All Forum Posts by: Nicholas Zaharevich

@Journey Brabant

Welcome! My wife and I also invest in the TriCities. We love it over there. If I could start over, I would've used my VA home loan to buy a 2 or 4 Plex. Good luck out there!

@Kyle Jochen, Welcome! I am also in Pierce County.  There's a few groups, one in Puyallup and another in Tacoma. I haven't seen any meet ups from them lately. But there's another active group down in Tumwater that may have something coming up.  Meetups are posted at https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521-events-and-happenings?utf8=%E2%9C%93&period=future&zip_code=98387&distance=25&commit=Search.

Nick

@Duy Nguyen

When I get direct mail for my properties, I entertain the offer, but those who send the direct mail never respond to me. So, it just depends I guess.

Joe, my wife and I also manage all our own properties throughout Eastern and Western Washington.  Though we do not own anything within the limits of Tacoma, there are other municipalities that do require that we report that our properties are in fact rentals.  So we maintain a state business license and city license where needed. 

@Kavin Kuykendall Did you ever buy that property? I've seen values go up slightly in the area...really getting back to normal after a short dip.  My house in Waitsburg is all cleaned up now and bringing in closer to $1000 a month.  My next step is to finance it and get all my money back!

@Michael King, We've used Cozy in the past. You will get criminal history, credit reports, eviction history, and SSN number verification.  However, you will still need to verify income/employment, call references, and do a little analysis when you have all of the data.  

We used to use a local company that would make all of the calls for us.  That was nice because they would provide you with the feedback and even give a recommendation based on some guidelines you set.  

Now, we use Rentec. The background checks are much like Cozy.  We use it because of the built in accounting, leasing, and marketing functions.  Kind of an all in one...and comes at a cost, unlike Cozy, which I believe is still free.   

I think it depends on what is used in your area and what you're renting. We used to get a large amount of traffic with Craigslist, but over the years we've seen a shift to the Facebook Marketplace.  I post ours in Rentec, which pushes out to multiple site like Zillow and Rent.com.  I feel we get different types of tenants from each of the sites, so I like to blast on them all at the same time.  

Much like @Greg Jeanfreau, we use the exact same paint colors in all of our rentals. Interior and exterior.  We also use the same materials for flooring, roofing, doors, toilets, doorknobs and deadbolts.  That way we can easily estimate costs on a rental based on the size of the home.  Material costs and labor may vary slightly based on the location, but it gets us close enough. 

@Danny Sok

Danny, when I started out, I commingled my money. Just like you, my money was the rental money...my credit card was the rental credit card.  Also like you, I did keep the Security Deposit separate from all other funds.  So long as you are able to account for what is a rental expense and what is a personal expense you will be okay. In the end, it all goes on your tax return anyway. It will get more difficult as you grow, and generally it is a good practice to keep you personal money and rental money separate.  

Today, I have a credit card that I use for all rental property expenses.  I expense against each property separately to keep accounting clean. I also have a single account for rental income that pays all mortgages, utilities, fees, etc. What is left over I keep.  With that, I do have a reserve built up for each rental property, which took some time to build. But now, I get to keep the profits and manage the process.  

Depending on your state, there may be certain requirements on where you can place certain funds (like security deposits).  In the end, how you manage your business is up to you. There are several way you can cut it, and everyone will have an opinion, but do what works for you and change when you need to.  

I hope this helps!

Nick

Cameron, I'm not saying I'm the best bookkeeper, I contemplate outsourcing my bookkeeping every once in a while. But, if you're going to do it find what works for you. You can use Excel, but it'll be all manual with a small learning curve. I think of myself as good with Excel, but I prefer automation and syncing my bank accounts with a program.

I do use Excel for a static estimator. I've built my own quad chart and offer calculator that gives me a good idea what my cash-on-cash return is. I also use Excel to teach rehab budgets. But in all cases, I also have each transaction categorized in Rentec, which will spit out a Schedule E for my accountant, profit/loss statements for lenders/property owners, etc.