All Forum Posts by: Matt Leonard

@Jim Sestito  I just did this up in NH, total no-brainer, but depends on how old your existing oil boiler and DHW tank/heater is.  If they are newer, it will take a long time to recapture the investment.

 You can get combi units that do both heat and DHW.  My rinnai combi was about $2500, but there are some cheaper ones.  There are Energy Star incentives for rebates, and i believe you can deduct the cost on your taxes for energy efficiency (may have changed for 2018, not sure).  

You may have to upgrade your gas meters (free from the gas company), mine were rated at 220,000 btu and the tankless pulled 260,000 at high fire, so it constantly shut down due to lack of gas until they were replaced with 440,000 btu meters.  Check to see what your meters are rated for and get the gas company out there to update them ASAP, as someone mentioned above, it can take a couple months.

Also, you can frame up and plywood the area where the oil tank was and offer your tenants on-site storage for an extra $50/mo. 

Hey Joanna,

1)  My experience is that a gas range is more durable, less things to break on them.  Also has the added benefit of working in a power outage

2)  A dish washer could be a deal breaker to a tenant, but I'm not sure who your target tenant is.  Its one more thing that can break or burst to flood the house.  If you don't think it will hinder your renting or generate additional rent, I would skip it.

3) Washer/dryer is probably a deal breaker for some people, can probably get you additional rent.  I would look for a used set on craigslist and maybe look for coin-op if you don't mind going by once every couple months to collect you quarters.

4) I wouldn't put a garbage disposal in a rental, its not a deal breaker for a potential tenant, it won't get you any more rent, invites tenants to put anything and everything down the drain, it's one more thing that can break, and you are correct; you should not put a disposal on a septic tank or you will be having it pumped more often 

@Alex Huang

I try to use HD for everything for the sole purpose of their purchase tracking.  I put in my phone number and they ask me for the job name on every purchase and then at the end of the year, with a couple clicks of a mouse, I have a report of every dollar I spent and which property/project they were allocated to for tax purposes.  I never have to worry about receipts, they are all in the cloud, for free.  

I tried their bid program once, and saved about 5% on a 2500 purchase, they can get more aggressive on some items.

Hi Jeremy,

It depends on what your target renter is.  If you think you can maximize rent by targeting families with young children, I would keep the tub.  If you could maximize rent by targeting young professional roommates, it probably doesn't matter.  If you are targeting elderly tenants, a no/low threshold shower or walk in tub is probably a great feature.

Do you know what the existing drain and vent size is?  I believe (i'm not a licensed plumber) that you need 2" drain and vent piping for a shower stall, but only 1.5" for a tub.  If you're not getting inspected, it probably won't matter, but if you are getting an inspection, they might make you re-vent/drain, adding potentially significant cost to your reno.

@Jennifer Ouch 

I just checked out the NACA page and their eligibility rule #2 is "Member must occupancy the home as long as they have a mortgage obtained through NACA."

If you know you are going to live in the house for the next 30 years, it shouldn't be an issue, but who does that realistically?  That would be a deal breaker for me.  You might want to explore some other options through Mass Housing  masshousing.com or MyMassMortgage www.mymassmortgage.org

I did a similar program about 5 years ago. It was a Mass Housing program that went through TD Bank and their "Right Step Program" for which i had to meet certain criteria (generous income limitations, over 650 credit score, first time homebuyer course, first time landlord course, and probably a couple others). What it got me was a 30 year fixed rate loan at 3.125%, NO PMI, and only 5% down payment.

@Aaron Millis 

Free.99 is an excellent price to pay for a college education!  

When i got my degree in business, the first 2 years were mostly introductory classes to the core paths; accounting, economics, finance, marketing, management, and Computer Information Systems.  That was great to get a baseline in all the areas before taking higher level courses in my major.

All paths are good, but when it comes to RE investing, I think marketing and accounting are the most useable skills that will lead to success.  Marketing will help you bring in $$$ and accounting will help you make sure that getting wasted.

Hey Tomer,

"A historic home" would be my first cue to run for the hills.  If it means the same thing in Philadelphia, you will be dealing with a Historic Home Commission, or something similar.  They will dictate what you can and can't do...and they care nothing about your budget or timeline.  Your local authority could be different, but it might make your project a nightmare.

"Where's my profit?" would be my second cue to walk away.  From what you wrote, you would be breaking even if everything went perfectly, which is probably not realistic, especially with an older home.  Unless of course you want to, and have the time to, be the GC for the project.  Have you factored in holding costs (insurance, utilities, taxes) and selling costs (commission, tax/deed fees, etc)?

Do you have any other exit strategies if you cannot sell it for what your expecting?  Would it cash flow as a rental or would it be feasible to run it as an Airbnb?

Hey @Makhwarand Khan 

I collect a $100 non refundable deposit (i would refund it if the background check DQ'd them, but haven't had to cross that bridge yet)  at the showing to lock it up.  I use Cozy for background and credit checks, I take the cost off the first months rent if they are approved.  It could be argued that it is an unlawful application fee.  I collect first months rent and security deposit when the lease is signed (ideally ASAP after the showing and background check) and don't require pre-payment of last month's rent.  I am currently using Cozy for rent on 1 unit to try it out.  It works fine, but on another unit I have the tenants pay me electronically though BOA and its instant, instead of waiting the 5 days for the Cozy payment to process.  Make sure you keep each unit's security deposit in a separate interest bearing account and that return of the sec deposit includes any accrued interest.

For what its worth, I just paid $2250 for a 4 unit in Maine that covers a replacement cost of 584k.  Appraisal came in at 350k.  Initially the broker gave me a quote of 2850 and I told her that wouldn't work, so she tried a different company.  I don't know if it's a good policy or price, but it allowed me to close on the property and I can always shop it around in the future when I'm not up against a tight deadline.

 I think this equals out the playing field for the red states ( I know this isn't a red/blue state or political thing, but it is an easy way to group the so called "winners and losers" ).  Under the current setup, the federal government is subsidizing the wealthy blue staters by allowing the deduction of their high property and income taxes and mortgage interest.  Or looked at another way, the states are subverting the cash flow into their coffers.   Either way, the better answer is to have local and state government run more efficiently to not need to have such high taxes, but how do you make that happen?