All Forum Posts by: Rick Reed

Chinese investors? Can you elaborate?

I like @Account Closed 's approach, but with input from @Joe Butcher (offline) I'm beginning to see that my approach does not leave much room for any unforeseen big repairs, or costly delays.

It really seems like the smart move is to find properties off of MLS. Others on BP have said it time and time again, and from what I'm seeing in my surrounding areas, I'm beginning to see why.

Maybe deals exist on MLS, just in other parts of the country.

I like @Account Closed 's approach, but with input from @Joe Butcher (offline) I'm beginning to see that my approach does not leave much room for any unforeseen big repairs, or costly delays.

It really seems like the smart move is to find properties off of MLS. Others on BP have said it time and time again, and from what I'm seeing in my surrounding areas, I can't argue it.

Maybe deals exist on MLS, just in other parts of the country.

Thanks everyone for the quick feedback. I didn't realize it could have such a wide range of meanings.

@Joe Butcher I'm seeing exactly what you've explained around Plano. I began thinking I may need to look for "distressed" houses with a realtor that specialized in such houses to find something I could fix up myself. Because paying someone else to do the work eats all of the meat off the bone. I'm not looking to make a killing, just trying to get near 80% of market so that rent actually produces more than $150 month cash flow. Am I dreaming?

Generally speaking, what is a "distressed" house? Whenever I hear this term I think of something that sells for around $30k and needs about as much in repairs (if not more) just to be rent ready.

What major repairs should I expect to make? I guess I'm asking what the difference is between a total rebuild/gut job vs a distressed house.

Can I assume a distressed house is something that needs a lot of cosmetic work, but overall, should have no structural damage?

I'm also trying to get a feel for what a realtor means when they say they specialize in distressed house sales, and what I should expect to be shown when I say I am looking for a distressed houses.

Thanks in advance!

Taking a few steps above the balcony and looking down from the roof (flowery way of saying I see your higher level view and raise you one...) Does knocking off $20 a month in rent qualify as "beating my competition by a tiny amount"? If so, it's a LOT cheaper and easier than implementing, managing and maintaining such Internet connected systems. Just making sure I'm seeing the forest through the trees. ;)

It is an interesting topic though, and I can see some merit to remotely manageable thermostats and water leak notifications. However, check out www.getfloodstop.com. For less than $200, you can automatically prevent a HW heater failure from causing a flood. I have a similar system connected to my washing machine at home http://www.smarthome.com/71155/Onsite-Pro-FS3-4H-Washing-Machine-FloodStop-with-Straight-Valves/p.aspx. It has actually saved us from an overflowing washing machine on two occasions (long story).

**Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with any of the products or links I have provided.

Regardless of what technology is used, at some point there must be a gateway to the internet to allow communication from outside of the building. This means an always on internet connection. Such connection should not be provided by a tenant because the tenant leaving, or not paying a bill on time would cause said connection to cease. This implies that the owner of the property would have to maintain an internet connection 24/7 just for the occasional, on demand, connection. I could see that bill eating into profits with very little, if any, ROI.

I don't mean to come across as sounding negative towards the whole idea. My house is automated using Insteon, Elk M1G, and Linux (Mr House), to name a few, and I've been a network engineer for many years, so I'm a huge fan of home automation. I'm also just trying to get my first rental and have given serious consideration to some of the ideas mentioned above, but I just can't justify the additional expenses. I would be curious to see how the cost vs ROI aspect would be addressed.

I too am just starting out and wondered the same thing myself. I found a few PMs that process applications and take payments online only. I quickly dismissed those PMs because of the same concerns @Joe Butcher raised.

I'm beginning to see it's not uncommon for some of the better cash flowing properties in DFW to be in areas where most (if not all) of the tenants mainly speak Spanish, so it's something one must become accustomed to dealing with in such areas.

But I have to agree with @Steve Babiak. Anytime I have spoken on the phone with someone who does not speak English very well (if at all), almost always has someone around them that will interpret for them, or will call you back when they do.

Another thing to consider... Place yourself in the shoes of a tenant. If you were out looking for a place to rent while driving around, is it easier for you to immediately whip out your phone to dial a number, or to try accessing a website? Sure smart phones have internet access, but realistically, it's much faster to just call a number and leave a VM than to wait for a page to load on a phone. Most folks will just take the path of least resistance. Just food for thought.

Thanks for all of the feedback. I hate to see them having to go, but it's a business venture and needs to be run as such.

My realtor will add a provision to deliver the unit vacant which gives me a chance to make repairs, clean up, and get a more appropriate rent with a proper lease in place.

Thanks for the advice! So it's not uncommon to place such wording into a sales contract?

I did tell my Realtor that I would consider taking on the tenant only if the seller was willing to sell for roughly 80% of the asking price.