All Forum Posts by: Mark Futalan

@Chad Lanting

Exactly! With a family and 2 kids to support, there’s a lot on the line. I would never be able to dive into something if I didn’t have a back up plan. That’s why I look at it as low risk high reward. Only time will tell :)

@Dan A.

We invest out in the CV desert by Palm Springs. I live in the greater LA area. Rules have tightened a bit in the area and neighboring cities. La Quinta just put a 90 day moratorium on new STR permits, so expect some tightening of regulations. There are still opportunities here but you need to keep up with the regs as each city has their own and some are less favorable than others.

@Chad Lanting

I look at it as a win win situation. Networking, being an agent on my own investment deals and being an investor agent that has a unique insight to a particular niche market. My goal would hopefully be to transition into RE full time but if things don’t pan out, I have nothing to lose. The hardest part of any transition is making sure you’ll be able to survive if things don’t go as planned. I anticipate starting off slow, get a few deals under my belt and go from there. It will be a process but one I’m looking forward to.

@Chad Lanting

I have a stable government job that pays the bills. With our flexibility to work remote and have a more balanced schedule, I hope to be able to balance it all. I have a pretty good team of contacts where I invest and hope to use those experiences in my RE career so we will see how it goes. The only reason I decided to pursue it was the fact that I have a passion to talk RE and I find myself mentoring many new investors or 2nd home owners looking to buy in the area that I’ve met so I figured this could be my niche of clients.

@Roy Hu

Check with your agent he might have a few contacts or even might consider being your local contact for a small fee. I’ve also found using Next Door for your particular city as it’s helpful finding local people that your neighbors recommend.

I wouldn't say Covid destroyed the STR market just changed traveling habits for the time being. Drive up locations are in demand and most of our guests are coming from greater LA or SD which is about a 2-3 hr drive for us. Also we see more interest in longer term stays with people having more flexibility with working remotely and children virtual schooling. We did have a hiccup there for 1-2 months when the pandemic started but it's come back pretty strongly and demand is growing.

I'm actually the other way. My wife and I sold our primary that we purchased during the last crash in 2010 and bought 2 STR's that we manage remotely while still working full time jobs and raising a family. I'm in the process right now of getting my RE license and hope to help fellow investors/ 2nd home owners own and manage RE while still having a day job. Hopefully in time this can be a full time thing :)

@Andrew Mac

What part of the CV did you purchase at? I have 2 vacation rentals in La Quinta. As you mentioned, the area is a hot market right now for investors and 2nd home owners as people are taking advantage of the low rates and trying to buy more affordable housing. As far as options, there are many. Not sure if you got an STR permit already, but rentals have been busy lately with local demand. Renting mid term to folks is another option as I see demand for that as well since folks can work remotely nowadays.

@Jeff Stoner

Thanks for the insight. That’s what I was hoping for the appraisal to come in less not including that extra room then in some way get that permitted to increase value but I just wasn’t sure if all appraisers do that or not.

Found a house that is 2/1 with an unpermitted den. The house is listed as 1,000 sq ft but that includes the unpermitted den. Do appraisers include that unpermitted room in their appraisal or do they go by public records? Home is surrounded by million dollar homes and is listed at 709k. Similar house and assumed da ft sold for 850k fixed up but that’s assuming the den is part of sq ft. What are our requirements to get this to code or permitted. As a buyer, should I be concerned?