All Forum Posts by: Tommy Cheng

@Dan H. That's actually a really good idea. The only caveat probably being you need to have multiple listings and actively manage closing one listing and opening the others at the 6 week mark?

@Andrew Steffens Great point renting as 1 unit. I could probably charge more with less headache. The only thing I worry about then is that it would be large groups. I guess that's the risk?

Hey Ya'll! 

Backstory:

We rent the ADU out regularly via STR or MTR and live in the main house currently and are looking to size up. We'd like to rent both houses if we moved. Our shared backyard has a pool and hot tub.

Has anybody had good experience with renting both an ADU and Main house for either STR or MTR? My main concern are shared spaces like the pool and hot tub (turnoff for some renters), huge parties (when both are rented together), shared internet, logistics (multiple locks, parking, etc)

Thanks for any insight!

Hello! 

We currently have 1 very successful STR in the Dallas area. I've been looking at a few other locations 3-4 hours outside of Dallas that have more relaxed or set-in-place regulations. Two questions for those of you that have more than 1 self-managed STR:

1. We currently use a simplisafe system to monitor the driveway to audit how many guests enter and if they bring pets. If you have 2 or more properties, do you have cameras set up to see who comes and goes for each property? Which system/app can you use to view different cameras from different locations?
2. Nervous about self-managing an STR from 4 hours away. Obviously, we would hopefully hire a trusted cleaner, but any other advice on managing a property from a distance? We currently keep a tight audit on our STR in Dallas to make sure everything is tip top before future guests check-in and I know that won't be possible with a property at a distance.

Any feedback/advice would be greatly appreciated!

Hey gang!

I have a potential sub-to deal possible with my neighbor. The only details I have currently are that he placed 10% down 5 years ago so is currently paying PMI on his loan. No answer on whether it's conventional or FHA yet.

If it's conventional, can I, as the buyer, after the deal, pay off the loan to 80% to remove PMI? Does one have to apply to remove PMI or does it automatically remove after that threshold? If you have to apply, does it have to be the owner of the loan (the current seller) that applies?

Also, if we went through with the deal, how does one sell a property in the future after assuming somebody else's loan?

Would love your brilliant insights!

Tommy

I wanted to pick the intelligent minds of the BP community as I feel like I'm stuck.

We have been running a successful STR for almost a year now and I'm having trouble pulling the trigger on another property. I was hoping to get some advice on this property I'm evaluating.

Price: $540,000

Type: Duplex 2/1 and 1/1 with ability to STR both sides, anticipated average $280-300 at a 40% (low range) occupancy would result in 15-20% CoC

My issue is the structuring of the offer/deal.

We have around $80k in cash with more in stocks (would prefer not to pull any out) so any 20% down would deplete reserves. With down payment and start up costs we'd be looking at $150-160k cash initially.

Comps in the area have sold avg $249/sq ft while this property is going for $288/sq ft. I don't know if any seller would be comfortable decreasing the price $60k ($466k).

Any advice or creative ideas on how I can move forward confidently with this deal? Do I ask the seller to buy down the rate? Do I pull money out of stocks? Thoughts on buying with an LLC vs not for lower rates? I'm in a sophomore slump of analysis...

 Sorry for the late response! It's been pretty smooth overall. A few things to consider though:

1. Our wifi/base station doesn't communicate with the airbnb door lock, so whenever I change codes (monthly) I have to manually take it closer to the base station to reset the code.

2. If you have multiple locks (say some on a main house and one on the guesthouse like us) all codes will work for both. Fortunately, we have an additional lock on our main house so even if guests try the code, the door still needs a key.

For our needs, I think this works fine, but for any future properties I think purchasing something that I can change codes from afar as well as keep tabs on battery life would make life easier. 

Hope that helps!

Hello BP Family,

I've read so much on whether to file our STR as Schedule C or Schedule E when filing for 2022. This is what I gather:

Schedule E = Passive, No 15% self employment tax, No passive loss tax benefits

Schedule C = Active, Write off $25k in losses, 15% self employment tax

In our specific situation, our STR is our guesthouse on our primary residence. When tallying up expenses due to initial investments we have a Net loss of around $30k (unfortunately Texas doesn't allow carrying forward losses). Everything I've read says to file as schedule E, but I'm confused as I wouldn't be able to realize my losses for the year? Am I correct in my assumption? Any guidance would be greatly appreciated! Some numbers below:

Gross Op income = ~$46k

Expenses = ~$70k (furniture, construction, decor, utilities, mortgage interest %, etc)

Hey all,

We're almost ready to launch our first STR/Airbnb using our ADU behind our primary house. We are thinking of having the guests enter through the side gate. This is an older wooden swing gate that has a sliding latch on the interior. There is a single handle on the outer part of the gate. Any advice on what type of lock or procedure to use for maximal efficiency and safety for guests? Should I change out the handles or the inner latch?

@Randy Dubiskas Awesome! That's what I was thinking. We don't have another smart lock that can be accessed so it sounds like it'll work. I'll have to make sure that the wifi reaches though I guess. I assume the lock will still work once it's established even without wifi?