All Forum Posts by: Mitchell Luban

@George Glessner Congrats on taking the jump and getting into the investing space. One thing I encourage my investors to do before really pulling the trigger is RUN THE NUMBERS! You should be running the numbers on a ton of properties. 

Do you know what kind of returns you want to get on your assets? What metric are you using to judge a deal? Cap rate? CoC? IRR? A lot agents out there and on here will just sell you a property to sell you a property. So it is important you know your numbers going into it and find an agent who understands space and also has a portfolio of their own.

Muskegon definitely has upside in my opinion helped some investors buy some stuff there earlier last year reaching almost the 2% rule. Appreciation isn't doing what GR is right now but it may be coming.  

So that is a bit of my advice I guess. Best of luck as you get started. This is a great community continue to stay plugged in and ask questions. 

 

@Daniel Lennon I used Cozy.co until just recently when I got past about ten units. I liked it because it's free to the landlord. It is pretty all inclusive. Allows online payments from tenants, allows your rental listings to be published to various rental sites, tenants can submit maintenance requests, it will store your listings (so it keeps your photos etc...), and it has the option for background checks built in that the tenants pay for and it sends you a copy. I believe it is $39.99 per person for that. 

@Brad Van Epps Just scrolling through... I have a few referrals for real estate attorneys if you haven't found any. 

Matt Stout with Stout Law at Stout Law or Jordan Bush at Alles Law. 

CPA's I Culver group is decent. But I have a few more referrals if you'd like to connect. As for PM companies there are several good ones out there and several that I would stay away from I have been an agent and broker in town for a while if you haven't found one yet and want to message me would be glad to make a referral if I can. 

Thanks,

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Grand Rapids.

Purchase price: $180,000
Cash invested: $950

5 bed 2 bath college rental. Purchased and rented to college students. Rents for $2,100. Property was pretty renovated when we purchased. Added laundry and did small punch list items college proofing it.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

The proximity to downtown and the rent we are able to attain is much higher when we rent to students and young professionals. It does require some more management but we have found with the right screening that it has paid off for us.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

The seller called us. She is a realtor and I had purchased a property from her in the past and had asked her to keep us in mind if she had other properties because we are easy to work with.

How did you finance this deal?

20% down conventional financing with Finance of America.

How did you add value to the deal?

We really didn't do much to the home its self. Like a lot of things in this business it was about who you know. We got the deal before it ever got listed thus getting it for under market value. We added laundry and did your typical punch list type things.

What was the outcome?

We got a great rental that will cash flow nicely for years to come without having to fight multiple investors and home buyers out to get it.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Continue to network and do what you say you're going to do people remember that and sooner or later you will get a deal not because you offer the most money but because you are easy to work with and the person on the other side of the transaction knows that you can perform.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I use Finance of America for my lending needs Blaine Marney is the lender I use! I am an agent so I handled my side of the transaction.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $138,750
Cash invested: $1,500

Nice 4 bed 2 bath downtown GR. Well laid out good size bedrooms. Main floor laundry and two full baths. Off street parking and a nice fenced in back yard. Flipped it in a weekend. Listed it for rent for $1,795 and ended up getting $1,850/month.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

The easy cash flow and how the property was pretty turn key. The property was also undervalued by the listing agent and made it easy to scoop up.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

The property was listed on the MLS. I made a strong offer and waived my inspections. The buyers were happy that I had communicated well, made a clean offer, and that I was also an agent.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional financing with a local lender.

How did you add value to the deal?

Didn't do a ton of value add. Just bought it at under market value and did some touch up stuff before we put it on the market for rent.

What was the outcome?

We listed it for rent at $1,795 and had twenty or so interested parties in 24 hours. We narrowed it down and found a good group of renters for $1,850/month.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I am a realtor as well as an investor so if any one is looking I think I do a pretty good job haha. But I also have a great lender at Finance of America his name is Blaine Marney if anyone is looking for someone who understands investment lending etc.... He also owns several of his own properties.

@Jake DeBoer I just decided that the furnace was getting old and could use a cosmetic upgrade. I had house hacked it and lived there for two years. So instead of take a hit on the capital gains taxes if I held it I decided to take my cash tax free and invest into two other properties. 

@David Kramer - It did turn out to be a good deal. I didn't do a refi or anything like that. I just paid cash to redo the roof it was part of the purchase agreement we negotiated. I also didn't do a 1031 since it was my primary residence from 2015-2017. So I didn't have to pay capital gains taxes on the proceeds. We are taking the funds and have another property under contract over by Grand Valley that is a 4 bed 2 full bath. We will use the rest of the funds to purchase another property or save it to fund a rehab. 

Have you invested in GR? 

@Amanda Krause it is a great area I continue to keep an eye on it and also wouldn't mind picking up a few more over there with the continued growth of the medical mile corridor and Grand Valley growing in the area as well. 

Thanks @Jay Kadlec how is your live in flip going? I can't seem to convince my wife to get on board with a project like that!?!?

Thanks @Amanda Krause. It was a good one for sure. Now to take the proceeds and buy a few multi-family properties! How is your house hack coming along? I really like the area and debated even selling the property!