All Forum Posts by: Ryan Werner

I have been using a Kwikset deadbolt with smart key on the front door of my personal residence for over a year now. The Smartkey feature allows you to change the key to any KW1 type key in seconds. It saved me from reordering keys when I was working to key all the doors on my house and outbuilding the same after a robbery last year (garage wasn't locked as I had just moved in didn't have a key and hadn't replaced the lock yet). I have shown quite a few people how simple it is to rekey. They make several models and have grade 1 deadbolts. They are also available at most home improvement stores.

Kwikset Grade 1 Deadbolt

Well as someone who is going through a septic project currently (at my personal residence) I will chime in with what I know so far.

First you will likely want to contact your county sanitary department (search "county" POWTS) they should be able to guide you to a county licensed inspector. I see you mention the pumper inspected it (if they also do installs I would try and find a different inspector to get an opinion of someone that doesn't stand to make money on the new system).

You will then need to locate septic designer. I called a local excavating company that does septic installs to get recommendations. The septic designer should be able to guide you in planning the new system based on your local regulations. (In my case the septic field is failing and my property is too close to the water table for a conventional septic to meet code. I have to install a mound system. This is also the step I am currently at due to travelling for work. I need to find time to meet with the planner.)

Finally you will have to have the plan to get an accurate measurement of the required materials so you can get a quote from the installer (usually and excavating company).

The excavating company I plan to use said they can usually quote the same day they they planner is onsite.

Supposedly the previous owner received two quotes for a new mound system($10,200 and $10,500) however, I'm not sure that a formal septic plan was made and these may just have been ballpark numbers. I probably should have pressed the issue harder when I purchased but the issue was discovered one week before close and I could not extend.

I will update this thread once I have more information (hopefully next week I can schedule the planner) 

@Erick Miller - New septic systems are definitely an expense. I plan to replace the septic on my personal residence in the near future (it's not up to code) and I'm looking at over $10K in an area of Wisconsin with pretty low prices for work.

My issue is I have a small stream that runs through the back of my property that makes conventional septic against code. I need a mound system which will be ugly and more maintenance intensive. I would imagine you will have a similar situation with having the stream on your property.

I just had a friend whose father built a new pole building that they finished 1/3 of as a nice cabin. (Awesome idea for a vacation rental) However, with the cost of a new well and septic the price of the cabin was over $100K I forget the exact number though. I do know that the project was rushed and that ran the costs up much higher than they otherwise would have been.

@Travis Bernard It really isn't that strange a lot of counties that encompass country land have rules like this in place. Around me in Wisconsin a lot of these rules are in effect to stop people from buying small tracts of land and throwing a mobile home or camper on it that they use a couple times per year until it falls apart (at which point they buy another). It is simply about not letting the area begin to look like a dump.

I have been looking to make the jump into real estate for awhile and have been looking for deals in my local area of Green Bay Wisconsin. I stumbled upon this multi-family that I don't really plan to purchase but I was curious to play around with the numbers.

12 Units (3  4-plexes)

6 - 1Bed/1Bath (Market Rent ~$550)

6 - 2Bed/1Bath (Market Rent ~$680)

Property Taxes ~$4600/yr from county website.

Looking at the pictures I can see that electricity is sub-metered. My big unknowns are whether landlord pays gas and water (I have not gotten estimates for these yet). I ran my numbers using the biggerpockets calculator and with the numbers in the attached image. I was just wondering what more experienced BP'ers thought about my analysis.

It has been for sale for quite awhile so I'm guessing I'm missing something but like I said I'm just looking for feedback to improve on future analysis.

Below is a link to the property:

12 Unit in Green Bay WI

I have never dealt with one in person but during my search for a house last summer there was a place that had one. It was an old farmhouse that needed a lot of work. Talking with some of the locals who were friends they said the place had been purchased by a doctor who dumped a bunch of money into fixing up the indoor pool area. I forget how long he owned it but I'm pretty sure he lost a good chunk of money based on the listed price.

There can be all sorts of issues with any pool especially one that is indoors. I believe a big cost associated with his work was due to moisture problems from the indoor pool.

I was just listening to an episode of the BP Podcast (forget which one) but the person being interviewed started the search for a property management company by calling all of the local property managers as a prospective tenant. This allows you to see how they handle potential tenants, if they answer the phone, schedule a showing and seem knowledgeable about the property they may warrant investigation to use as your manager. 

The guest was amazed at how bad the ads were for many companies and how many never even called him back regarding the units. The PM must handle the tenants well otherwise the unit will go unrented and you will lose money. This is the strategy I plan to use when I begin the search for a PM.

Welcome to the forum. I grew up in Monroe MI but traveled through Jerome occasionally. I always enjoy stopping at the Jerome Market.

Welcome Dominic. I am a mechanical engineer in Green Bay. I graduated this spring and am just starting my engineering and REI journeys.

Congratulations! That is an awesome start. I just moved to Green Bay and am working to start my REI journey. Always great to see others successes.