All Forum Posts by: Scott Beck

@Peter Schuyler

Your up-front education and licensing fee will be around $2000. Monthly costs will depend on which brokerage you work with and how much you want to pay for marketing. Check out this by @Mark Ferguson for a good overview.

Good luck!

@Brady Speers

What are the conditions of the big 5?

1. Roof
2. Foundation
3. Plumbing
4. Electrical
5. AC/heat

If these are in good shape, then focus on the points raised by @Cooper Bert.

@Neil Aggarwal I agree that good landlords should easily meet most of the requirements.

I am wondering how people are handling some of the things that do not relate directly to the property. In particular,

1. "Leases must be provided in English, Spanish and Vietnamese upon request." As a Realtor I have access to the Texas Association of Realtors residential lease which is available in English and Spanish. To the best of my knowledge TAR does not have a residential lease in Vietnamese.
2. "Code inspectors will inspect single-family homes at least once every five years." It is my understanding that landlords will be required to do a self inspection every year as part of the annual registration process. How are out-of-state investors handling this?

Last summer there was a lot of discussion of how the Dallas city council was amending the city's housing ordinance.

(See for more details.)

Now that the ordinance has been amended and is in effect, how is it impacting your real estate business?

Hi @Anthony Dispenziere

I did a quick search on the MLS for North Texas for triplexes and fourplexes that are active or were sold in the last 1000 days. A majority of these are south of 635. North of 635 there are neighborhoods in Richardson, Sachse, East Plano, Denton, Farmers Branch, and Grapevine. There was also one fourplex that sold in Frisco. If you are interested in getting the details please send me a PM.

I have found that many of the duplexes to funplexes are sold off of the MLS. You just need to drive the areas where these properties are to see if any are available.

If you are interested in 5 doors or more the MLS will not be the best place to look. LoopNet is a good place to start for these. You should also check out the forums on multifamily/apartments.

Hi @Philip Hy

Have you considered reaching out to a structural engineer that is not affiliated with a foundation repair company?

Hi @Alvin Pereira.

Yes, the prices have been going up steadily for the past few years. In the DFW Metroplex (where I reside) the prices have been increasing significantly year-over-year. Here is a to a recent article in the Dallas Morning News discussing the changes in the past year. The supply is averaging about 2.3-months (seller's market) and prices have risen 8% over last year. Because of the significant price increases property appraisals by the county have gone up quite a bit. In Dallas and Collin Counties the appraisals are done yearly. Local investors are feeling this. One I spoke to recently had their taxes go up 30% in the last two years. This can take a significant bite out of your cash flow.

Weather can also impact your bottom line. Since December 2015 the local area was hit by a major tornado and several hail storms.  in the first half of the year is estimated at $700 million for the cities of Plano, Fort Worth, Wylie, and San Antonio. Although most of this damage is paid for through your insurance, you still need to pay the deductible. So you need to be certain you have a reserve.

I just found this on the current Texas economy related to real estate and thought this forum group might find it of interest. It is written by Dr. Jim Gaines and others from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.

Welcome @Zach Roebuck to the Bigger Pockets community.

This site has lots of good information for you to explore. You might want to start with the . Check out the Education tab above. Especially look at the podcasts and guides. After you have gone through the free info, there are also books available through the Bigger Pockets Store. In particular, since you are interested in flipping be sure the check out J. Scott's book "The Book on Flipping Houses."

Under the "Community" tab is a link to Networking Events. These are a good place to meet other investor and vendors.

@Lee Ann line, since you are interested in duplexes and quads you might also be interested in looking at the book "Investing in Duplexes, Triplexes, and Quads," by Larry B. Loftis.