All Forum Posts by: Sarah Grise

So you're looking at renting them out? I'm assuming you have a ceiling price when it comes to these properties. If you don't, I suggest having one. Things add up quickly when it comes to renovations. My husband and I typically jump on properties between $10k and $20k, all with 2-3 beds and usually just bath, maybe 2 if we get lucky. The smaller the house, the less stuff can go wrong and the less costly repairs/fix-ups will be, keep that in mind :)

What outlets are you using to find these houses? Trulia and Zillow have worked for us in the past as well as Craigslist. Obviously "buyer beware" if you're using CL but there are some good catches out there. Plumbing work typically costs much less than electrical work, so I always advise to stay away from properties that have all the wiring pulled out or, if you run into any knob-and-tube electrical - no thanks! Quite the financial hassle to get that all up to code.

For our first flip/rental, we hired an inspector and tagged along. We learned a LOT, took notes, and knew exactly what to look for when purchasing our other properties w/o an inspector.

@Benjamin Blackburn

We waited approximately 14 months from the date we moved in to our home (which we own) until when we moved forward with the HELOC option, and we have no regrets. I think it may have been the best decision we actually ever made, as it provided us with a secondary income which has now become my primary income and has given me the freedom to break free of the 40+ hour work week being stuck in a cubicle.

We were approved for a HELOC of about $53k. We purchased two properties with that one HELOC. With those 2 properties, we used part of the rent generated to pay back our HELOC (which we'll be paying on for a while!) and the other half goes towards other personal expenses, and we've been adding on to the rental list since.

In this business/field, many times you need to get IN debit to get OUT of debt. Just my personal opinion on the investment world :) It can generate passive income if you do it the right way. My best advice for people looking to buy houses and rent them out - be very, very careful when choosing a tenant. Screen them, make sure you always have them provide proof of income, ALWAYS. Be strict with your leases. A bad tenant can ruin it for a lot of people so be careful who you let into YOUR investment.

Best of luck to you both!

I can see where you're coming from with using social media for something like that. Me personally, I wouldn't use those outlets for business. However, my husband and I have found many legit (and non-legit) owner financing options via Craigslist and our city newspaper. Maybe try looking for owner-financing rather than having them look for you. You could also use something like Trulia other other real estate sites similar to that for "For Sale by Owner", I've found there's much more wiggle room when it comes to sale prices that way. Just a few suggestions :)

Hi there! For my husband and I, we wouldn't have been able to even get into the world of investment/rental properties by renting. Because we own our own home, we were able to use a HELOC to purchase our first 2 rentals, and from there it took off. You however are fortunate enough to have money saved up. If I was in your situation, however, I would purchase my own home to live in and worry about yourselves first. THEN, using the equity in your home that you own (I do think you'd need to wait a year+ to look into a HELOC, but i could be wrong), use that to purchase additional homes. I wouldn't tap into your 401k if you don't have to. There are some nasty financial/tax penalties for that one (depending on your age that is).

We buy cheap houses, fix them up ourselves and rent them out. That process works for us, but it's not for everyone as some people prefer to flip and sell instead.

Welcome to the forums! Did you have a specific question regarding your first purchase of a multi-family home?

Hi Zoe. Unless you're positive there were foundation issues it's hard to say really. I always reccomend low-balling your offering price, and with that offer you can even include a note regarding the comparables and WHY you're asking for a lower price to be considered. The other one listed for $130k - does it have the same updates the one you're looking at to purchase does? Does the you're looking at NOT have any updates but yet the other one for sale at $130k does?

At the end of the day, a lot will have to do with the seller of the townhome. If they are more or less desperate to get rid of it, they're in the process of moving and need it sold ASAP, etc - these are all personal things that may be affecting the seller's decision-mkaing that you just don't know about (things like this cannot be disclosed to you unless they've given the selling agent permission to do so). So my opinion would be to definitely low ball it, but not to the point where you'd be offending the seller :)

Hope this helps some! Best of luck!

Hello, Gon. Do you mean a month-to-month lease or 12 month/full year lease? If so, I would have to say that a 12-month/full year lease is more common, at least up here in Pennsylvania it's what I see more of. For me and my husband, we feel that a 12 month lease brings us more financial security and peace of mind. If you get a good tenant, knowing your'e getting a steady rent for at least a year makes you feel more secured than a month-to-month lease, which in my opnion would be extremely nerve wracking! I don't have actual stats, just my personal opinion.

Best of luck to you!

Sarah

Pittsburgh, PA

Unfortunately, these are one of the risks we as investors may have to deal with. Have you already reached out to the magistrate of the munucipality? I would at least start there and explain the situation to him/her. Make sure you do things the right/legal way. I've seen instances where the tenant receievd the eviction notice on their door and in their mailbox and they left without any costly remediation needing to be done. I'd start the process sooner than later. Moving in w/the tenant will bring you a heap of new issues. I cannot see a tentant agreeing to that anyway. Don't move in with the tenant. Start the eviction process ASAP.

Well then in that case, and given the info you provided, you may want to look at owner financing (basically the property seller acts as the bank/lender) or...do you own your own house and/or car? My husband and I took out a HELOC and use it to buy two properties which we rent out. Could try those avenues.

Are you planning/wanting to buy, flip and re-sell, or purchase and rent out?