All Forum Posts by: Michael Wilson

I do this - live in it for 1 year and then rent it out. Easy way to get started. I am 28 years old and just started living in the 3rd one. I do 5% down conventional and use index funds to save up in the meantime. Soon I will be able to get 2 in a year(one with 5% down and one with 20% down). House hacking would be ideal... haven't done it yet however

It took me about 1 year to save up and in 3 years I now have 3 deals. In the meantime try to find a mentor, read, listen to as many podcasts and books as possible!

Hello,

I am a real estate agent looking at moving to Portsmouth New Hamphsire for work soon. I am looking to find a small multifamily property - ideally a duplex, but also open to triplex and 4plex. Does anyone know market average rents for 2 br 1 ba small multifamily units in the Dover/Portsmouth area? Are there any real estate investors, agents or property managers around this area on here? 

I currently own a duplex and have 1 unit rented and the other vacant. The other day their was hail damage to the roof, siding, door, broken window and so on. I had an adjuster build up an estimate. I have a property management company and I live about 3 hours away.

Where I could use advice or tips is how do I handle this? Should I ask my PM to fix everything on the list? Do I get to keep extra cash thats leftover? 

If thats the case I could not get the steel door replaced potentially and have them fix as needed rather than fix everything.

I do not know what is allowed/advised and this is a first time situation for me. I would greatly appreciate any feedback/advice.

If you have it on a Saturday I will try to get the day off and drive from Dickinson!

I am looking for a multifamily property to house hack. I have a question regarding the zoning in this description and want to make sure I can rent out the other half with no legality issues or some "rule" I was unaware of. 

This duplex has recently been re-zoned to residential. Great investment opportunity. Large 1 1/2 story with full basement. New shingles 2015. New siding 2016. New water heater. Fresh paint through majority of the house. Use as single residence, rent the two units separately, live in one unit and rent the other - Lot's of possibilities. Property is now zoned Residential and is eligible for residential mortgage. Call an agent today.

Being rezoned as residential doesn't change anything with me being able to rent out the other half, correct?

@Ty MasonI would recommend using robinhood, fidelity, or vanguard. I would NOT recommend talking to a "professional" as you wil pay them for advice and you can just find a low fee index fund (I used VOO, which tracks the S&P 500 and Scott trench mentions using it in "Set for life"). They have a biggerpockets podcast with an investor who recommends VSATX which is similar too VOO but lower costs per share. 

It sounds like @Scott Passman also has some good insight and the same general opinion. I think if your time horizon is 3-5 years I  PERSONALLY would put the majority of my "savings" into index funds with the exception of an emergency fund, you will more than likely come out quite far ahead as opposed to leaving it in a low interest bank account.

I agree with Scott on this, it really depends on how long your savings window is expected to be. If it is 3+ years you may be better off with an index fund that charges low fees. You earn an average of 10% a year, but you may suffer losses in the short term and have to push back your timeframe. Additionally if you sell your shares before 1 year of the buy you will have to pay income tax on your gains as opposed to paying 15% when you hold your shares for 1 year or more. 

If your timeframe is less than 1 year I would probably continue with your 2% savings rate.

@Nathan Gesner When checking 3x rent do you do pretax..? I am just getting my first property and have no experience with that. My close date is 6/17 and I just received the current tenants leases today.

I just finished a purchase and sale agreement on a 4plex. I am planning on getting a regular inspection done, I might need someone to come look at the boiler, and I also want to get the gas/heat metered separately to the tenant. 

I am looking for suggestions on what type of inspections I should be getting when buying my first multifamily property. I also would love to know some of the first things I would do as my own property manager starting out as it will be owner occupied. I know that I need to review lease agreements and update them to my liking and make sure they are legally correct. I also need to make sure that I honor existing leases for existing tenants.

Any tips on my next steps in the process would be very appreciated. I am looking to minimize mistakes and maximize return.