All Forum Posts by: Rick Wang

Not all planks are vinyl, but the vinyl ones have some advantages- 1, they are not destroyed by moisture, and 2. they can take some imperfections in the floor without causing squeeks or damage.  Carpets feel warmer, and actually can take some more abuse than flooring.  If your using commerical grade carpet (i.e. not high pile) you need to clean the carpet every so often- like every 4-6 months, you should use a carpet cleaner. But this depends on the tenant of course.

actually the most profitable way for you to do it (it sounds like you might be single) is to rent out half, and be a minimalist; keep most of your personal belongings in a storage facility (or locked in the basement if avaliable) and just "disappear" for a few days if an air BNB customer books. 

There is always so much to learn, which seems area specific. In my area, you don't get much bnb action unless you are super cheap or close to the city, which becomes real competitive with airport hotel/motel. 

Theres only a few houses that I can think of that fit where described. Neither are in great areas, but is actually still a decent deal for nyc.

Anyone ever have the heating costs split between two units? Other than "splitting" the bill arbitrarily,  has anyone ever installed a time of use meter to bill the associated cost accordingly?

Your in cali, I don't know your ambient temperatures, but if its condensation, check the following:

Leaks, cracks, plumbing issues, bathing, cooking, etc.

a FLIR camera and a FLIR moisture meter works wonders in tracking down this issue. IT costs money, but so does mold.

sounds really good.. but depends on the value of the place, as well as overhead costs. Always do this calculation against standard institution loan pricing for a loan. 

That may be what it is like down there, but up here, projects take so long that people were still building in 2008. People also didn't stop maintaining. 

You don't have to have money "set aside"- but you do need to have access to instant credit (i.e. credit cards), and the ability to pay those off (i.e. a ready to go equity loan). 

Risk management is variable for everyone's level of exposure, but having money aside in cash is a great idea, but holding onto too much cash reserve means your money is sitting idle. the equity loan and credit can be your bridge into the larger numbers.

I don't think thats a rule in my neck of the woods. You could technically live off grid with solar

The first deal? The hardest deal making is the leap of faith. 

If you look at those (myself included) who passed on deals because they didn't meet a stringent criteria, just about every single one would have made me money.

Eventually, you figure out if your in it for the long haul, a 5% price difference isnt significant at all