All Forum Posts by: Phil Morgan

I have a tenant in one of my duplexes in Parma that I reduce his rent $50 a month for lawn care and snow removal.  He has been incredible and I have started paying him (taking it off the rent) to do other building maintenance at this and another building I have in the area.  When you find a good person take care of them, they are not easy to find.  

I cut the grass at another property (duplex) in Old Brooklyn that I can stop on my way home every other week from work.  The yard is so small I can get it cut and weed whacked in about 15mins so it's not worth it to have someone else do it at this point.  If I get a tenant in either unit that I would trust do to it I will eventually hand it off.  In the meantime I don't mind doing it myself, it gives me a chance to check out the property and see if there is anything strange going on.  

In the process of closing on an 8 unit that I will have a landscaping company due the lawn and snow removal.  Too big for a tenant to tackle with basic equipment.  Have not gotten prices yet but I will be calling around in the next couple weeks.

 Thanks James, this is exactly the information I was looking for.

Great post! You do some incredible work, the after pictures look amazing!  Looks like you learned a lot of lessons on this project and I have taken many notes to hopefully prevent me from making the same.  Thank you for sharing this story and congrats on making a nice profit after all the headaches!

I am wondering if anyone can give me some insight into cap rates on larger buildings in different areas around north eastern Ohio.  I am looking for larger buildings, 12 plus units, and am trying to grasp the different cap rates in A, B and C neighborhoods.  I know there are slightly lower cap rates in more desirable areas but how big is this gap?  When looking at Lakewood vs Wadsworth or Medina.  I would love to hear from someone who has experience with larger properties in these kind of areas and what cap rates I should be using when evaluating deals.  Thanks 

Off market is the way to go if you can find them. 

I have moved on to look for bigger deals and am currently looking for 12+ unit buildings in B or better areas.  I have been noticing the same trend in the larger commercial market as well.  People are asking for the stars on these buildings.  Most asking prices are laughable around here.

The issue is people are overpaying for properties.  I bid on 5 places in Parma, within days of the listing going live,with a very reasonable price and was the lowest bid every time.  I ended up looking in Old Brooklyn instead because places were going for a reasonable price. I do love Parma and love my property there but it does not make sense to overpay just to get the deal.  Even Old Brooklyn is getting competitive though.  I put in a bid 3 days after the listing went live and only got it because I made a full price offer.  There were at least 2 other bids that day as well.  NE Ohio is hot so it just something you have to get used to.

I got my law degree from Harvard. Just kidding, I never want to college :)  College is great for some people but not everyone.  Some people learn better from trial by fire.

Welcome!  I think it's going to be pretty tough finding a 2% property in most of these areas unless you are buying an extremely distressed place and renovating it.  If you are handy and can do some of this work yourself than you may have a good business plan.  A lot of these subburbs are going for around 1% or less.  Good luck in your search!