All Forum Posts by: Max Lichtenstein

Discuss with your CPA the tax write offs and adjust your W2 tax withholdings accordingly.

I had a house hacking client do it when she thought she couldn't buy and it worked out to tax savings of about $600/month.

You need to know what the tenant is paying. When you are buying a property with a tenant in place, you have the right to review the lease agreement, and verify the payment history. You can also require the tenant to sign and Estopple Certificate (which says the tenant agrees with the stated lease amount that the landlord provided).

If no one else is offering on the property, why not try to re-negotiate the price to a point where your payment (including what you receive from the tenant) works? The worst thing that can happen is they say no and you don't have a deal.

What's the payment? What is the tenant paying? What is market rent?

@Max Lichtenstein Great job so far and I love the energy. The relationships and team you're trying to build revolves around the asset you're trying to buy. 

What is your strategy and do you want to rehab properties? I guess you're aiming for a BRRRR deal, but keep in mind the challenges and additional work that comes with it.

You should be looking for opportunities. Unless you have a property under contract, or know these professionals personally, how serious do you thing they will take you? It's a relationship business. You don't waste my time and I won't waste yours. 

Every property has different numbers, rehabs, and protentional. Any real estate can be a deal for the right prices. I'd focus more on numbers and market research than purely building a team. You can build the team once your feet get wet. 

Quote from @Max Lichtenstein:

Quote from @Scott E.:

This is a loaded question... a novel could be written about the steps you take before buying a property. But I'll give you a rough summary:

1. Get pre-approved from a lender to determine how much you can afford (sounds like you already have done this)

2. Pick a neighborhood that you want to live in or invest in (a TON goes into this decision). As they say location, location, location.

3. Hire a real estate agent. Ideally somebody you know, or a referral. Give them all of your criteria (what you must have, what you don't want)

4. Start shopping. Realtor will send you listings, you will browse Zillow a ton, you should drive around and go to open houses

5. Start making offers. You might need to make a few before one gets accepted. Lots of nuances to this phase as well.

Once you get your offer accepted you enter your inspection period where you have ~10 days to do your inspections and make 100% sure that the property meets your expectations. 

 Thank you for this. The part that worries me the most is the budgeting aspect of buying a property. To get the numbers correct and stabilizing a property. 

Start running numbers on deals. Make a goal to run numbers on 5 deals a day for the next month. They don't even need to be in your target market. This is just practice. You will get good at it fast and you'll get a lot more confident in getting the numbers correct.

You are right pre-approval is first the most important. I would pick a budget, rooms, lot size, location, etc. Really try to get to a point where you can close your eyes and see the perfect house. At that point, find a good realtor that you can express what you want. Try to be as specific as you want since their job is to manifest your goals into real estate. As the realtor looks around for you, make sure that you pay attention to the market reports or upcoming houses that fit your criteria. As the market picks up during the summer, you want to be able to view properties as fast as possible so that you can get the best opportunity to make a strong offer. Once you find the house, you can make an offer with your agent. The agent should show you how to make the escrow payments as well as the weasle clauses, encumbrances, and more. 

I usually look for an area that has high appreciation. The average appreciation across the U.S. is 4%. I aim to at least hit that target year over year or even higher. Look for low crime rates, good schools, good walkability, and more. Niche.com is a great site that can give you a summary of a neighborhood that you don't know much of. 

This is a loaded question... a novel could be written about the steps you take before buying a property. But I'll give you a rough summary:

1. Get pre-approved from a lender to determine how much you can afford (sounds like you already have done this)

2. Pick a neighborhood that you want to live in or invest in (a TON goes into this decision). As they say location, location, location.

3. Hire a real estate agent. Ideally somebody you know, or a referral. Give them all of your criteria (what you must have, what you don't want)

4. Start shopping. Realtor will send you listings, you will browse Zillow a ton, you should drive around and go to open houses

5. Start making offers. You might need to make a few before one gets accepted. Lots of nuances to this phase as well.

Once you get your offer accepted you enter your inspection period where you have ~10 days to do your inspections and make 100% sure that the property meets your expectations.