All Forum Posts by: Nate Mur

Last I knew (maybe this has changed?), you are allowed to earn 500k married (250k single) before getting hit with taxes if the house is your primary residence for at least 2 years. Take your time, learn and try not to get too attached to the house. Living in is a stress factor but if you don't mind some chaos and a little mess it's great. 

Is the house habitable for rent? If you would have worded in rent would that have made her and her living conditions your responsibility to maintain at her benefit?

If she hasn't moved by day 35 she won't be ready by day 45. She's going to need a push by either a legal or financial threat.

Our first flip the seller left a drool covered growling pit bull caged in the kitchen. After 24 hours we told her she needs to get there before animal control takes the dog. Our lesson learned. 

Welcome to flipping! If you think things are weird now just wait. Best of luck! It will be worth it, this is just one of the many problems you will get to solve. 

Hi everyone,

Were playing with the idea of renting out some camping areas on a wooded piece of land. There would be room for about 10 tent sites that would allow use without seeing anyone else. 

These would be very primitive and it's not like it would be a big money maker it's just going to take another 20 years to build on it and this is about the only use we've come up with. 

Has anyone else done this that can recommend a host site? What is the liability? Do I do some ground work and make it so a camper/overland vehicle can use as well? What is the expectation for the host and campers?

Im up for advice, tips, or reasons to let this pipe dream die before i take it any further. 

thanks!

Sorry left out some important info. A few weeks back we talked about getting a contract signed with our realtor to sell our home, purchasing land before the sale and then buying another project house. I feel the phone call was expected and there are more realtors in the area than homes on the market. 

Hi all,

I had a realtor that we have used in the past for the place we're in now, and went through one more time with a deal that didn't work out. A few weeks back I had reached out that we would like to sign soon as we had started a process to buy some land that would be hitting the market within 60 days. (nursing home situation)

To shorten the story, we had to make some quick moves to get things lined up. I had reached out to get signed on with our realtor last Saturday, called again on Monday and didn't get a response until this morning. We had signed with someone else last night. Am I in the wrong here? Lacking patience? I would have preferred to continue working with the same person as they are very experienced with great resources but have no patience for unresponsiveness.  Do i try to salvage the situation for future transactions or leave it as it is?

Thanks!

Hi everyone,

My neighbors house has been sitting empty for 2+ years. He's passed, bank is selling open market. 2/2 otherside of the wall from my twin home. 

It's outdated but listed at "Move in ready" judging from the yard when we moved in, consensus of neighbors and listed photos it's most likely in good condition after some cleaning. 

The pros - sitting on market since April - they listed extremely above market and still needing to come down. 

owner would occupy the other side and familiar with condition of home (at least structurally on my side)

Great neighborhood, mixed value homes from 1980s, some being updated. Affordable due to lot conditions (small hillside) and townhome/duplex style layout. 

Shortage of rental housing available. Comps around 1600. 

Cons - no idea how to get there from here.

Is it better to risk the equity and great interest rate on my home by refinancing and putting the funds into another home mortgage, or finding a way to find a cash buyer to deed property from - possibly losing the opportunity but not holding as much risk.

This would be our first deal made on a house intended for income property ( we would eventually move into this side and use our 4/2 for the rental) the fear to jump is kicking in, not sure if this would be the right time or wait until we have some cash savings to find something...

Any info is greatly appreciated!
  

Hi everyone,

I have a realtor that I've worked with in the past that will most likely get my business on the next round. Every few months we connect, they always have answers to my questions -- help with market trends and strategies with projects, access to a huge network or professionals. That choice is easy. 

The problem I'm having is that on more then a few occasions I meet other realtors that are very passionate about the business. knowledgeable and overall just very insightful people to be around. 

I'm a green on the investing side, love the information and very new to the professional side of business. Do I make it clear to other realtors at the beginning who I work with, or save it for an awkward conversation down the line when I'm ready to make the next deal? Or is this just normal business?

Thanks for any insight on this moral dilemna!

@Brandon Zenisek

I was in a similar situation when i bought my first one. Had just enough saved to barely cover the downpayment. 

Found a house that only needed cosmetic, and picked it up low enough that there was some instant equity. 

Put a lot of sweat equity into it, delivered pizzas a few nights a week for some extra cash, skipped vacations...scratched and saved enough doing the little projects. Got a personal loan at the end and borrowed for the big projects.

As much as I can't stand debt, borrowing at the end saved us. Be careful on the loans and credit - it cuts into your costs on the back end. Your in a great spot with your resources and contacts, should be able to get discounted materials and knowledge from those around you. 

Good luck! You have access to more resources then a lot of people do when they start. Stop thinking and go for it!

Take a look at your assets you currently have, if any. I'm a huge fan of owning everything and minimal debt. However, if you have equity in a vehicle or other large purchases it may be worth redoing the loan to get some extra cash. Losing 3% on interest but gaining 6-10% on your real estate investment is an easy win. As long as you can comfortably manage payments.

Hi everyone,

I'm working on putting a marketable package together to offer as a turn service to property managers. 

Using numbers I have from cleaners, painters and maintenance hours spent on turning units - the cost is roughly the average price of one month's rent for a low end 2 bedroom. Materials cost has not been factored in yet. (Painting, parts)

I believe a lot of the cost can be recovered from the previous resident but I am not experienced in that part of the process.

I feel I could lower the maintenance numbers, and figure that I would still lose a few but come out ahead on average, but I also need to prevent myself from getting a PM's worst units and lose the easy ones. 

With a constant labor and time shortage - can a no touch three day turnaround be justified? Who provides the paint and parts?!

Thanks in advance!