All Forum Posts by: Mark Smith

Thank you for your input @Jon Holdman.  Unfortunately we would not be able to do the work after closing; the bank will not lend on the property if the repairs are not made before closing.

I don't believe the contractor will try to twist the inspector's arm.  The inspector is going there BEFORE the repairs are made to show them what needs to be done, so the inspector is not looking at any repairs at this point.

Also, I think the only thing they may have needed a permit for is window replacement.  Most of the other work they did was flooring and painting.  But yes, I do agree with you that it appears they did a lot of cosmetic work.

The house was flipped by the seller.  The reason I made that known was to point out that they apparently did a lot of work on the house, but missed some big ticket items that could keep the house from selling at all.  Most of the house is actually in great shape.  We got word from the listing agent today that the seller is willing to make the repairs.  They are even paying for my inspector to come back and point out and discuss all of the problems.  This is a relatively small town and they don't want their reputation to be tainted, so it sounds like they want to make it right.  If they actually come through and the work is done correctly they'll really earn my respect for taking care of all the issues, but I'm not getting my hopes up quite yet.

I was a recent college grad beginning my career in public accounting. Everyone told me I needed to get my CPA license if I wanted to make the big bucks, but honestly my prospective career path didn't excite me. I started learning about REI in October of 2015 and it really excited me, and still does a couple years later. I only have one property, but at least I have gotten started. I'm actually under contract for #2, but I know it's going to fall through (see, "Depressing Home Inspection" forum post), so I'm out there working on the next one. I'm also out of public accounting and I'm a senior accountant for a property management company who is affiliated with a real estate brokerage, high end construction company, and a plumbing & heating company. I've really immersed myself in real estate and can't wait to build my portfolio.

I haven't been in the REI game too long, so please hold the "you should have seen that during your showing" comments. The purpose of this post is mostly because I want to vent to the BP community, but general thoughts and comments are appreciated.

I own a two unit house that I purchased solely for investment, and my fiance and I are now looking for a multifamily for us to live in.  We found a house we love, made an offer, got it accepted, and this past Friday we had the inspection.  Full disclosure, this house is a flip.

During the showing we noticed there was a little water in the basement, but the sump pump wasn't running as the power had been shut off on the first floor.  By the time of the inspection the sellers had ran an extension cord to the sump pump and that water was now gone.  The furnace and water tanks had some rust toward the bottom of the units...a decent amount of rust.  I thought it was just because the air was so moist from the little bit of water that was sitting near the sump pump.  Nope!  The inspector noticed that there was a definitive water line all the way around the basement and on everything down there, about 14" off the floor, so there was about 14" of standing water down there at one time.  So the furnace and water tanks have been compromised; they estimate $6-7k for replacement.  They also recommended we have a basement company come in and really seal up the basement, and this would include digging around the house to install pipes to help water flow away from the house; $10-15k.

They also found a small amount of mold in the basement, and a good amount of mold in the attic; approximately $4,500 to remove.

To top it all off, they noticed that there had been a fire in the basement; the subfloor above is black/charred.  They said it is strictly cosmetic and that the necessary repairs had been made, but I had to start laughing when they said that just because it was one thing after another.

So at the end of the day we are looking at $20k-$27k.  We have to ask the seller if they are willing to do anything since the bank will not lend on a house in this condition.  At this point we are expecting to lose this house, which really bums us out, but of course we are happy that we had the inspection done.  We're guessing that the sellers will let the contract expire, do the repairs as cheaply as possible, then attempt to sell the house for more to try to recoup some of the repair costs, even though these repairs don't actually increase the value of the house (assuming they originally priced the house unaware of all of these things).

What. A. Bummer.

I just need someone to confirm this for me. I am under contract for my second property (woo!) which I will owner occupy. The listing says "separate utilities: electric, gas, heat" but there is only one furnace in the basement. It's not possible to have separate gas if you only have one furnace, correct? It wouldn't kill the deal because the house is great, but it does bother me.

I'm trying to keep that a distant last resort.  I even told my fiance that I like and hate that there is a pool at the same time.  It's great for us, it makes the back yard really nice, and we can have family and friends over, but it opens up a lot of liability with tenants.

@Nicole A. thank you for your feedback.  I want to move forward with this property because it is an awesome find, and would be a great place to move into with my fiance and her son.  So unfortunately finding another property isn't an option right now until this one falls through.  I do agree with you though, when it comes to investment properties pools are a definite no for me, but I have to figure out how to make this one work.

I'm looking at a two unit house that I will owner occupy.  The house has an in-ground pool in the backyard.  The yard is totally fenced, I know insurance requires that, but I'm wondering how others have handled having a pool with tenants.  Obviously insurance will be higher, but has anyone ever told the tenants they are not allowed to use the pool/back yard?  The back yard is small, and the pool area takes up about half of it.  Would it be unreasonable to deny tenants access to the back yard?  I'm sure fire code dictates that there needs to be at least two entrances/exits, and one of their exits would be into the back yard.  Maybe the tenants seem like responsible adults and they could use the pool, but then what if they have a party and one of their guests gets hurt?  Seems like I'd be opening myself up to a lot of liability.  I'm just looking for thoughts on this situation so I know what to expect.  Thanks!

@Steven Hiscock if you would like a recommendation, I use Richard Mulvey of Olde Green Consulting in Rensselaer.  Check out their site and shoot him an e-mail, he has always been very responsive for me.

@Jaysen Medhurst this is very much a stereotypical "Main Street America" location.  It is on the main road coming through a nice village.  Once you move off the main road you'll find other places with off-street parking, but the farther off that road you get the less-nice of an area you are in, so it's a bit of a tradeoff.