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All Forum Posts by: Scott Scoville

Scott Scoville has started 31 posts and replied 386 times.

Post: New member to BiggerPockets

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241
Quote from @Vaghinak Badalyan:

Hi there. Im from Southern California. Im excited to be part of this community. Im new to investing in real estate, have a lot to learn. Looking in to properties in SoCal daily for Fix n Flip and reinvest, still learning. Im a full time Registered Nurse.


 Welcome and best of luck Vaghinak!

Post: First Time Real Estate Investor Unsure of Which Market to Choose

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Hey Jeff, congrat's on starting your REI journey. Figuring out your "why" will help you determine strategy and location.

Are you looking for Cashflow, Appreciation, or a little of both?

Do you want to be hands on with the properties (i.e. rehabs, property management, etc.) or outsource these?

Are you interested in short-term, mid-term, or long-term rentals?

There are not many wrong strategies. It's more dependent on the lifestyle and goals that you're looking to achieve. I'm an investor and real estate agent in Sacramento. I'd be happy to discuss this further if you're interested. Best of luck.

Post: Adu Gets Higher Rent than Apartments or Multifamily?

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Whether it's an ADU or Apartment, the same applies.

1. Great Location is Key 

2. Level of Rehab (Nice Finishes) / Stay Away from Cheap Flips

3. Furnished Units Typically Rent for More

4. Get Professional Photos of Property

5. Build Your Reviews & Reputation for Providing Top Notch Rentals

Best of luck and don't hesitate to reach out!

Post: Seeking Insights: First-Time House Hacking Experience and Beginner Tips

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Hey Ryan,

Congrat's!


While I've been investing for a while, I still house hack. I can't imagine ever not house hacking.

  1. 1. How did you get started with house hacking? What motivated you to pursue this strategy? 
  2. I started by building an ADU above my garage. It's a 750 square foot 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom apartment. It has a separate entrance down my side yard. I live close to multiple hospitals in Sacramento and wanted to increase our rental property income. We rent to traveling nurses typically on 3 month stays.
  3. 2. What type of property did you choose for your house hacking venture (e.g., single-family, multi-family, etc.)?
  4. Built an ADU above my garage at my SFH.
  5. 3. How did you finance the property? Did you encounter any challenges during the process?
  6. Construction loan.
  7. 4. How did you find your tenants or roommates? Any specific strategies or platforms that worked well for you?
  8. The ADU is furnished, so we use Furnished Finders. We don't go more than a couple days between stays. Typically stays are 3 months.
  9. 5. What were the key lessons you learned from your first house hacking experience?
  10. Reviews, reviews, reviews. Build them up. Post professional photos!!! Location is key. Listen to your guests and always improve your property. 
  11. 6. Were there any unexpected hurdles or surprises that you encountered? If so, how did you handle them?
  12. Permits take much longer than you expect. Make sure you have extra reserves for holding costs. Also, underpromise and overdeliver with your guests!

Best of luck and don't hesitate to reach out!

Post: Do I mail an offer to vacant house?

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Hey Daniil,

Great question. Tax records and skip tracing is great. I typically start by asking the neighbors. Most neighbors don't like vacant houses next door and are more than willing to help you connect with the owner and usually have more info about the house and it's history. Plus when you finally connect with the owner, you can refer to their neighbor to build trust. Best of luck.

Post: Questions from a first time home buyer looking to house hack and grow

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Hey Lucas, 

Congrat's on starting your journey. I'm also in Sacramento, and am a real estate agent and investor. I buy, renovate, rent, and manage all of my own properties. As interest rates have gone up, strategy may have to shift a bit to stay in this market. I was originally buying Class B & C SFH's and Small Multi's, but have shifted to Class A SFH's as a hedge against inflation. While I'm not getting the cash flow like before, I am finding that it's a better long term wealth strategy for myself and my partners. Rents are high, and demand for Class A properties will always be there. Let me know if you'd ever like to chat further about this. Best of luck!

Post: Want to invest in property, don’t how how to start

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241
Quote from @Moises Rodriguez:

Hi all! My wife and I paid our house off a few months ago, it was on a VA loan. We're interested in getting investment property to start some extra cash flow and increase our assets. The problem is, the multi family houses here cost anywhere between $700K and past the $1 million mark. I've called several banks and they've said to use a VA loan (with $0 down) I need to live in the house for a year. If I don't plan on living there then I'd have to get a conventional loan and put down 20-25%. That's a big chunk of cash that I don't have saved up yet. What can I do? My goal is to be able to get an investment property with the least amount of money I need to put down and create some positive cash flow. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


Hey Moises, sounds like a good problem to have. I'd recommend either house hacking a small multi family property, or consider hard money. Hard money will allow you to get into the property with less money down, possible fund any rehab or construction costs as well. The key to hard money, is buying where there is enough value add to ensure that when you refinance out of the hard money loan, that the ARV will be 75% LTV. So essentially buying it significantly below market value or create enough value add to push ARV. Let me know if you'd like to chat about this further. Best of luck!

Post: Real estate investor newbie

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Welcome to RE Investing. Be happy to help. I work exclusively with investors in Sacramento.

Post: Like to network? Sacramento

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Welcome to RE Investing! Looking forward to connecting. 

Post: SACRAMENTO CA - OFF MARKET SINGLE FAMILY - Fix and Flip !

Scott Scoville
Posted
  • Real Estate Agent
  • Sacramento, CA
  • Posts 413
  • Votes 241

Hey Jeanine. Please add me to your buyers list:-)