All Forum Posts by: Sharon Tzib

Ah, Davis - ran a half marathon there - nice school!

Even though I've been investing since 2000, I'm fairly new to BP myself, just joining earlier this year. But this website can be used for all of the above that you mentioned.

Initially you should use it to learn from, and feel free to jump into conversations and ask questions (like you are doing now), so people start getting to know you. Will make it easier down the road if others have a sense of who you are before asking to partner with anyone.

The marketplace is where you go to seek partners. If you want a great example of how that works, listen to Podcast 29 w/ Dawn Anastasi - she details finding herself a partner there and the criteria she had.

Hey Theodore. If it's the guru program I think you're referring to, then all you have to do is search their name here and you'll learn all you need to know about their programs, especially the big buck ones. General consensus is anything over $500 usd is probably not going to give you the return you were expecting when you shelled out that money.

Good luck!

Hey Edward! I'm an Oakland/Bay Area native myself. I started back in 2000 by converting my primary residence into a rental, but prices were much, much lower when I bought that house and it was able to cash flow. Many years later, I bought a couple more rentals in Indy, because it made more sense from a cash flow perspective.

However, if I was where you are now and looking to invest locally, I'd be looking at the Sacramento/Roseville area. I hear there are some great deals there now, and market conditions are doing really well. It's only a 90 minute drive for you - check it out. Also, up North Santa Rosa shows potential too. Good luck!

Well, Chris, crime rate for one:

http://www.escapehere.com/destination/10-worst-cities-to-visit-in-the-united-states/7/

Texas still has great cash flows, healthy economy, excellent jobs outlook, and some potential for appreciation. If you already have one property there, it's doing good, and you have a team established, why not continue a good thing?

Not saying you shouldn't look elsewhere, but I'd be leaning towards SA if I were you.

Hey Kathy, you don't know until you try :)

And I was only suggesting using a SDIRA for the down payment, not to purchase outright.

If you don't mind me being nosy, Kathy, what kind of retirement account? I assume it's not a 401K since you're a realtor, so if it's an IRA, have you ever considered converting it to a Self-Directed IRA (SDIRA) and using those funds for the purchase of this and/or future properties (depending on how much money you have in there)? This could be done without penalty.

If you could come up with a down payment using a SDIRA, then you wouldn't need to pay more than this condo comps for, something which makes me uncomfortable about the deal. I'd hate to see you pay a $11K premium, sink $20K in upgrades into it, and then not have the market cooperate when you go to refi.

Ok, next questions. Where are you getting the money to make the repairs and later, to purchase the next property? And can you make the monthly nut without a tenant?

Kathy, do you have any sold comps on this property? You appear to be offering $10K over asking, which sometimes can be advantageous if your terms are favorable, but with a coastal condo in FL, could come back to haunt you.

You say you're going to amortize the note at 15 years, but only continue that for five years. What is your plan at the end of 5 years? If it is a refi, you need to make darn sure you have a built in extension clause in case you can't refi.

Does the HOA fee include hurricane insurance?

Have you ever rented a room before, and how will you feel about having your privacy surrendered on a daily basis?

Just some things that come to mind initially from reading your plan. Kudos to you for getting off the sidelines - better late than never as they say!

Hey @Dennis Treacy . This complex isn't distressed, as Brian has mentioned previously. The value add is via rent growth. Houston, along with some other large markets, are in for a perfect storm of low vacancies/high demand, which will increase rents, which leads to increased value. There's a lot of building going on in Houston right now to meet demand.

Hannah, the houses are really nice - great photos.

I would NOT assume landlords pay water/sewer/garbage. Where my rentals are, tenants in SFR's always pay. You need to find out what your competition is doing and do the same. That extra $115 a month is a lot of money (10% of the rent).

You haven't budgeted anything for maintenance, vacancy or property management. Even if you are doing PM yourself, I still budget for it whenever calculating cash flow in case something happens and you can no longer do it. So I'd take another 20% of rent for those things.

That leaves you:

$1100 Average Rent

- 675 PITI

- 115 Utilities

- 220 Maintenance, Vacancy & Management

$90 Cash Flow/Month

As you can see, if you are able to shift the utility payment to the tenant, you'll be looking a lot better. Good luck!