All Forum Posts by: Matt Holmer

Family Handyman Complete Do It Yourself Manual

Not a tool per se and I know a lot of this info can be found online, but I think this is a great resource for a novice.  I use mine all the time. 

The finishes look good for a C+/B- neighborhood.  Good job and congrats!

What type of flooring is that in the living room and bathroom?  Original hardwood?

What school are you planning on going to?  The quad cities is small enough that you could live anywhere.

With that setup, would he or she be willing to loan the money for a set rate of return?  

Welcome to the site bro (literally!)

I'll add a couple keywords to hopefully attract a few more locals from Champaign, Urbana, Savoy!

Aside from the tax benefits, you're missing the mortgage pay down (assuming you have a mortgage).

What type of financing do you have on the property?  Are you applying the $300/mo. towards the mortgage?

I love the look of General Finishes Java gel stain over honey oak cabinets.  I've  never done it but there are a ton of blogs out there about it.  From the looks of it, it would be easier then painting. 

I have a SFH in an area that all has garages, mine does not as the bank tore it down before I bought it. It took awhile to get rented and I'm sure the lack of garage hurt.

I'm sure the lack of storage is a bigger deal then the lack of a place to park.  Since the tenant is responsible for lawn care, this summer I will probably put in a small shed for the mower and other lawn tools.

Cozy.co is free.  They make their money by doing background checks if you use their application.  The only negative I've seen with them is the time for payment to post, however there has been a lot of discussion lately that processing times will be improving.

I was so excited to have my first HUD home accepted a couple weeks ago. Contract price was $46000 and the potential ARV was around $100,000. Minor cosmetic throughout, but there was a foundation issue. Thankfully, the day the bid was accepted I was able to get a foundation repair company out to inspect before sending my earnst money. Boy am I glad I did that!

Two of the 4 walls needed to be completely replaced as there was 6+ inches of inward lean.  The other two could have gotten by with interior bracing every 5 feet.  In total, the estimate I got was going to be north of $25,000.

I passed on the house and now it is sitting back on the market.  If it ever gets down in the $25,000 range, I might put in another bid.