All Forum Posts by: Mav Larson

Hi @Tristan S. I have a property right on King Street and I'm turning the top floor into a STR this summer. Can you also add me to your FB real estate group?

When I buy out of state I purchase all cash. When I purchase locally I finance the property. That may change in the future - not sure - everything is fluid. But my reasoning right now is that I can manage and stay on top of my properties in town and want extremely low risk assets out of town. 

In small commercial I have 4 loans through local credit unions and regional banks and I’d recommend finding the credit unions in your area as well. They’ve been so helpful that I never even bothered approaching the larger regional banks or national banks. 

@Rachel Lysak I just posted this on another forum! I’m much the same way - I’m very particular as to the kind of business that I want in my commercial units. I’ve had a lot of success by making connections at local farmers markets. I’d approach and introduce myself to the more popular booths and vendors and of course purchase their items. After a month of frequenting their booths, I would bring up the available commercial unit that they’d be perfect for. 

I always assist in the build outs but it’s also a selling point - “the layout will be built to your specs.”

I’ve gotten 5 tenants this way and haven’t lost one in 10 years. 

Hope this works! 

@Jeremy Christ I've done a handful of rehabs like this and they've been great. Communities and local governments love to see buildings like this come to life again. If it were me, I'd start a new LLC and come up with a simple business plan that involves rehab costs for each unit, expected rental rates for each unit, and your plan for the lower level commercial. To find tenants for the commercial unit, I go to local farmers markets and find the most popular booths, then start conversations about taking the next step and starting a brick and mortar. Explain your dream and vision for the property and try to create buy in from the perspective tenants.

I usually have to do the initial basic buildout for the commercial tenant because perspective tenants at farmers markets typically don’t have the resources for their own buildout. I also use this as a selling point though too - your store’s layout will be to your specs. My tenants also really appreciate my effort in helping them build their dream as I’ve never had one vacate in 10 years. 

I’d then go to the business lender of local credit unions and local banks and start discussions about financing. In the follow up meetings, you’ll again share your dream and vision with the banker which will be backed up with numbers that make the investment financially viable. My loans would typically pay for the renovations and would be interest only for the estimated rehab time. I would set my rehab time for 6 months, and then the loan would convert into a traditional loan at the end of the 6 month time frame .

Check your local community redevelopment programs to see if facade grants are available. These have helped me out a lot also. 

Good luck! 

I’m doing a cash out refi on a commercial property that I have. I heard on a podcast awhile back about there being an ideal time of the month to close. My current mortgage is due on the 18th of every month just FYI. 

I'm on the edge of my seat over here. Did you offer a cash for keys deal? 

@Bob Langworthy you bring up some very good points about the viability of a brewer - it needs to be someone who not only knows how to brew beer but also someone that can plan out and execute a profitable business. 

I don’t think micro breweries are a fad. People have been drinking coffee and beer for centuries - 2 industries that I know quite well. But Curves though!!! And whether the town needs a brewery, there currently is not one, but they’re in many of the surrounding towns. I don’t know - I’ll investigate more.

But the idea of creating office space actually sounds fantastic - that hadn’t occurred to me before.  I’d have to compare buildout costs, etc. 

In the past decade whenever I passed on a property because I thought it was overpriced, I’d later regret it for now they all seem like bargains. Some of that mindset comes into play here too. 

Hey All, Everything I read recommends investing in places where jobs are moving to, population is increasing, infrastructure is great. It’s true - these are all great recommendations. 

But counterintuitive to all that advice is a small, mountain town where the population is hovering at 2,500. The town is close to ski resorts and the redevelopment agency has just started investing a lot in the downtown area. The buildings in this downtown are currently a lot less than comparable buildings in surrounding towns. Because of the high mountains, nature, and skiing, most of the towns rely on tourism. 

Helping this small town rise up seems appealing but on the flip side, it also seems very risky. 

The plan: I’d buy a building, do much of the renovations and buildout including a residence, and then find someone who wants to open a brewery in the building.

Has anyone invested in small towns like this? I’m a buy-and-hold with everything so far so I usually look for solid buildings with long term cash flow.

Any input or thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

I’m not an attorney nor am I giving legal advice - but I own commercial real estate in Florida and I add sales tax to rent and CAM. If the landlord didn’t collect the sales tax from the tenant, I’m quite certain that the landlord would still be liable for the sales tax due on the commercial rent. Even if sales tax language is completely left out of the lease, since Florida law says that sales tax is due on commercial rent, the tenant would still be expected to pay it. This only pertains to Florida though.