All Forum Posts by: Nick Ferrari

Do any of you have strategies for 'Dummy Proofing' your rental property? I heard a podcast where one owner wouldn't install any ceiling fans, which I understand, but isn't ideal for my property. What else can you do? Fixtures with bulbs facing down? Formica countertops instead of tile? Any ideas?

Hey Bigger Pockets people! A couple of the homes we are considering have tenants and the possibility of evicting a tenant seems likely. Keep in mind we live in Pennsylvania so if anyone knows the state laws or process that would be great. In the MLS it says that one of the properties leases ends August 31st if that's true it would straight forward not renewing their lease right? Or are we subject to giving them an opportunity to renew their lease if they want it? As the new home buyer do we have the right to evict them immediately regardless of their former lease? If we Have a problem tenant what's the process for evicting a tenant? Cost, procedure, filing with court, expected timeline, etc.

I'm going to look into these. Thank you!

Hey fellow Bigger Pockets people!

I'm researching my county as well as local surrounding counties for some good properties to flip.  However i'm having trouble digging into the details on demographics for whether or not it's a great town to buy in.

Do any of you have a way to find information like?

Population growth?

Crime Rate?

Median Income?

Population Demographic breakdown?

etc....

Any help is always appreciated.  THANK YOU!

Im curious what you all think about what the federal reserve interest rates will be in the coming future. Personally I don't try to predict the market especially the Federal Reserve however this is unique we seem to be we are approaching the top of the market with how hot it currently is. In addition to this we are also already experiencing historically low interest rates and typically those two factors are opposite of each other. If the market does go into a decline conventional wisdom suggests that interest rates will go lower but with rates as low as they already are is this realistic?

Hey everyone,

So I currently am a rookie looking for some investment advice.  My wife and I are new to Bigger Pockets and are very interested in acquiring our first rental property.  Right now we live in our townhome but always have had the intent on holding & renting this property long term.  We've saved up a sizable nest egg and are prepared to live in our next home (although we haven't purchased this yet). 

My townhome is currently a nice home to live in the appliances for the most part are only a couple years old; we've done a solid job renovating the home and updating it.  However we could go further, the master bath & guest bath are okay but nothing special.  The kitchen has tile countertops, which we could switch to granite.  The basement could be refurbished. The gas fireplace is dated and could be redone.

My question is should I invest $5,000-$10,000 into really making this place look sharp?  Do these small expenditures truly make the difference in increasing monthly rent for a potential tenant in the future?

I'll preface this by saying we live in a middle to upper middle class suburb outside of the city.  With a local small university and a bustling downtown borough five minutes away.

So I don't watch a ton of TV but I wanted to get everyone's vote on their favorite fix & flip show. Personally, I'm pretty new at this so I'm looking for anything that actually teaches you how to do the home repair projects yourself which you can apply in life. Anyone have any suggestions?