Skip to content
×
PRO
Pro Members Get Full Access!
Get off the sidelines and take action in real estate investing with BiggerPockets Pro. Our comprehensive suite of tools and resources minimize mistakes, support informed decisions, and propel you to success.
Advanced networking features
Market and Deal Finder tools
Property analysis calculators
Landlord Command Center
$0
TODAY
$69.00/month when billed monthly.
$32.50/month when billed annually.
7 day free trial. Cancel anytime
Already a Pro Member? Sign in here
Pick markets, find deals, analyze and manage properties. Try BiggerPockets PRO.
x
All Forum Categories
All Forum Categories
Followed Discussions
Followed Categories
Followed People
Followed Locations
Market News & Data
General Info
Real Estate Strategies
Landlording & Rental Properties
Real Estate Professionals
Financial, Tax, & Legal
Real Estate Classifieds
Reviews & Feedback

All Forum Posts by: Randall Brooks

Randall Brooks has started 3 posts and replied 26 times.

Str’s are riskier and much more involved than ltr’s. Even if using a pm you’ll typically pay more for str management than ltr management.


With that said…. when I finished a large renovation on my duplex and was ready to refi I searched for and found a tenant who only needed a place to rent for a couple months. Signed a month to month lease and took the lease and the first months rent to the bank. We ended up opting for a heloc but two months later converted the duplex to an str. 

Post: Estimate Sample for garage conversion

Randall BrooksPosted
  • Posts 26
  • Votes 26

Bruce is correct. Far too many variables- I’m wrapping up a garage conversion adu right now for a customer and the permitting process was a bear. Took a little over 5 months from first submission to final approval from the city. We will land at roughly 26k in materials for this project… a 14’x26’ garage. Labor will vary depending on the scope of work.

Quote from @Jill F.:
I loathe galvanized supply lines. Akron has very old housing stock with a sh*t ton of galvanized plumbing. If you have a problem, plumbers here never want to touch (and won't warranty work on) galvanized supply lines because they don't want to be responsible if it starts leaking when they jostle it around working on a repair. We had leaks in the middle of a pipe underneath kitchen base cabinet once. I also hate 100 year old cast iron stacks.

If most people saw what the inside of their galvanized pipes looked like in their house they'd immediately stop drinking the water haha. There is a reason anytime they do work that shakes the ground up the water runs reddish brown.
Quote from @Scott Mac:

What is the rationale for not using the flexible plastic pipe with the shark bite fittings???


We avoid the sharkbite press on fittings as they're known to leak. They are allowable per code here but are generally looked at as temporary solutions and to be honest you can get a ring crimper for the price of about 4 or 5 press on fittings... thus cheaper and more durable/leak free to go the crimp ring route.. Sharkbite did release a new reinforced press on fitting but I don't yet trust it enough to use one behind a wall.

Plumbers in my area also prefer plastic fittings over brass due to hard water although I have yet to see a brass fitting fail locally.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10383875/

We could probably go back and forth all day haha. I should have said "to much copper" which much like salt, is essential, but to much can cause health issues. Copper poisoning has been correlated to copper water lines.

Also... Love the meme hahaha

Quote from @Account Closed:
Quote from @Randall Brooks:
Quote from @Thomas S.:

I do all my own plumbing so can not comment on pricing. I have not used copper for at least 6 years at this point in time. Would not use anything but Pex and in your case would hold off replacing the plumbing for now if there is any possibility of codes changing in the next few years to allow PEX. 

No way I would be installing copper at this point in time.


Absolutely agree. I do my own plumbing as well and would never use copper. It's crazy to me pex isn't allowed in Chicago. Unless you're in a rush I'd wait to see if they allow pex as it's much cheaper and a lot easier to work with. As a side note... I've worked on repairing two houses this year that had small fires and both of them were saved because the pex lines melted and sprayed the fires down. These were my first two fire rehabs ever and I find it interesting that melted pex was credited for saving both of them.
Plastic leaches chemicals into the water, copper does not.

I discussed this with a plumber once. I agree that's true but kind of a mute point imo... if you're concerned with the pex leaching chemicals then you should be concerned with the piping that city water travels in before reaching your pex lines and the quality of the city tap water in general.... as well as anything you drink that's bottled and any food that's bagged in plastic even those labelled as food safe which have been shown to leach chemicals. If the copper makes you feel better then use it, plumbers in my area pipe their own houses in pex and only care for copper because they make more on material upcharge and labor to install.

As a side note- acidic water breaks down copper, which ingesting can cause health issues, and can cause pinholes in copper piping. It's not perfect either... but the fact that we are able to get water into a house and waste out, is in itself, pretty awesome.

Post: 1002 Valerie Ct

Randall BrooksPosted
  • Posts 26
  • Votes 26

Hey @Jordan Clemans. Great to see another Moscow local on here. As of right now the plan is to get a home equity loan once rehab is complete and pay off HELOC. Which would put us in a position again to use the HELOC for another project.

However... My wife is falling in love with the idea of living in the new house. We currently live in an owner occupied duplex we just finished a massive rehab on. Currently STR'ing the other side.... We may declare this new house as our primary and begin renting the side we are currently living in. Financial plan would stay the same if we go this route as we will be adding a rental either way.

Quote from @Thomas S.:

I do all my own plumbing so can not comment on pricing. I have not used copper for at least 6 years at this point in time. Would not use anything but Pex and in your case would hold off replacing the plumbing for now if there is any possibility of codes changing in the next few years to allow PEX. 

No way I would be installing copper at this point in time.


Absolutely agree. I do my own plumbing as well and would never use copper. It's crazy to me pex isn't allowed in Chicago. Unless you're in a rush I'd wait to see if they allow pex as it's much cheaper and a lot easier to work with. As a side note... I've worked on repairing two houses this year that had small fires and both of them were saved because the pex lines melted and sprayed the fires down. These were my first two fire rehabs ever and I find it interesting that melted pex was credited for saving both of them.

Post: Choosing a HELOC

Randall BrooksPosted
  • Posts 26
  • Votes 26

Just went through this process myself and opted for a HELOC. I wanted access to the funds but didn't want to pay if I didn't use them... it gave me flexibility and allowed be to be patient when looking for deals. I like the idea of interest only payments as well, which my CU allows for 10 years before it amortizes. We just bought a house in cash using the HELOC and will fund most of the rehab with the HELOC as well. When rehab is finished and the house is rented I plan on getting a home equity loan on it to pay the HELOC off and be in a position again to find another deal.

Post: 1002 Valerie Ct

Randall BrooksPosted
  • Posts 26
  • Votes 26

@Andrew Freed I did a material estimate and on the high side I expect to put around 38k into the rehab. All in I expect to be under 260k and with comparable comps from this area I'd hope to appraise in the 330-350k range once finished. Neighbors house just listed for 380k and one block over a house just listed for 417k. With the partial garage conversion I'll have more living space than the house listed at 380k which is a bit outdated itself.

As far as projected STR income airdna says this would produce 60k/yr. Airdna has been fairly accurate for our other STR which is averaging close to 3k/month this year with the peak STR season being fall as we're located near two universities (football season). This will have one more bed and bath which will bring a higher nightly rate but I'd be happy if it performed as well as our current STR.