All Forum Posts by: Michael Davidson

You are not a fool. There is nothing wrong with trying something and deciding that you want to take a different path. At least you know what it's like now. That's valuable. I know quotes are cheesy, but I'm sharing this anyways:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” -Theodore Roosevelt

The flaw I see in your logic is this...who's going to want to rent out an apartment that has holes in the roof, water leaks, questionable HVAC, faucets don't work/toilets backed up (God forbid overflowing onto the renter below them), electrical is a hit or miss...thought I was charging my phone but hello this outlet doesn't work. And then you expect top dollar from these tenants? No, it won't work. There's a reason this property was offered to you. I mean just do the math. HVAC alone for 33 units is going to put you in the hole. And you think plumbing is cheap? Guess what, electrical is even more expensive because you have to cut through the drywall to run electrical, then patch it back up, paint it, etc. 50K ain't enough for all that I'm sorry. Not for 33 units.

I'm not an expert but I highly doubt that you have to be "certified" or have a license to be an interior designer. Licenses are required for professions with the potential to mess up BIG. Think Lawyer, Doctor, CPA, Real estate agent such as yourself....Interior Design doesn't fall in that category. As for schooling...skip the schooling. Why dish out money if you're already good at it? You seem to be pretty confident in your abilities so market yourself online and see what comes up. Maybe do it for free like others have suggested to see if you're ACTUALLY good at it. The reason I say that is because I think I'm hilarious, my wife...not so much. 

 Nathan had a great answer. The best thing to do with that $250K is not tell anyone about it until you're ready to pull the trigger.

First of all, I would never pay $250/mo for a property manager. There are just way too many PM's willing to do it for cheaper. Second of all, half a month's rent is pretty standard...but they should have a 6-month guarantee that if there's a vacancy...they don't charge you. Otherwise what's stopping them from just creating vacancies every month with sketchy tenants and getting paid $250/mo + the finders fee of $650 or $1,150 per month? And why are there always repairs? She didn't fix the place? I own rentals and things don't break constantly every month...so if that's the case with your rentals...might want to look into that. You need to demand those invoices because what if the workers she hired aren't bonded? What then? What if she hired her cousin to cut down a tree and a limb falls through the roof? I can already tell your PM and I would not get along very well.