All Forum Posts by: Ray Hage

Maybe for those large MF buildings, concessions and enticements make sense. But I believe for the majority of mom and pop landlords, it's not worth offering a concession. Just have a good house/apartment at a fair market price and you should be able to find a tenant without a ton of effort. 

Here is one potential example of a small concession I might offer. Let's say the 1st is on a Monday. If the unit is empty and the potential tenant seems great, I would let them move in on the 29th or 30th of the previous month since most tenants will prefer to move on the weekend and I won't ask rent for those 1-2 days (of course utilities have to be in their name, etc).

Quote from @Jason Xenakis:

Hello folks. First post. Happy to be here. My wife and I decided to  start out of state rental investing in Columbus Ohio. How can one, who has only rudimentary knowledge in real estate without any boots on ground experience (read a few books), effectively choose a real estate agent? We are both physicians and relatively intelligent humanoids, but without knowing what you don't know, it seems a difficult task. Is it about first impressions? The vibe? What are some red flags? What nuanced questions can I ask? Thanks in advance!

Like some of other posts have said, this is a tough scenario. I am both an investor and realtor so ideally, your best bet is to find someone like me in the Cleveland market. I would strongly suggest you talk to a few realtors who own properties in the market(s) you're trying to get into AND then fly to Cleveland (and whatever markets) to meet them in person. See a few properties with them. There are a few things you can do to see who the honest ones are like check to see how many properties they own, how long they've been a realtor, how many sales they have had over the years, etc.

Another option is to speak with other investors on here in the markets that you're interested in, get some info and see if the realtors are telling you a similar story. Maybe one of them has a great realtor in the markets you are considering. There's no full proof way to do this so you might run into issues. 

From an investor standpoint it is very tough right now as there are not of a ton of good deals out there. However, people still need to sell and others still need to buy for whatever reason. There is still money to be made but not via a turnkey property. In this market, people are have to be willing to buy a fixer upper (maybe just cosmetic issues) to force appreciation. I am also a realtor and work with investors. It's been tough getting them a good deal as well. The Fed will be lowering rates so that should make investments a bit more attractive.

Agree on all those lol! One thing I have learned is people don't have a problem wasting your time! Sometimes I wish we could charge by the hour lol. 

Another positive is that I would, as realtors, we get to work with who we want. Very few employees of any kind can say this. Being a realtor has also exposed to me to so many smart and interesting people so I fully agree with your positive #4. It's been an amazing ride so far.

Well done on the house hack! You did it to the max! I bought a 3 bedroom house thinking to do the same but decided on spliting out one side of the house, sort of like two separate apts and it worked out great! It's higher than the mortgage.

I would generally stay away from syndications or just put a small amount (vs your total cash) in. You don't have any control and you are 100% passive. Money can be made of course but you may have to wait a long while (3-5 years seems to be normal). You can make money at it of course. 

BRRR is solid but far more active so it depends on a few factors but mainly time, money and effort you're will to put in. I've managed a few renovations and it can be stressful and time consuming dealing with tradesmen and contractors. If you currently work an intense non-flexible W2 job, BRRR might not be for you.

Unfortunately there is a major risk to it if there is a lot of unpermitted work done. They're not necessarily going to look for it but if it is obvious or if they do an inspection, they may find some issues. For example, the house is old so if they see all new PVC plumbing in it and there was not even one permit pulled for that, you can be sure it's an issue.

Here in Hollywood, Florida....I know a guy that purchased a home. The previous owner added some square footage to the house without a permit. The current owner wanted to do some work on the house and inspectors realized that an additional room had been added and he had to deal with it. So I suppose, see if you can find out what permits had been pulled for the work done to your property. Then you got to decide if it is worth the risk to turn it into a STR

Quote from @Jonathan Pechmajou:

Team, one update I dropped the price to $4,700 / month unfurnished and got a tenant the next week. 
Thanks yall for all your advice. This community is awesome :)

 Well that was easy! Unfortunately (or fortunately) south Florida rents have been coming down. I am sure at 4,700, you're still getting a solid cash flow.

I have done quite a few PML deals mainly in Florida. I strongly suggest you have an attorney draw up the contracts (and one has who has already done this many times, as they will already have templates they use).

At the minimum, a lender need a Mortgage but I would also recommend for more protection, a lender will want a JV agreement, promissory, personal guarantee and if possible, to have the deal cross-collateralized with another property. Is it absolutely necessary to have all this? No, but it will be good for the lender. If everything goes to plan, these documents were overkill. If the deal goes poorly, the protection is there.

It's kind of like having car insurance, you don't think about it till the accident but it is better to think about it before hand and be covered if things go poorly.

It has definitely been slowing here in South Florida. Rentals are staying on the market a lot longer. This is mainly due to the large amount of inventory and still high prices (though they are trending downwards).