All Forum Posts by: Rusty Scott

I've worked in Lawrence for 12 years, and have owned a home there that was my primary, and now a rental. 

As mentioned, Lawrence varies from $1m plus homes, to borderline war zones that you want to avoid.

Any questions, let me know, I'm there every day!

Any update?

Rohan

I'd be happy to help you or just give you my opinions on deals here in Indy. 

I have areas that I like and a lot that I don't.

Tough to really use your map. For example...I live just a bit north of your block 2. There are 7 figure homes in the area, the Governor's mansion included. However block 2 has some of the highest crime areas in the city, and neighborhoods that have a ton of abandoned homes. 10 blocks can be two different world here. 

Agree on the MFHs...they mostly are not wise choices in Indy. Plenty of good SFHs however, and your risk is exponentially lower.

Feel free to contact me here.

I dont know that market....so can't comment on rent.

One thing that looks low to me is taxes and insurance. In Indy, rentals are taxed at a cap of 2% of assessed value....which is almost double what the numbers are you have here.

It's possible that the property is assessed in the $30s....and once it's reassessed after your purchase taxes may double. 

Maybe someone can educate me on property taxes in Kansas.

Also the insurance quote seems low. Again, not drastically, but lower than I pay for any property in that price range in Indy. Is that for full replacement coverage at or above your purchase price?

I was under the impression, wrongly it seems, that the institutional buyers like these had stopped acquiring a couple years back. 

I was approached here in Indy...but none of my properties met their conditions. They were looking for homes 1990 or newer. Which mainly meant the burbs of Indy. And honestly most of those never seemed great investments to me. 

Are you looking around Indy or other areas of the state? I'm very familiar with central Indiana, but not much beyond that. 

Agents get very finicky about their commissions...and what may seem like good business sense to you or I gets thrown out the window.

Yeah....not a good strategy. Live and learn.

Well wholesaling is kind of a different animal entirely, and doesn't really meet the definition of investing...it's more like a marketing biz. 

But what are your goals? If they include building a portfolio of rentals, the easiest way is the house hacking method, as so called here. Buying a duplex, renting one side, living in the other. 

Much easier to get financing and you need less money down. Regardless you need a stable income to qualify for anything 

These kind of deals scare me. An owner that's willing to carry the note, with only 10% down on a 5 unit. My first thought is this must be a major headache property. Why else would he take so much less from you each month? 

There could be valid reasons...but just a red flag to me. 

I couldn't advise taking on a 5 unit at $360/ door for your very first foray into landlording. Better to start with a single family or a duplex and live in one side.