All Forum Posts by: Kevin Powell

Hey Stuart,

With only 20K for down payment I agree with others that 1-4 units will be the way to go. My wife(then fiancee) and I bought a fourplex in 2013 with FHA putting 3.5% down. The key word with FHA is intent. To qualify for FHA the property must be in pretty decent condition and can't have visible maintenance required(peeling paint).

Some Basic Financials for you

Purchase price was $330,000 requiring $11,550 down and we had seller paid closing costs. We collected deposits at closing ($1200), and collected rent ($3200) a few days later when it was due on the first. Without a mortgage payment that first month that allowed us to recover some of our down payment. 

After we moved in the property no longer cash flowed and cost us $170 to live there. Compared to the $865 in rent we were paying in rent previously we were still saving money while having others pay down principle. We saved enough to buy two properties the next two years.

Just wanted to share my experience as encouragement. Good luck to you and let us know if you have any questions. 

You can deduct expenses from taxes so why worry about free as much as effective? Is this the right tool for your business that makes you the most efficient? I think that is the question you should be asking. Your time is worth something, so learning a new platform may not be worth the investment. Dropbox pro is $15 a month so is $180 bucks worth the hastle of breaking all of your current sharing, learning a new tool, etc. 

If you are looking to change you may want to consider Office365. The product offers so many features such as Email, File Storage and Sharing, Licensing for Office Applications, etc. Plans range from $5.00 to over $20 per month depending on what package you select. The $5 plan includes 1TB of storage.

@ Travis - That was my concern about it as well. To be honest I was going to let it go if hadn't bled into January's rent as well and chalk it up to a $450 lesson learned. It was impossible to find a qualified renter in 20 days with Christmas and New Years. Now that I got a renter in place and looking at the big picture it's just hard to walk away. 

@ Nikolas - I have sent a couple emails asking him about the situation with no return to my calls or texts now several times. I can't imagine it is an easy job like you said. That is the job he represented to do though and something he entered into a contract to deliver to me. I will definitely keep this thread up to date so that others can learn from my experience. 

Thanks for the replies. 

Greetings Bigger Pockets! I have seen a few complaints about property managers on here and now I wanted to add my own. I also wanted to engage some people that have many gone to small claims court against property managers and had success to see if its worth my time. 

 I own 7 units in Minneapolis and was a part time landlord for a couple years. This past year my wife and I started a family and moved to the burbs. I decided to hire a property manager. A friend of a friend uses one and mentioned them and I met and signed up. $50 a unit and half a months rent if they find renters. Great idea on paper. 

We started having problems immediately. My tenants couldn't reach the company for questions, repairs, etc. They would get no response and end up reaching back out to me. The billing the first two months was constantly incorrect and I had to email them asking for corrections. I started getting fed up after two months because there was no value there for the $350 a month. I was having to do repairs myself because they weren't getting done and the tenants were getting fed up. My contract with him was month to month so I decided to take Property Management back in house. 

The icing on the cake happened in December. The previous tenants for one unit let me know they were going to be moving out and gave their 60 day notice in September. I let the property manager know to advertise it and get it rented for December 1st. December 1st he finally has someone sign a lease and hands them over keys immediately. Better late than never. After I confirm its rented I give my 30 day notice ending his services later that evening.

9 days later I get a text from him saying that their 1st months rent and deposit have bounced. I asked him why he would turn over keys without a cash deposit? That discussion went nowhere. Somehow he removed the tenant on the 10th. I have no idea how, and he wanted to remarket it. Obviously that was not a good decision as I had already put in my notice.

My question is around the lost rent I encountered for two months rent. I just signed a lease today and got a deposit for that unit starting February 1st. That is $1350 dollars of lost rent that this property manager cost me. Has anyone had any success with small claims court? Do I have any options here to recover any fees or damages? feel as though I had a contract with this person to perform a service and they broke that contract. I asked for the rental application from the two failed tenants and he refused to turn it over as well. 

Sorry for the long post. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thank You,

Kevin Powell