All Forum Posts by: Ryan Hilbun

Hello all,

I'm a Real Estate Agent in Scottsdale, AZ. I have a military friend who is getting out and will be relocating to Dallas. I'm looking for a good agent in the Dallas area to refer him to. He will probably be looking to buy closer to Dec and is probably a pretty mid range buyer, so if you only deal in luxury, please do not reply. In your reply, please let me know how you add value to your clients transactions.  I obviously wouldn't want to refer a friend to someone who isn't going to take care of him and his family.

My Best,

Ryan Hilbun

I'm looking for some input from anyone in the interior design community. I'm looking to furnish vacation rentals, and wondering if you have any insider sources of buying, leasing, etc.. furnishings.

Thanks for your input.

I was going to start a new thread on this topic but came across this conversation. I'm looking to furnish a 2Br/2Ba VR in Mesa, AZ and I'm trying to figure out what my budget should be. It seems like the general consensus here is from about $8000-$15000 depending on how high end you need to make it.

My goal is to have many VR's but tying up that much capitol in furnishings is a problem. If I had 10 VR's and spent $10,000 furnishing each that's $100,000 tied up. I'm looking to solve the problem of furnishing a VR without tying up so much capitol, but I have no idea how. Does anyone out there have any suggestions?

There are good credit deals at furniture stores that allow delayed interest and payment. That could be one way to delay the expense, but it only lasts so long.

The only idea I've come up with is to somehow partner with a furniture store to maybe "showcase" furniture that isn't selling for a cheap lease on the furniture. It could be worth a company to have people actually using their furniture.

Let me know what you guys think, just trying to do some brainstorming here.

@Emily M. I can't speak for most areas in the country but the Scottsdale/Phoenix area is warm to say the least, and has extremely low property taxes (some of the lowest in the country).

Prices are on the higher side but compared to Chicago they might be less. People from Chicago seem to love the area, I meet them all the time.

I'm still learning landlord laws there so I can't give my opinion on that.

The area is big but definitely still growing.

@Account Closed I also like to buy, rehab , and hold. I've done 3 deals over the past 7 years that make money and I'm at a point in my life that I'm going to concentrate heavily on investing. I can buy one or two more properties with 20% down but in the near future I want to acquire properties much faster than conventional loans would allow me to, which is why I'm interested in private money. I'm just not sure how much experience most private lenders are looking for before lending to a new investor. I would love to flip also, but I don't think my market is right for that right now and I don't the team and relationships established yet that would allow me to be successful. I definitely see flips as a viable opportunity in the future once I have a good team in place and the market is right.

@Account Closed In your experience, what are hard money and private money lenders looking for from a beginner investor? Does it help to have several deals with conventional lending under your belt before they will lend to you? Are they looking for a good business plan or just the deal you bring to them? Thanks in advance for your advise.

Ryan

@Eric Brandenburg I manage two properties out of state so it's definitely doable. I initially hired a PM that turned out to be terrible, I knew i could do a better job my self. That being said, It's not ideal and you will end up spending more money than if you were local. I only do it because I move around for work and the properties cash flow so I'm still making money. Ideally I will be in a permanent location soon and will get rid of those properties when the time is right. 

Some things to consider: wait and invest locally- if you plan on managing the property yourself you can save a lot of money by fixing small problems yourself. Most issues that come up are small jobs that I could do, but I have to pay someone to do it and pay 2-3 times as much.

If you're itching to get started just know that it can be done successfully, but can also be a pain. It's also been a good education. I don't plan on managing all my properties, especially once I get a few more, but I've proven that I can do it successfully. I know how I want my tenants treated and what I want out of a PM. 

I haven't worked with a good PM yet, but I'm sure they're out there. At the very least, before you leave try to make some connections with a good handyman, plumber, and maybe even an electrician.

@Bethany McCullough that property is in Lacey, WA and they are called Pettit Property Management

@Bethany McCullough I'm active duty Army and manage two properties out of state. It's definitely doable but of course it takes some work. Recently I had to coordinate an entire kitchen repair due to a broken pipe, That was a pain, but I was still able to do it remotely. 

I initially hired a PM but they were terrible and knew I could do a much better job myself. You will be better off if you have some good contacts like you suggested. If you still have some friends there you may have them check on the property once in a while. Whenever I have someone work on the house I ask them to take a look around and let me know the condition since I don't make it back there often. If you manage it yourself I would at least use the PM to get the tenant in the house, that's what I did and I think it's money well spent. They will handle the background check, and lease.

That being said, If you do find a good PM it may be worth giving it a try. I know there's good ones out there. I just haven't been able to work with any yet. Hopefully your numbers work so you can cash flow with the expense of a PM. 

@James Carlson thanks for the info. @Michael Greenberg I tried to PM you but it wouldn't go through for some reason. I'd love to hear more about your VR's.