on time and don't wrack it up. They want to see you are consistent and reliable when it comes to paying stuff back. Some say to charge something and pay it off over 2-3 months regularly. Some say to pay it off each month. I recommend you ask the company when you open the card. 

Also, only open one card. Each time you open a new line of credit, your score takes a slight hit. Try to get as much credit on that line as possible too because that shows lenders you have access to money should you get in a pinch. Don't charge it up, but have it available.

Additionally when you go to get a loan they are going to be looking at debt to income ratio. It may be tempting now to work under the counter to save some money, but that could backfire.  Try to get as much taxable income as possible so you can show that you are an income earner and that you have a history of making at least a certain amount. You probably will still fall in a lower tax bracket, especially if you are in school and only working part time.

Hope this helps a bit. Super awesome you are starting to think about this now and prepare. I'm totally rooting for you! Good luck!

If you are going to live there and then turn it into a rental, I wouldn't invest too much cash, but I would do a refresh. Even renters like good design. I'd leave the window (more light is always better), paint the bottom of the vanity a pop of color, swap out the mirror and pulls to something more updated and I would reglaze the tub and tiles. I'd do a fresh white to brighten it all up. 

Rentals in modern color schemes rent quicker. So I'd probably wait to do this until right before you are ready to leave and rent it out. That way it is fresh and updated for the first renter.

Hope this helps! Good luck!

When I started last year, I hit up Instagram hard. I friended all the local realtors in my new area and started building relationships with them. Referrals from busy agents was a huge key to getting my own business going. I also started to build my own presence online too.

Good luck! Just keep meeting people and you will get there! :)