All Forum Posts by: Morgan Scott

Hi Wendy, that seems like a tall ask for a person purchasing a home to live in. But then again the market is crazy and sellers are asking for it all. Not so unusual on investment property, but still a process and potential source of headaches. Because of the moratorium on evictions during COVID, the courts are working through some back log. Id recommend speaking with Kimball Tyree and St John. That is who handles my evictions. You can check them out at https://www.kts-law.com/. They could best help you understand what the process will look like. It could be as simple as an eviction, which uncontested would probably run about $2500 and take 2-4 months. But if tenant challenges it, or claims habitability issues, the cost could increase significantly. Part of the challenge is you don't know if the current owner/manager, who is managing the property, delivered all the right disclosures and has done all necessary repairs. This could affect you because you may have to send the proper disclosures or do repairs before you can even start the eviction process. I'm not trying to talk you out of it, but you need to first speak with a good eviction attorney, and have the money to pay for carrying costs and attorney fees. In a "normal" market I would want some type of consideration for taking on these risks and headaches. Make sure you don't remove contingencies and see if you can see the property once contract is accepted, before you put in your earnest money deposit. Not sure the seller will go for it, but I'd try. Hope this helps. Let me know if I can help out in any other way. 

Lance has a great piece of advice. Make sure you get pre-qualified so you know what you can spend. GIven the prices in San Diego it may be hard to get it to cashflow with such little down. But the right deal may be out there. I'd look in lemon grove, spring valley, imperial beach, and maybe Escondido. Happy hunting! Good luck on your pursuits.

Hey Bret, have you tried asking your realtor/real estate agent. Often times they know good contractors. You definitely want to find someone who you have a good feeling about. Good luck on the ADU hunt. The city is slow right now, but they are doing them. I'm currently working on a couple of plan sets.

Chris, You're going about it in the right way. Ideally you would like to have a sense of the type of work that the contractor has done in the past, and if you can get a recommendation from someone you know, it's even better! You could always reach out to the agent who you purchased the property from and ask if they have any recommendations. Yelp/Home Advisor can be a decent way to find contractor services with reviews. Also if you have your cabinets selected, often times the companies that sell cabinets can refer you to installers/contractors. I'm a general contractor and real estate broker. Feel free to ping me if you have any other questions!

@Dan Heuschele Nailed it! Technically the inspector can call out an unpermitted addition or any code violation. However, many inspectors are over worked and not doing a Sherlock Holmes type investigation prior to walking the job. If it looks out of place then it might raise question. But since its been there for 20 years and look typical, most likely you won't have an issue, and the inspector will never know the history of the property. You're inspection will pop up on their roster for the day and they will be looking at the electrical panel. You and/or your contractor should be directing their attention to the work at hand. Hope it goes smooth for you!