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All Forum Posts by: Michael Reilman

Michael Reilman has started 3 posts and replied 67 times.

Post: Picking a market as a new Real Estate Investor

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37
Originally posted by @Austin Craven:

Hello Bigger Pockets!

This is my first post on Bigger Pockets and I was looking to introduce myself. I am an aspiring Real Estate Investor who is looking to purchase a Multi-Family property to House Hack as a first time home buyer.

I am from the Philadelphia, PA area and am contemplating whether to get started in Philly or Wilmington, DE. In Philly it appears Fishtown, Northern Liberties, and perhaps even Kensington areas are beginning to gentrify a bit due to the new construction of I-95. Any other up and coming areas in Philadelphia to know about?

In regards to Wilmington, my girlfriend lives in Delaware and we've noticed the new construction along the River Front and some new restaurants/bars popping up in Trolley Square. I also noticed Wilmington has a comprehensive plan for 2028 city development regarding mild restructuring of public transportation that may enhance the city a bit.

Does anyone have any thoughts regarding which market might be better to tap into as a new investor? Does anyone on Bigger Pockets invest in both Wilmington and Philly? Any insight would be greatly appreciated, thank you!

 Austin, welcome! Hope these forums bring you a ton of value. 

As far as where to buy, and as @Erik Hatch stated, higher % Population Growth, higher % job growth are two easy metrics that can be found at http://www.city-data.com/ Other things to consider are median income growth and rent growth. There's data all over the internet

I saw you mentioning "gentrifying" areas. I primarily invest in Cleveland, OH and brokers tell me everywhere is gentrifying! I have to laugh since it takes a personal understanding of the area if it truly is. I think 2028 may be too far out to consider, unless you plan on holding this property for a very long time. 



Post: Offering WiFi to Tenants

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Chris Shepard

Hi Chris, I hear you on getting ahead of the curve. Do you know if your market supports that? What are your neighbors doing? In the most simplest terms, it only makes sense if you can raise rents to make a return on that service.

In my eyes, i feel that this may or may not be worth it. WiFi service is based on individual need. What I mean is, if Grandma is living there, may not need anything great. But what if a younger person moves in and eats all the bandwidth because they play video games online? Which then causes other people’s Netflix streaming to be slow or stutter and make them unhappy. Do you have an option for people to opt out? Or pay the difference if they want an upgrade from your current service?

I feel like there are a lot of questions to ask. Not saying it can’t be profitable, but there’s a balancing act here. To be more cutting edge and up to date there may be better options. My opinion though, I’ll definitely stay tuned to this thread to learn and read that article.

Post: Experienced Columbus investors: help underwrite a deal?

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Ki Lee

Do you have a mentor or partner to bounce ideas off of? Do you have a criteria?

Post: what's the best way to promote a brand new podcast?

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Pankaj Sharma

I would say post on your Facebook, LinkedIn, or any social media you have, including here. Not directly but in your signature. (Not sure if something direct is against the rules, I’m sure they don’t like soliciting). Ask people to be interviewed and they will probably promote it through their network.

Also, with your own business, just tell everyone that you started it.

Also, at the very least post the audio on other sites such as YouTube. People could search for a question and if you have the correct tags or titles they could find it. Obviously if you can video the podcast so there is a visual but there are a ton of options with the internet.

Post: 84 Unit Complex- How would you structure the deal?

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Canesha Edwards

Hi Canesha,

Sounds like you are doing the all the right things, like working with an SEC lawyer.

A 70/30 split is pretty typical, so to answer your question, yes. A lot of deals today have a % Preferred Rate of Return also for investors.

Maybe your best bet is to partner with someone who has raised money before? Do you have enough investors to raise the money? If so, you’re only issues are SEC compliance and if the investors trust you can manage the property yourself.

Sounds like a great opportunity since you are talking to the sellers direct.

Post: High property taxes in Chester county, SC?

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Russell Buxton

Hey Russell, seek out a local Tax Attorney. They specialize in this stuff and can tell you pretty quick if you have a case and can appeal it or not. Especially since each county could be different in the details.

Post: Where to put money while saving for the next down payment?

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Thomas Mehi

Hey Thomas, I agree, keep it liquid. You don’t know how much you’ll need when the right deal comes up.

Also, think about this: how much are you really getting in return by putting it into, for example, mutual funds? I don’t know how fast you save up $30k for example, but let’s say it takes a year, you aren’t deploying all 30k at once, it’s 5k in the first 2 months and you’ll get maybe a 1% in that time, minus any fees. Also, you run the risk of finding a deal, checking your account to cash out and the market dipped in the past week, and now you don’t have what you need.

Just something to consider for you. I’ve tried to do stuff like this and it doesn’t seem to be worth the effort (or fees).

Post: I don’t know my next move

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Royjamain Etheridge

Hey Royjamain, sounds like you might have an opportunity to get into real estate investing pretty nicely.

However, there are some details you and your girlfriend need to figure out and talk with each other: are you both committed to this decision? Is she onboard with this as much as you are? Will you both be in Title if she’s buying the property or the majority? Will you apply for a loan together? Who will manage the other units? Is that entirely your responsibility or both of yours?

I can tell you a few things from experience that may help: 1st off, everything revolves around the loan, as in, who’s names are on the loan matter a lot since that’s who insurance underwrites for, interest rate, and some other items in the closing process. It’s the simplest to just both of you have name on title and apply for the loan together. Secondly, I’m in a relationship and my girlfriend isn’t as crazy about real estate as I am, meaning it takes more discussion and explanation for her to feel comfortable about decisions and investments. I dont know your situation at all, but it can get sticky if you’re not on the same page.

I wrote more than expected, but let me know if you have any other questions. Best of luck, house hacking on a small multi-unit is the best way to get started.

Post: New Member - Partnering with an Investor

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Bryan Morton based off your last comment, it seems like you need to ask those questions directly to the investor/family member.

What kind of return are you expecting?

Do you want equity or are you ok with interest?

How fast do you want your return back?

What role do you want in the management of the property, hands off or more passive?

What I’m getting at is instead of trying to come up with some structure, just ask them what they are expecting, if anything. If they have no expectations or have no idea whats “normal”, then you can present some options for them to choose from.

Post: Seperate LLC for each Property or not needed?

Michael ReilmanPosted
  • Rental Property Investor
  • Cleveland, OH
  • Posts 67
  • Votes 37

@Jeff Quinlan why not? It keeps your assets separate and safe from legal action. Also, creating LLCs are pretty inexpensive, so I think it’s one of the more no brainers.

But as Jacob said, I've seen portfolios where someone will put let's say 6 SFR in one LLC. I would stick to having each Multifamily separate though.