All Forum Posts by: Patrick Drury

@Dee Mandrekar

1- You would want to get a property manager, not a realtor for something like this. 

2- The housing authority decides the rents in the area. For example, in Columbus, we have CMHA the Columbus metropolitan housing authority. They list the rents based on bedroom count on their website

3- This depends on the housing authority. For the tenant to be able to move in you need to 
-Go back and forth and fill out HAP contract and get it approved by CMHA 
-Get the property inspected and pass(if you fail redo this step)
-execute the leases then the tenant can move in 

* Important note (you won't start receiving payments from CMHA till like a month or 2 later after you execute the lease. They will backdate it to the date the property passed the inspection. This is how they do it in Columbus, but I would check with your local housing authority to see if they do it the same way or something different 


 
4 - what all more is involved with Section 8 tenant than a normal tenant moving in from paperwork or procedure point of view?
refer to number 3 above 

@Vanja Dimitrijevic

1. Is getting a cash out refinance a better way to do it instead of getting a HELOC? 
I think a cash out refi would be better. HELOC's are good if maybe you don't have a deal, but want to keep the money ready to use and the property has a low rate that you don't want to lose. 

2. In this situation, is it better to get a property through regular means, look what is on the market (through realestate agent), or maybe go through a sheriff sale? We are somewhat handy and would not mind fixing up the house while living in it.
It doesn't matter where you find it as long as the numbers make sense. The better value add deals will typically be off-market. 

3. What should I pay attention to if i was to get a property in this situation through an auction?
Most only accept offers with no contingencies so if you're newer it's not the best investment due to the higher risk associated. You can find some diamonds in the rough don't get me wrong but if you aren't experienced enough to see red flags in the property/ transaction they can be costly. 

4. Is it better to get an LLC when I become a land lord to get some tax benefits?
I would just stick to buying them in your name. Don't get the cart in front of the wheel. Get a lot of rentals first then worry about it at a later date. If you buy in your name you can buy them with conventional loans as long as you qualify which have better loan terms

If it makes any difference and will better guide your answers, we live in Ohio.
Nice. What part of Ohio?

@Karl Kauper
I have had clients do 1031's and I have helped a client with a reverse 1031. The things that have helped my clients succeed the most were starting to write offers and moving on deals before the property you are selling closes. You still have to get past due diligence and that's where most deals get shot down. The sooner you can send offers out and get a deal in contract and past inspection at a price that works it will put you in a good position once that subject property closes. Obviously every situation is unique it's on you to check with your intermediary and lender to determine what price range would be realistic to start looking for deals in before it closes so you are ready to roll. 

@Sean Kirk
Depending on the market you are looking in if you have a good team sourcing off-market deals you should be able to find good turnkey opportunities. If you have a few rentals under your belt out of state and are familiar with how your team operates then I would dive into doing some value add deals as long as it's not down to the studs. 

@Dilini Peiris
I would not recommend starting renovations till the seller is out of the property. I would definitely push to get it vacant at closing. 

@Jesse Gaynor
Even if you pay $2,500 a month now in Rent that will go up over time due to the landlord having to raise rents. At the end of the day when property taxes and insurance go up, those costs get passed along to the tenant in the form of higher rent  

@Stephen Branagan
I would wait till you find some lenders in the market you are looking in then talk to a couple and get pre-approved. You could get pre-approved from a rocket mortgage online to give you an idea so when you connect with an agent in that market you can let them know ideally what price you would be looking in. I would just make sure to reach out to some local lenders shortly after so all the hard pulls get grouped together and don't impact your credit score as much. 

@Mike Farr
If you are going to spend 100's of thousands of dollars on an investment property it's definitely worth spending a few hundred dollars to make sure the title isn't clouded and you get clear and marketable title at closing. You can try to check the county recorder's office and see if that comes up with anything. Usually that will have every deed, quitclaim and mortgage recorded accosted with the property, but by no means is this a way to do a title search. 

@Nick Lanza
If you are looking in Columbus I recommend areas like Hilltop, Linden, Eastmoor/ Whitehall, and Franklinton. These are areas where you can cash flow in Columbus because the rent-to-price ratio is favorable. Out of these areas, Franklinton and Linden are seeing some of the most developments. With things like the ONE Linden plan in Linden, which is a 50M plan to improve the neighborhood. Of that 50M, 25M was allocated for the construction of a new recreational faculty that has since been completed. Franklinton has been seeing lots of developments like the completion of Gravity Phase 1 and phases 2 and 3 on the way. As well as coffee shops like Bottoms Up Coffee are moving in and small microbreweries like brew dog and Land Grant.

@Alec Jacobs 
It depends on the location. Look at properties up for rent in the neighborhood that are advertising for the rent you are looking to achieve. For example, if you are looking to get $1,000 a month and all the available rentals on Zillow have hardwoods for a comparable-sized property/ unit you would want to add hardwoods. If you plan on doing section 8 LVP is fine. Personally not a fan of carpet, but you might be able to get away with it in the bedrooms.