All Forum Posts by: Rob B.

@Leon Taylor - Hi Leon!

Welcome to BiggerPockets. I'm a Community Manager with a small startup based out of Chicago. While I'm relatively new to REI (1 year), my company operates in the #PropTech space as well and I've long helped my family (cousins, aunts) with managing properties and securing new renters. I say this because it sounds like you're starting out and I understand just how daunting that challenge can be (especially when trying to figure out where to even begin).

You're probably asking yourself questions like, what's the best way to learn about REI? Or, what's the best way to keep myself afloat as I just get started? Trust me when I say that you'll find BiggerPockets to be a great resource; it can help you when first picking your niche within real estate and then establishing a strategy moving forward. There are some other great resources out there as well (feel free to DM for more recommendations).

There are a lot of things you can do to learn about the industry; I don't believe it takes a degree or even working in property management; others might recommend getting your real estate license. Others might say work as many side hustles until you no longer have to, all while you continue to learn about the business. And none of those suggestions are wrong. Try to identify what you're good at, or identify skills you wish you had and start honing in on developing those. Before anything (especially before investing), it is so important to research so you can know what you're getting yourself into; pick your niche, and study the hell out of it. Pick your strategy and then execute. No passion needed, but no excuses either. Just be willing to commit. Immediate goals (if you haven't already identified those) should be to work on building credit and start saving for that first property. I hope this helps! Looking forward to reading about your future successes, Leon! Feel free to reach out.

Best,

Robert

This is a great question and totally understandable as far as just embarking upon something new; there was a great webinar last week that Brandon Turner hosted on How A Newbie Can Start Building Wealth Through Real Estate and the first part of it really addressed a lot of that self-doubt. As someone who is newer to REI and in a very similar boat, this was super informative for me. Specifically, he notes this "Trapped in Fog" concept; a lot of people just getting started often feel "trapped in fog" - no idea what's in the road; you gotta keep driving (most people in real estate have an "I can't see a mile up the road, so I'll pull over" approach; people stop driving because there's not as clear a vision; a lot of these people give up altogether). In real estate you can learn from the mistakes that other professionals have made, or you can make them on your own) - keep going! Commit. Learn & Plan. Shop. Analyze. And Finance. There are a ton of BP tools available and those webinars are definitely a great place to start (they're loaded with good information). I hope that helps. You've got this!

Kindly,

Robert

A lot of really great responses to this post already, @Tomiko Graves. I will add that you should get a pricing breakdown and save on the things that you can as far as rehab costs go; as long as you have a decent GC (check out their prior portfolio of work), they can make a good bathroom happen and should be willing to negotiate if they're truly trying to close this job. Again, definitely get that rehab cost breakdown. Best of luck! Excited to hear what you decide to do and looking forward to seeing the finished product!

Kindly,

Robert

I'm with Alex S. on this; loving the idea of a coin operated washer/dryer. There are some nice ones out there too which can help with any rental modernization undertakings, but again, regardless of the tenant, I'd recommend making the repairs as soon as you can.  

Hi Adam! It definitely sounds like the tenant has his bases covered, but make sure you have your bases are covered. I'm a bit more old school as far as my approach (DIY mentality; prone to fix most things myself). Nevertheless, if you're going to allow one of his connections to handle this, it could be a good idea to make sure his brother is a fully vetted contractor. Definitely at a bare minimum get the electrician’s license number. While the tenant might think he's saving money, picking the wrong contractor could potentially cost you money if the job is done incorrectly. Once you find out about the brother's license/contractor job reviews, decide if you want to let him handle the situation. Again, usually not too big of a deal (and I genuinely believe this tenant has good intent), but the last thing you want is any damage done to the rental for something that could have been avoided with thorough vetting.

@Adam Batcheller

Hi Charlie! Definitely a great question. As you can imagine, there are a ton of online resources you can use to screen tenants, but as far as process goes, it is completely up to you. My recommendation is that you screen tenants using a service which offers the full spectrum of reporting (job history, rental history, income verification, credit score, any adverse items as a part of their full credit history, nationwide criminal background check, terrorist list check, sex offender list check and eviction history).  

There are services which allow them to complete the application themselves online; some services even allow tenants to sign a lease with you online using the same platform (and offer other tools like online rent collection and managing maintenance requests). This takes the onus off of you as the landlord (as you can imagine, there's quite a bit of internet fraud plaguing the industry so the last thing you want is something to come back on you if you're dealing with a tenant's social security number / other personal information). A lot of landlords say it is a must-have (in case of legal proceedings) but as long as you have a copy of this tenant's valid form of identification you should be ok. Let me know if you have any questions about platform recommendations! Happy to help out when I can.

 Happy to help out when I can!

Best,

Robert B.

Community Manager

 lol that's a good one, Tracy!

Thinking through the process of screening prospective tenants, and I wanted to get some input from other BP members. What are some good questions to use during the tenant screening process? (ie. non-obvious, trap questions to utilize during the tenant screening process). Would love to hear your ideas, BP Community!

Evict doesn't mean demean, but at the end of the day, you have a business to run.