All Forum Posts by: Rob Carmody

Is there a way to look up previous Sheriff's Sale results? I'm interested in checking these out as a potential source for flips, but don't want to waste my time going in-person. If there's a database out there (or if it's posted to the MLS and tagged somehow), I could do some self-study before investing the time in going

I am looking at a fixer upper that is listed at $285K in the suburbs (SFH). I took the average price of all similar sized (4B2.5B), listings within 1mi, and within the past 6mo and the ARV that I got was about $370K. Usually, I also filter my comps to similar sized houses (+/- 20%), but this house is 2600sqft and the next closest home is 2100 sqft (most are 1500 - 1700 sqft). This is completely screwing up my calculations, as when you look at the $/sqft, the lowest is non-updated at $135 ($347K), then most are about $195-220 ($501K-$550K) and some even range $230-240 ($600Kish).

These are all completely different numbers... How would an appraiser go about deciding what the ARV would be (I'm doing a rehab loan so would need an accurate ARV)?

The solds data:

Price_x Sqft_x $/Sqft_x
540,000.00 2,394.00 226.00
449,900.00 1,900.00 237.00
400,000.00 2,031.00 197.00
395,000.00 2,067.00 191.00
390,000.00 1,834.00 213.00
381,000.00 1,790.00 213.00
380,000.00 1,900.00 200.00
365,000.00 1,733.00 211.00
359,500.00 1,218.00 295.00
350,000.00 1,759.00 199.00
335,000.00 2,490.00 135.00
335,000.00 1,794.00 187.00
330,000.00 1,352.00 244.00
310,000.00 1,560.00 199.00
275,000.00 1,500.00 183.00
255,000.00 1,294.00 197.00
235,000.00 1,756.00 134.00

I am going through my first BRRRR and have completed the renovation and am looking to refinance now. I had professional pictures done this weekend and have an appraiser coming in on Thursday. I've heard it's a good idea to leave your own consolidated research for the appraiser to see while touring the property. Does anyone have any good templates that they've used in the past? I'd imagine it would include:

-- Improvements done to the property, by Room
-- Comps and Justifications behind them
-- Before/After pictures?
-- Anything else?

 I'd imagine it's less about getting paid and more about saving on not paying someone? That's part of what I am trying to figure out here!

Thank you all for your replies. 

I am mostly interested in this for my personal real estate transactions, i.e. if I am going to buy a $500K condo every year for a Buy & Hold purpose, I can get $10K-ish back from my real estate license, and why not try and get another $5-10K back from being a loan officer as well. Additionally, I do 2-3 BRRRR transactions per year that I'd like to see these returns from as well. For each of these transactions, I'd be doing a conventional loan at 5% down payment.

Currently, I am NOT trying to build a list of clients as real estate is a side hustle for me. 

I am no expert when it comes to solar, but I have seen some retailers advertising 0% down payment and low (0.49%) interest rates for solar panel installation in the area. When I think about both the appraisal + utility cost savings, it makes sense to me that this could be worth the investment.  Does anyone have any experience with this? Good idea? Bad idea? What should I be considering (like I said, this is a new idea for me)?

If I am dual licensed and act as my own Buyer's agent as well as Loan Officer at closing, would I receive both commissions (3-6% in total) for each scenario below? 
-- Purchasing a Primary Residence (Conventional)
-- Purchasing an Investment Property (Conventional)
-- Representing a friend/family member as both their agent and loan officer in a purchase (FHA or Conventional)
-- Representing a friend/family member as both their agent and loan officer in a sale (FHA or Conventional)

I'm in IL if that matters.

First and foremost, I know that estimating the market value can be a combination of and art and science. But I'd like to understand how most people find adequate comps when looking at a property (in this case, a SFH). What I've been doing to-date is looking at all RE that has been sold with the same attributes:

-- Same type (condo vs SFH vs MFH)
-- Within 0.25mi, 0.5mi, 0.75mi, 1mi (expand where necessary)
-- Same XBXB setup
-- +/- 20% sqft 
-- Sold within the past 3mo, 6mo, 1 year (expand where necessary)

I've heard of people calculating the $/sqft and using that to create an estimate, I've heard of people using same # bathrooms but ignoring bedrooms, I've heard of people prioritising Distance away vs. Sale Date and the opposite. 

What are your thoughts? How do you weigh what criteria is the most important when the results in the different scenarios can vary immensely. When do you expand your search and which levers do you expand first?

I have the IL Real Estate Exam scheduled for next week, but found a home that I'd like to put an offer on ASAP.  If I don't use an agent on my side, pass the exam, get my license, and get sponsored by a brokerage all before the closing date (but after going under contract), would I receive the buyers agent commission?

Flip & BRRRR preferred -- how would I gain access to off market properties without a license?