All Forum Posts by: Matt Wassum

Does anyone have suggestions for who would write a policy for me given I have let them lapse a long time ago?  I am actually in Southwest Virginia, close to Tennessee.  

Thanks!

Matt

Hi,

I am looking to get more active in real estate - goal is to get to $25,000 to $35,000 in additional rental earnings per year in the next two years to allow me to quit my day job.

I live in the Washington, DC area and work as an internal auditor.  I have a public accounting background / CPA, and have done real estate part time for the past 7 years.  I own a mobile home park, and two 3 unit houses in the Bristol TN / Kingsport TN area, a retail building and a few single family homes in Smyth county Virginia and some properties in Maryland, just outside of Washington, DC.  I did all of this with no real mentor and not even really reading any books on it or anything.  I am not proud of that, but I am looking to move to the next level which I believe may require me to learn more.

I don't make a ton of money off of all of my properties, but am working on changing that, and I feel good that I am not losing money. 

To be able to reach my goal in a short time period is why I am planning on becoming a more active member on Bigger Pockets.  I am hoping on making good connections with people that I can help / that can help me. I need to systematize a much more efficient way of identifying good deals, negotiating the deals, closing the deals, making repairs, and then renting them out using a reasonably priced property management company. 

I am interested in property in Southwest, Virginia, Tri-cities Tennessee, Washington, DC metro area (specifically Cheverly, Maryland but open to other areas as well), and Provo, Utah and Rexburg Idaho as I envision my kids attending school there later on. 

I also speak Spanish and French and love playing soccer and have 3 kids 5 and under.  I tell you this as I figure it may help me find like minded people more quickly that I may be able to help / that may be able to help me. 

If you feel like you may have any good ideas or anything that I may be able to help with on this journey feel free to let me know.  I will try and make it a habit to check back here.  I look forward to posting more detailed questions in the future. 

All the Best!

I guess I need to review what the legal occupancy of the houses are.  This is probably a dumb question, but where is the fastest and best place to look to determine that?

Hi,

I have a few properties that I thought would be really good deals, but insurance has turned out to be hard to get for them / really expensive.  I purchased two houses in Bristol, Tennessee and they are each split into 3 different units with their own kitchens, bathrooms, etc.  I have learned that insurance companies really don't like this setup and I have been charged like $1,500 bucks a year in insurance for each property which is a lot considering I purchased the properties for $50K and $80K, but they way that they are acting I wouldn't be surprised if they end up not wanting to insure them at all. 

I am interested to see if anyone has ideas on how to insure these types of properties in a more cost efficient manner.

Thanks,

Matt