All Forum Posts by: Robert Tucker

@Rich Bultema, Yeah, well that's the way it goes sometimes. lol. No worries. Because last minute snow removal services aren't easy to come by in my area, and I needed to have someone come plow during the rest of the winter, I ended up paying them both so I wouldn't be listed as a non-paying customer. :( 

@Darius Ogloza Very good point. I think being my first real attempt at this new type of business just comes with a bit of the "fear of the unknown". I'm going to keep it and stick with it. Heck, what's the alternative? Be stuck just like most other people in the rat race, answering to someone else and making someone else rich? No thanks. :)

@Darius Ogloza: I would have positive cash flow if the bottom was rented. That's actually the plan in the future. Essentially live mortgage free (or close to it) via house hacking the top floor. Save up, buy another place, then rent out the bottom floor when I move. Estimated cash flow with both floors rented would be $500-$700 per month (conservatively) depending on market trends (which is also my big argument for keeping it). 

@Michele Z.: I'm actually living in the bottom half now. There's 2 bedrooms on the downstairs and 3 in the top. I have to get a shower and a small kitchen area put in downstairs before they can truly be 2 independent units. Right now, the two floors share a kitchen and a shower. 

Also, I didn't even realize that there was a military section here on BP! And I will check out ADPI as well. 

So far Im hearing a couple basic responses. 1: How the heck did I qualify for the loan? lol 2: Why not stay and rent it?

What Im specifically not hearing is "Cut bait and run as fast as you can. And never do that again!", if I'm reading these comments correctly. 
Is this type of thing something that all newbies experience from time to time? Like, maybe its just the fear of the unknown that I have to work past in order to escape the 9-5 rat-race?

@James Galla PITI is 53% of my income from my income without the top floor rented (I made a calculation error in my original post, will edit it). PITI is 23% with the top floor rented. And I'm not so much worried about more work due to shorter stays. Actually part of the plan originally was to rent rooms due to the high concentration of colleges in the area. My stress is coming from not having systems in place already, and all of a sudden its catching up with me. I didn't even know Bigger Pockets existed until after I bought the house. It was actually Brandon Turner's "The Audiobook on Rental Property Investing" and then " The Audiobook on Managing Rental Properties" that made me realize I had a lot to learn! (understatement of the century, I know).

@Bill B. It was a local mortgage lender and they immediately sold the mortgage to some big national company. And to clarify (as in response to James Galla) PITI is about 53% of my monthly income (when the top floor is not rented). I'm 90% sure that the tenant is looking for a way out. I've been renting to him since November and he's already having trouble paying the rent and is asking for modifications like bi-weekly rent payments which I don't really want to deal with, and I don't see how it will help him because the total dollar amount is still $1200.

Also, I took full advantage of the VA loan and did not put any money down... I am seeing now that that was a mistake. Its probably a good idea to find a local property manager like you suggested. Thank you. As it is, I'm pretty sure it will be what Brandon Turner refers to as a "False Positive House Hack".

Ok. So I bought a house I was renting the lower half of because I didnt want to move again. This was before I started researching house hacking strategies. With it rented, the mortgage (PITI) is a little under 25% of my monthly income. Without the top floor rented, it's a little over 75%. The loan was my first VA home loan for $268000. Closing was 31 October 2019.

Question: Stay and rent it, or get out fast? I'm concerned about not being able to rent it steadily, and the financial burden during vacancies, which I have coming up in a month or so.

Would it be smarter to get out of it and buy a regular SF home that is about 25% of my monthly income, then save and look for a better deal?

If that's the case, what is the best way to get out of it so soon?

Thank you for any assistance. I wish I knew then what I knew now about getting and having systems in place before I bought this place.

Again, thanks for any advice.

Here's an interesting one: After the last snow storm a few days ago, my tenant told me my snow blower wasn't starting. So, I hop online and call a few companies that do snow plowing. I get ahold of one (Contractor 1), and the receptionist says that they are full on contracts for the season but she'll call her boss and see if they can squeeze my driveway in, and she'll call back to confirm or deny. Thankful for her great customer service, I thanked her and hung up. This was mid-morning on 1 January 2020. The rest of the day went by and at around 8pm I got a message from another plowing company (Contractor 2) who said he could fit it in around 3pm on the next day. Thinking that the other company forget to call, I gave him the go-ahead.

January 2nd, I got home from work to find my driveway beautifully plowed. Happy, I messaged Contractor 2 and thanked him and got his address to send the check to.  Now....The evening got busy and so did the day at work, so I haven't mailed Contractor 2's check yet. At 1:15pm today (3 January 2020), I get an invoice from Contractor 1 for the plowing that was done on January 2nd. 

SO!!….I humbly ask for the guidance of the BP community in solving this classic "Whodunnit" mystery.  Who did the work, and who is trying to take credit for someone else's work? How should I go about finding out? I really don't feel like paying twice for the same job. 

P.S. I have not contacted either one yet. I got home, searched the forums, then typed this out after not finding something similar in the forums.

That is absolutely genius! If you don't mind me asking, how much did you charge for the boat and trailer storage?

@Daniel Haberkost I likely wont be able to afford it this year. I will likely have to advertise it as is and improve it under new tenants (bonus for them I suppose). I still have to get estimates on this job but based on previous experiences, I'm guessing it'll cost $10K+. 

I was hoping to be able to target a young professional family demographic but I may have to change it up and look at renting individual rooms like you said. At least until each unit can truly stand alone. 3 bedrooms, 3 lease agreements, 3 tenants with 3 sets of issues to deal with. But hey, that's the game, right?  

How would one word such an arrangement? "3 Bedrooms for rent, Shared kitchen and Bathroom"? Something simple to that effect?

I recently purchased the split-level ranch that I was renting the bottom half of. The former landlord (now my tenant) plans on moving in a year or so, and I realized that I may have an issue that needs crafty marketing and/or renovations to solve. The house has 3 bedrooms on the first floor, and 2 in the lower level. The first floor has a full bathroom, and the lower level only has a half bathroom (toilet and sink). The current tenant and I have it written in the lease agreement that the first-floor kitchen and bathroom are common areas.

Now, the obvious best option is the renovate the lower level to make it have at least a 1 3/4 bathroom (and there is room to do so) as well as adding a small kitchen area, but current available finances are the issue.

So, in the meantime, how would you recommend marketing a first floor with such a setup? Have any of you had to deal with this type of situation before? Also, if it helps, there are several colleges in my area, so maybe there’s a marketing avenue there?

Note: I plan on living in the lower level for at least a few years while it gets renovated and eventually have it be its own, fully independent unit. The current goal is to House-Hack to live essentially mortgage free and use my day job for renovations.