All Forum Posts by: Robert Smith

For sale is a great handy man special. 

This home needs a lot of repair but is priced right. This home is currently a 2 bed 1 bath however could be modified to give you 3 full bedrooms. The home is older, 1917, and just over 1300 hsft. The lot is just over 1 acre and located just off of Asheville Hwy and Rutledge Pike.
This home could make a great rental home or a quick rehab and resale deal. Asking price is $30K, cash only and close quickly. Repairs should come in about $25K - $35K depending on your level of rehab, roof and windows will be your biggest expense. Exterior is in decent shape, there is some wood rot inside the home and everything will need updated. Some electrical and plumbing has been done. Retail on the home could be $80K - $100K, depending on your level of rehab. 

This home is available through our assignment program. We do not currently own the home however do have equitable interest in the home. I am a licensed broker however working on my own behalf and I do not need help selling or marketing the home. 

Please email me for more information on this home. I also have others to sell which need work and will be posting them shortly. Additional pictures are available. 

Tim is right, this was talked about a few days ago but for property management I use appfolio. So far I have found nothing that compares. You can do a lot with it, from screening and communicating with tenants to collecting rent and sending out owner payments. Unless it was free or paid me to switch and was just as good, I would not go with anything else on the property management side. For the investor deal flow side, I've tried most of them and haven't found one that I am thrilled about. A lot of good things in most of them but nothing has everything I want.  

@Dave Curriston I sent you a PM, think I can help you out. 

@Link McGinnis Thanks for the heads up. 

This should depend largely on how the property is deeded. Most underwriters and lenders have their own set of rules but generally they all agree with each other. If they are requiring you to make this 2 separate loans more then likely most lenders are going to require the same. If the property is deeded as one parcel it could be a duplex or a 50 unit building and it would be one loan. If these are 2 different parcels there is not much of a a work around. One good thing about separate parcels is that it would be easier in the end to sell one and keep the other or refinance them individually, could always pay one off early and have one mortgage longer. There can be an upside to this even though the initial cost is a down side. If you wanted to fight one mortgage for both units, look at the electric meter and water meter for the building. If there is only one coming into the building this could be justification of one loan however may not work. You could always have deeded and surveyed into one parcel however the cost and time to do this would be more then closing 2 separate loans and moving forward. 

Assignor would be whoever is transferring the property (doing paperwork and getting home from original seller, seller of the wholesale deal), assignee would be whoever is taking to property (going to be closing on it to rehab, rent out, live in, etc..., buyer of the wholesale deal). 

This can vary by each lender and your terms and conditions on the loan. Generally with a HML you pay interest only on the principle. Talk with the lender you are interested in using and see what they require. The monthly cost on an HML is very high so make sure the numbers make sense before you get under contract on a home. Also make sure you take into account your insurance costs, if they are monthly or you pay per 3 or 6 month period.

My favorite renovations are ones that are going to outlast the tenant, and many more after they leave. Something to raise your value and minimize any future costs are key. I spend money on the exterior before the interior (windows, doors, roof, siding). Some upgrades are to upgrade linoleum for ceramic tile. If you have good tenants you could also replace the carpet for wood, which generally lasts longer then carpet. Windows and A/C or water heater upgrades are nice for the tenant which keeps their utility costs low, and is a good investment, especially if you can get a tax credit. I try to paint in between tenants with a neutral off white to keep things simple. I like the addition of a deck or concrete patio, outdoor living space is a nice addition and can be fairly inexpensive. Just a few thoughts. Good luck.

@Link McGinnis Great response and great points that you have brought up. 

I could not agree more with the utilities. These should be on the tenant and they should revert back once the tenant vacates the home, this is especially useful when the winter months set in and the home is empty. A "landlord" or fire policy as most companies refer to the insurance on the home, is actually more expensive most times then traditional insurance. Even though you are not covering the contents inside the home, the insurance company takes into account that you are not living there and a tenant will not care for a home the way you personally would. A home that price I would budget $700 to be safe for insurance but calling and finding out in the research phase of the deal is excellent advice. Taxes also factor into the home and something you can check online so you know exactly what that expense is going to be every month. If paying PMI, you can always find a mortgage calculator and input your own figures to get an estimate for monthly payments after your escrow account. For maintenance and vacancies I always budget 10% of the income to make sure I have enough in reserve when needed. When it comes to a contract, make sure you cover all points. Link mentioned exterminators, for my lease I always make sure I inform the tenant they are responsible for pest control beyond termite treatment. I also make sure I add a clause about cleaning clogs and drains. If you don't have this in the paperwork you will be cleaning these more then you would think. Side note, if the home is on a septic system it is usually on the owner to pump this. Garbage service, once again, I require the tenant to pay this and make it mandatory, you don't want to pull up to a home and see the back porch filled with trash due to cheap tenants. When managing the home yourself you have to remember the home is your business. When you give someone a chance it will more then likely come back to bite you in the wallet. Screen your tenants and don't rent to friends or family. Be strict on the rules and regs of the lease as well as the payments. An inch quickly turns into a mile in this business. Last but not least, never trust zillow. This and bad contractors have led more up and coming investors down the money pit and out of the business. You make your money when you buy the home. Look at the sold numbers in the area in the last 6 months for similar homes to the one you are looking at, don't just use the zillow estimate. Some times you can also determine rental prices based off the homes that rented in the area. Tax value of a home also does not mean repair value. Great job on doing your research, build your skills but don't get stuck always looking at deals and not end up doing one.

I am in the area if I can help with anything. Good luck.

Look up youtube and find the bandit sign stapler. Its a great idea and can save you a lot of money since your signs will have a curious way of disappearing, many times another sign will pop up in your same exact spot. You can build one yourself or purchase one online. Or you pay someone $1 a sign to put them out and let them worry with it. 

Not getting the money until then is a problem but not very uncommon sad to say. There is something going on that should be corrected, I would either work with another company or demand an explanation and resolution to your problem. If the tenant is paying late then you should be seeing late fees, if the property management company is mismanaged then you should look for another company to represent you. I make sure my owners are paid as soon as possible, unless there are known bills coming in that we must pay, my owners are paid within 2 days of us collecting the rent. This is not the norm for every company, but should be demanded by every owner out there in my opinion, no later then the 10th, if you have a mortgage you are only given until the 15th to pay your note, if they cannot give you payment before you are charged late fees they should be the one paying the late fees, not you. This adds up quickly. Call around and talk with other investors in your area and see who they suggest, if you talk with agents to interview for the position get some current owners to check what they are telling you before you make the move.