All Forum Posts by: Mark Costa

Hello,

I'm a new investor and am about to close on our first multifamily home in the Syracuse, NY area. I wanted to get several referrals for property management companies so I can start the interview process. Does anyone have any suggestions? 

Also, if you have a negative recommendation, please feel free to share those me with me as well. I understand if you want to message me privately with that information.

Thanks,

Mark  

Luis,

I do not have experience purchasing a five-family home, but I am working with Mike Brown at AmericU (6303 Thompson Rd Syracuse, NY 13206) on another purchase using a commercial loan. So far he has been very helpful and willing to spend the time and energy to help solve my problems, not tell me "the" way AmericU does business.

Mike,

Did you get a fixed APR HELOC? I thought HELOC's interest vary, so your payment would vary as well over the duration of the loan, and I doubt rates are going down. You'd still have to pay down the balance on the HELOC with the rent from the income, so I am not sure how that would help your overall situation unless the APR on the HELOC is far below the mortgage APR on the investment properties.

Did you consider using the equity to purchase additional rental properties? I am not sure how your market is, but maybe the ability to make cash offers will allow you to grab more properties. You could try to refinance the additional properties with a longer term mortgage at a fixed rate to pay off the newly acquired properties. That strategy would be particularly effective if you looked for value-added properties.

I wanted to follow-up on this forum post and provide guidance for whoever else stumbles on this thread. My real estate agent, @Esmir O, for providing the answer this question. Generally, the addition of a bedroom adds value per square foot of the room, with some normalization based on the average number of bedrooms per house in your area. In this case, the extra 5k or so was not worth me seeking a walkthrough appraisal.

Joshua,

The 4th bedroom does not appear on the county records, and it does have a closet. I am pretty sure the wood stove is permitted as the chimney was built with 3 flues, 1 for gas ventilation, 1 for the fireplace, and one for the wood stove.

Hello BP,

I wasn't sure where to ask this question, but I am guessing someone here can help me. We've applied for a HELOC and our appraisal came in less than expected. The appraiser may have underestimated the square footage of the house, but not by much. However, the appraisers did miss 1 bedroom and a wood burning stove. Plus, we have done some upgrades on the house, including a refinished walkout basement and a kitchen redo.

To get to the point, to what extent does the 4th bedroom and a wood burning stove add to the value of a home in Central New York? We are looking at the difference between a 3 and 4 bedroom, and a house with a fireplace versus a house with a fireplace and woodburning stove. I am trying to determine whether the walkthrough is worth the cost. 

Thank you.

Adam,

As far as I understand the situation, there are two types of solar panel models. The first, which you are referring to, is when the property owner purchases the solar panels and sells the electricity back to the tenants, presumably at a markup. Leasing space is a different approach in that the utility company is responsible for the installation and maintenance of the panels; in exchange for that arrangement, the electricity goes directly into the grid and is sold by the energy company itself. The property owner receives no electricity from the exchange; instead, s/he gets rent for the surface area of the roof.

I am starting to get the impression that leasing roof space in our market is not an available option. I'm guessing the 300+ overcast days a year make solar a less attractive investment.

I like your idea of renting the building as multiple units. I'm pretty sure I can get one unit per tenant but that is not enough to cover the costs of repairs. As you guessed, the layout is not quite conducive to supporting non-resident access as the tenants will block the driveway to the structure.

Hello everyone,

Has anybody come up with creative ways to monetize a large storage space? I am looking at a property and the living space itself is great for the price. However, there is a large structure in the backyard that, while not dilapidated, will be in need of maintenance. Renting it out as storage at $50-75/mos wouldn't cover the costs of deferred maintenance because the roof is large and will be expensive to repair. 

Here is what I considered with optimistic projections

• Winter boat/car storage (110/mo x 6 mo per year)
• Tenant storage (120/mo x 12 mo per year)
• Tool and van storage for a small business owner 
• Leasing rooftop for solar - does anyone know if companies in the Syracuse, NY area lease rooftops?

Looking forward to hearing some creative ideas from the BP community.

TYIA.

Jeff,

Thank you. Sorry I wasn't clear - my intent has always been to acquire investment property. I do not plan to use either property I am purchasing. My question arose from the fact that someone told me that one of my lenders was trying to use the second home finance path to get me a lower rate and down payment on my investment property and that if I went with that lender the underwriters would not approve the loan.  I was trying to get a sense of whether or not there was some merit to the statement.

Have you tried rentometer? I like to use it to gauge the price I could get for an apartment. Your place looks nice inside but the rental analysis is showing the average cost for a 1 bed in that area is ~625/mo. If you think the extra cost is justified, maybe you can emphasize what features of the apartment are worth the extra $100/mo in the pictures or the title. A few more pictures of the neighborhood might work. 

You could also share your internet, which is no cost to you but would look like an added bonus to your tenant. I'm looking forward to hearing how this worked out in our next meetup.