All Forum Posts by: Robert Clifford

I have a lead on 2 cabins that are Short Term Rentals.  They are great weekend rentals during the season - typically a late spring thru early fall.  They're in the mountains in NC.  The trouble is they are not really close to anything.  With windy roads and distance, they're an hour from any of the towns in the area.  I can't "buy and hope" them until the spring.  I'm looking for ideas for ways to draw people in during the off season.  I see AirBnB doing offering experiences now, which seems pretty interesting, but nothing in this area.

Any ideas for drawing in guests in the off season, in remote mountain areas?

Thanks for the help!

I'm looking at my first Mobile Home Park deal.  I used the BP Rental Property Calculator.  I have 8 duplexes, but MHPs are new for me.  I've been trying to read and learn, and I'd like to pull the trigger on one.  If you have experience with MHPs, can you give me some feed back on expenses?  I have a great property manager that I'll convert these too.  Also, I plan to convert the park owned trailers to tenant owned, and may have to do some rehab.  I don't have that baked in at this time. 

I'm looking for a lender as well.  I've called a few and all so far have a $1M min.

View report

*This link comes directly from our calculators, based on information input by the member who posted.

@mike g.  No, I didn’t. I’m finding for me that it’s like I keep hearing on BP.  Call and call and call, ask everyone for lenders, and call and call and call. I think I ran across the one I used, 5 Arch Group, on BP, but I can’t say for sure. My lending profile has some weaknesses, but I know what those are. It makes it easy to have quick calls with lenders before wasting time. It also helped me practice my pitch, and also interview them. 

@Scott Morongell  Thanks.  Hoping to have a few more like this.  It was fun to figure out, took a little bit to execute, and now reaping the rewards.

@Account Closed - Yes, you are picking up what I'm putting down!  It was the same ah-ha moment for me, and why I wanted to share this transaction.  I still think asking about it in someway is valuable at the outset, or at least asking if the seller owns outright or something like that.  The answer can give you some insight into motivation for selling.

BTW - we used to live in Arlington/Falls Church.  You live in a fun area!

Hi Dolly.  I asked about seller financing on the first inquiry, and the answer was no.  When I figured out my offer, I presented it in a way that instead of financing 100%, or even 80%, he was only financing around 38%.  We set it up for a 2 year period, when a balloon payment is due.  payments are interest only.  I'll need to refi the hard money loans anyway, so I can do all at the same time, after a period for rehab and rent increase.  My limited expereicne in asking for seller financing, is when I ask, the answer is no.  When i propose something, they often are willing to negotiate if they own it outright.  I've not figured out yet how to present a wrap around mortgage in an easy way to sellers who still have a note.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Columbia.

Purchase price: $315,000
Cash invested: $50,000

Closed yesterday on 3 duplexes. Used a mix of hard money and seller financing to get it done. There's a good bit of deferred maintenance, but with a little rehab ($5k-8k) per unit, I'll be able to increase rents at least $100 a month for each unit. Seller has 2 more properties I hope to acquire next year. First step, transfer properties to new property manager, switch water billing to tenants, and make plans for electrical/HVAC and kitchen updates.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I couldn't afford the down payment to purchase all together, so by splitting up the transaction, I was able to acquire with minimal cash out of pocket, and included rehab in loan.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Deal found on MLS. They didn't sell last year, and I kept monitoring them.

How did you finance this deal?

Seller financing on 1, Hard Money on other 2 properties. 20% down on each of the two hard money loans, with rehab included.

How did you add value to the deal?

Adding HVAC, paint, and minor kitchen repairs.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I made the offer prior to seeing the properties - preparing to buy long distance (we're 1.5 hrs away). In the middle of negotiation, I low balled the seller out of fear I was paying too much. We were then stalled for 3 weeks. I came back up and got it back on track. There's also a potential electrical challenge - breaker boxes that were recalled. Working on a plan with electrician to figure it out.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Heather Listar is a trooper. She's got experience working with investors, hard money lenders, and as a property manager. She always hustling to find deals and working for her clients.

I'm from TN originally and have been looking at Chattanooga to do some out of market investing.  Please let me know if you have any recommendations for investor friendly realtors.  Also, we're looking to be in town August 4-6, and I'd love to attend an event, seminar or similar if you have any reccomendations.  Thanks!