All Forum Posts by: Mark F.

 Ah, yeah single lane parking would be tough. Haven't seen too many in Bergen but looks to be more common in Essex.

I've been trying to RSVP but of course work has kept me late the last few months. I'll pencil the first Wednesday in May as Teaneck is too close to miss!

This. My story isn't sexy but I connect more with locals like Jonathan Greene and others who slowly build our portfolio. Thanks to BP, since 2020 I've acquired 7 units now worth $2.5m via the slow and steady method of house hacking combined with smart personal finance habits I've learned from BP and other within the sphere podcast like Choose FI, Afford Anything etc. I've been disciplined since then not only listening to podcast every week to educate myself, but putting those principals I've learned and sacrificing my housing situation for 5 years, living around tenants. This will cease by the end of the year as I think my wife and I have earned it.

I say all that not to brag but for you to know the ones who are slow and steady are often too busy to be loud and promoting ourself. Tried tagging you directly but kept sticking it at the top. For this, don't be too hard on yourself Scott, as myself and others are truly are "Set for Life" because of BPs original message.

@Stuart Udis I'd love for you to post another reply or new thread on how to continue operating the LLC the way it was intended such as setting up the operating agreement, continued proper use of the LLC, and on what occasion it would be time to put your next property in the same LLC as your last property or form a new one. Also someone asked the question I'm curious to know too, can we set up our own LLCs in our own states for a rental without issues? I know setting one up takes about 10 minutes via the states website.

I'm also curious and assuming you'd recommend a roboust umbrella policy (personal or is there one for businesses/LLCs?) and continued maintenance of your property as other good strategies? I have a personal umbrella policy but wasn't sure if they're also separate for LLCs. Thanks for your time.

I stated online rent payments with Cozy.Co the day I closed on my first duplex, best decision ever. Now it's apartments.com and I'm up to 6 units on there, works perfectly fine and it's free. Auto late fees and reminders just make it super simple.

No issues with laundry yet as I've been lucky to set up every unit with their own.

Parking has been straightforward as my driveways have been set up to where each parks on one side. I imagine once I buy a place with a small lot, designated spots are the way to go like you said. Maybe little signs or spray paint numbers?

I completely agree with the exterior property maintenance. Whenever I'm at a property, I pick up little pieces of trash. My realtor is also having a sit down with a prospective tenant to address some concerns I heard when I called their previous landlord, mainly no smoking and holes in the walls. I've heard your philosophy on how it's our property but it's their home. If tenants are willing to treat it as such, maybe it's not a good fit. We'll see how their tenancy goes. First ones that have had a spotty past.

Option A for me. My agent has been around for a long time and have done multiple transactions with him as he's an experienced REI. Heknows the market extremely well/always a top agent in his area.

Once he retires I'll switch to option B as I will have even more experience with this. 

They make anode rods that are cut and held together with wire, almost like sausage links. This is so you can bend it in tight spaces like your situation. Like this one. Anode rods last 2 to 3 years not months so obviously you have other issues.

https://www.amazon.com/Magnesium-Anode-Flexible-Water-Heater...

 I like Jonathan Greenes advice. You're kind of all over and I'd say first narrow down a county, max 2, then pick about 3 to 5 towns to drill down on and you know like the back of your hand. Go see properties tl get familiar with the area then when something pops up you can pounce and you're confident in your numbers. All the Nothern NJ counties have positives and negatives.

It's all a trade off. Closer you are to the city or public transportation the higher rents, appreciation and lower the vacancy but the more tenant friendly it can be. I like areas that are balanced between appreciation and not too tenant friendly. Good luck

 I have first hand experience that @Melanie P's suggestion (cant tag her) does not work. Round up 3 million of them to send them back and they will just make the trek again. I interviewed hundreds of migrants who crossed the border in my previous job and some would cross up to.... wait for it... 100 times. Yes, we would literally catch them and send them back just for them to do it again, and again and again. Then, even when they did make it across, a lot of them took care of business in the US then went back home just to cross again. You have a bunch of people who cross for the first time but there are plenty of them who just cross indiscriminately back and forth. They don't care. They do whatever they feel like and they are not scared of being arrested or getting caught. Why? They plan on doing it over and over again! 

Greg, love the suggestions. 

I invest in northern NJ like Shawn (3 small multi family properties last 4 years, all house hacks in Bergen county) and do fine. @Jonathan Greene is in Morris county and post content northern NJ specific, follow his YouTube channel. His short videos are gold. We've posted about it before but there are pros and cons to NJ. Quick list, pros- low vacancy rates, high rents, moderate/high home appreciation, high rents increases, demand is always there as people move/commute from NYC; cons- very competitive, pro tenant laws, high property taxes, some towns have rent control, high barrier to entry with expensive multifamily prices. James Wise is right, NJ is tenant friendly however it is not as bad in more purple/red counties. Eviction court and judges are more moderate and reasonable. Essex and Hudson county are blue (high property taxes too) and I would never buy there. The surrounding counties aren't as bad, talking with local attorneys and investors. If you're interested in reading the basics, read this. 

https://www.nj.gov/dca/divisions/codes/publications/pdf_lti/...

I'm not familiar with Morristown and Morris county specifically but made two offers on East Rutherford duplexes. Lost out on both but the proximity to NYC is very attractive and the town is decent. You need to pick at least a county in NJ IMO.. Also I'd say house hacking small multi is the best strategy to start building up (biased as that's what I did) but you have a primary so that's tough. If you don't have a ton of cash then NJ may be tough for you due to high price points (looking at 150k minimum for down payment and closing cost). Most people who are interested in NJ investing I meet never get started or invest out of state. The ones who do invest here seem to do very well. I always see people crap on REI in NJ without knowing specifics. On the surface it may look bad, but my portfolio is pretty solid for only house hacking. @Sunny Burns is even more impressive and was on the BP podcast way back when.