All Forum Posts by: Sharon Tzib

http://www.har.com/content/newsroom

Highlights:

• Single-family home sales rose 2.2 percent compared to last February, marking the first increase since September 2015;
• Total property sales were unchanged at 5,548 units;
• Total dollar volume increased 1.2 percent to $1.4 billion;
• At 260,872, the single-family home average price reached its highest level ever for a February;
• The single-family home median price was unchanged from a year earlier at $200,000;
• Single-family homes months of inventory climbed to a 3.4-months supply versus 2.7 months a year earlier;
• Townhomes/condominium sales fell 17.8 percent with the average price down 1.3 percent at $199,205 and the median price up 2.8 percent to $150,000;
• Leases of single-family homes soared 14.6 percent with rents up a fractional 0.6 percent at $1,688;
• Leases of townhomes/condominiums climbed 10.3 percent with rents up 2.5 percent to $1,545.

#2 is standard industry wide, so you will have a hard time finding a PM who will do it for less. Also, in Houston, PMs cooperate w/ realtors to find tenants for you, so half of that may not even go to the PM, so keep that in mind. But even if it did, it is a tremendous amount of work finding a "Qualified" tenant for a rental. Basically, the property is like a mini-listing, only it's not for sale. PMs still have to photograph it, list it on HAR, respond to all the inquiries, weed out the non-desirables (which there are plenty of, trust me), show the unit, accept the application, screen the tenant, prepare the lease, coordinate receiving the funds, and handing off the home to the new tenant(s). I don't think one month's rent is in any way usurious for that amount of work.

#1 is definitely negotiable, but the main purpose there is to allow a PM to quickly respond to tenant complaints without having to try to reach you and get your approval on every little thing. This provides better customer service to the tenant (never forget, they are your customer, this is a business). If, however, you find a PM that is constantly abusing the trust you are giving them by allowing this, time for a new PM.

#3 is also negotiable, but may be area specific too. I know for my Indy rentals, I pay 25%, which includes an annual home inspection by the PM at the time of signing the renewal.

Lastly, I highly recommend @Jerry Ta. He is who I refer all of my investor clients to, does a great job, and I believe has very fair rates. I'd take him up on his offer.

Most offers in Houston are made electronically and Option Fee/EMD is not due, unless the seller expressly requires it to be, until the offer is accepted. Lots of banks like to see a copy of the EMD check with the offer if it is a foreclosure situation, but for the majority of offers I write, it is dealt with post-acceptance. As a side note, also, most banks will give you an inspection contingency period, but they do not want to collect any option money at all.

Hi @Kaz Lawal. I work w/ buy and hold investors, and have been one myself for years. I'll PM you my details. Welcome to BP!

You are going to need to have reserves to get your career going regardless of which way you decide to go. It can take two solid years of prospecting, marketing and hard work to get really established in residential real estate, unless you have a large sphere of influence ready, willing, and able to give you business and referrals. I'm sure commercial has its start-up phase as well.

At first blush, your background makes this offer seem like a great fit for you. And the hospitality industry in Houston is booming right now. The convention center saw record bookings last year and project even better in 2016. 

Fred is right though. Only you can make the decision about what is right for you.

Hi @Donny Widjaja! I meet all the qualifications you are looking for except #1, but I've been an investor in other states since '02 and work extensively w/ investors in Houston, so that shouldn't matter much. Shoot me a PM and we can go from there. Thanks!

Haha, yes @Dennis Rodriguez, I see that from time to time, but mostly what I'm seeing is the seller's agents creating bidding wars and feeding frenzies by waiting 48-72 hours to present all offers. For some of my W2 clients, this can pose a problem, but that's why I do a lot of evening showings :)

Hey @Brian Pietraszkiewiczand @Tim Shin- I actually have a closing right now in League City for a primary owner occupant with an eye towards turning it into a rental, and I can tell you the competition down there is fierce. There is a distinct lack of inventory in the under $150K market (which is about the sweet spot for rentals), so the minute anything comes on HAR, even if it is in poor condition, it gets swarmed by all buyer types (owner occupants, investors, flippers, etc.). Also, there's lots of flood zones there, which can kill your bottom line. 

Not that I'm not seeing the same type of thing in the NW too. We had a tough time getting outbid when we finally found the house we did for Omer.

Hi @Iris Weeden! Welcome to BP and let me know if I can ever be of assistance to you.

Thanks for the mention @Tim Shin :) I had sent you a PM @Scott Heiman. I live in the Fairfield area of Cypress, so I'm very familiar with the areas you are looking, and if you are thinking of buying with an eye towards turning it into a rental (what I did with my first house as well), then that's a different conversation than just purchasing a home for your family's needs only. Reach out to me any time and I'd be happy to help.