All Forum Posts by: Steve McGovern

Hi Jay--  

All good questions.  My long answer is that there's sadly not really a short way.  You need to have an idea of income and expenses, each of which can be trickier than we'd all like.  Here are a couple of shortcuts for you:   

For a simple down & dirty, no effort, there are a bunch of apps that can assist. Look in your phone.  

For a little more effort, you can also design your own Excel spreadsheet, and keep a template copy or three of them in your cloud. (e.g., one for flip, one for hold, one for rehab, one for wholesale, etc.)  Put it in (icloud, Gdrive, Dropbox, etc.) and then you can access it from your phone, tablet, etc. whenever you need it.  save under an address to preserve your template.  My bet is there are a few sheets in the "docs" section here that can get you started.  

Wherever you go, you'll have your answers-- and since you worked them out and created them, the results are presented on your own terms with your own biases and preferred analyses already built into the sheet.    

This is what I do, and to me, that's much more valuable than "quick."   

I can help you a little bit too:  here are a couple of "three letter-four letter words" you need to know:  BRA & ISD.  :-)   @Ray Hurteau nailed the numbers.  But let me see if I can give you another different piece of advice when it comes to these guys:  

On the one hand, Boston EXPECTS Zoning issues (setbacks, non-conforming uses, height variances,  etc.) because the land is so dense and land use is so tough.  On the other hand, the best advice I can give you is to TRY your ABSOLUTE BEST to stay within the Code.  You'll burn time money, and hair going through the BRA for Zoning approval even in the best scenario; don't make it worse by trying to eke another three feet of linear floor space on the  boundary.  Trust me, it's just not worth it. 

Here's a particular situation where it was too close:  we had an appx. 16 total sq. Ft encroachment into the setback in the shape of a very thin triangle:  a Point in the front, all the way up the building width, back something like 35 feet to about a 1 foot width and back again...  For a NON PROFIT in Roxbury...   and we had to purchase land from the neighbor and get it redelineated with the Land Court's engineering department because it was Registered Land.  Yes...   Something that small, that 'honest' of a mistake, for a well-known & respected non-profit, only into the setback...   and it went back through the BRA, ISD and the Land Court.  Make sure your engineers, surveyors, and GC are on their toes if you're building right up to the setback. Hold them accountable.    

I'm interested in your numbers, too...   I'd love to connect with both of you, if that's possible.    

Hi Lorenzo--  connect with me, I'm in Lowell.  I'm a Development Consultant, including roles of Agent, financial analyst and due-diligence specialist.  

 Welcome! :-) 

@Wayne Brooks, yes, that was my immediate thought, too...  but sometimes Private Investors can hide a little, in the name of keeping themselves protected.  Figured I'd float it out there.  Thank you for repeating my gut reaction though! 

 Jay,  Guilty as charged!!  But I also spent 10 years as a Real Estate Paralegal, mostly commercial.  I'm a title/due-diligence/feasibility risk-guy at heart.  Slainte!

Anyone ever worked with...  "Dr. Ronald Tucker" "Ronald Tucker Finance Company"   Maybe of LasVegas?

I'm seeking investors for a Multifamily/Mixed use,  10-20 units, Northeastern Mass, Urban, improving neighborhood.  IMMEDIATE cash flow (depending on Construction loan rate... but definitely year 1, assuming stabilization is reached.)   I am beginning to discuss this project with Tucker, but I can't substantiate his existence. 

Conversely, if anyone more-reasonably reachable is interested in investing or hearing more, I'd be happy to discuss it with you or your colleagues, instead.    

Like you're a 5 year old?   Two words, and without a shred of sarcasm:  BUY LOW.  

It's not always that easy, but that's how you generate cash flow quickly. 

Joe Kling (above) gave you a better synopsis than this, but the 5 yo may get stuck at REI. Otherwise, everything he said. Know your market's overall purchase to rental ratio, understand your expenses and charge it back to the people who actually benefit from the property: your occupants.

Quite an interesting thread.  Thank you, Brandon Sturgill, for being the gadfly.  

I come at this discussion from a unique point of view... and it's not wholesaling.  I request your tolerance while I take a long-way-around to describe it.  

I work predominantly with commercial investments. Sometimes they're urban redevelopment projects; sometimes they're relatively minor infrastructure projects. Seldom are they based in the Fee. They may take the form of a leasehold or an easement. They can also take the form of a sale-leaseback, an easement in gross, a license, permit, or grant. They may contain covenants for open space or for pervosity. Sometimes, it's an LLC (or Trust) with 25 different Managers (or Beneficiaries.) It may even be the Fee to a residential property... but one that's encumbered by a life estate. In my area, they're almost always subject to the additional police power commonly known as Zoning.

The operative word that I haven't seen anyone stress here is "interest." (...but if I missed it in these past 4 pages, then please forgive me.)  

In each instance, for each individual, the point isn't that "I own a property,"  it's that "I have an interest in a property."   Quoting neither Webster's nor Black's, this loosely equates to the right to control some part of the asset for a relevant portion of time, whether that control is executed actively or passively.   

Certainly, wholesaling is just such an interest. One (wo)man's Assignment of Contract is another's Ground Lease for a cell tower or commercial PV site.  So why shouldn't wholesaling be included here at BP?  

OK thanks-- I'll post.