All Forum Posts by: Cathy Svercl

good luck! been there, done that. prior to my purchasing the property, my tenants were under investigation for 2 years for drug dealing by local undercover agents. the cops wanted to find the "up-line" so didn't arrest my tenants. all the neighbors knew, and they clued me in, after realizing i was not going to put up with it. unfortunately, i could not rent the other units while they were there. i also didn't want to rock the boat, since where there are drugs, there are guns. luckily, one cop took pity on me, and called in the Dept of Child Services. they moved out within 2 weeks of the official visit!! and left a mess you cannot imagine. so make friends with the neighbors, and make yourself known to all the cops patrolling your neighborhood.

Craigslist for tenants, and put a FOR RENT sign in the window, and in the yard. do you have an application for tenants to fill out? have you already figured out how to separate the good from the bad? (what are your standards, how will you apply them?) check if nearby landlords charge an application or background check fee, and how much. (we didn't, because low income area people can't afford it.) however, we did put in an income minimum of 2.5 times the rent - must be proveable (no under the table pay accepted). we opened it up to Section 8, but none of them submitted completed apps. we tried a few different background check companies before settling with AAOA.com. good luck!

no tax on 1 year leases.

discussion on ductless systems here - http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/67/topics/43644-ductless-hvac-systems-cost-

we looked into upgrading our triplex windows units with ductless systems because there is no attic/crawl space for ductwork. highly recommend to call some local A/C contractors until you find someone who has actually installed these already, have them give you an estimate, and talk to them about the units - maintenance, cost, repair-ability, other clients' first hand experiences. be aware you may have to upgrade/install electrical circuits and outlets.

in the end, we decided 1) we couldn't financially commit right now, and 2) low-income area we might not have quality tenants who would respect the units.

for your purposes, building codes are grandfathered in. anything you add (new handrail, lighting) needs to meet new code.

with safety issues like the basement stair treads, you might keep the basement off-limits (move laundry to main floor maybe).

before renting, check with your city/county for rules for rentals - they may require smoke detectors installed (one in each bedroom near door, one outside each sleeping area, one on each floor level).

FYI, during a remodel, if you install/update your Mechanical, Electrical or Plumbing systems, you may need to update that system in the whole house.

we bought a triplex in a low income area, and i had met the tenants during inspections - though we told them i was going to manage the place, not own it. they were a little nervous, and i tried to be brief but upbeat with answers.

right after closing and i got the keys, i went over and knocked on each door to introduce myself, short, simple, keep it nice. i took with me a letter stating New Management, my name and contact info, Where/How to pay rent, and stated that we would adhere to all the rules in their one-year leases, which were still in affect. (the tenants were scared we were going to try to move them out or something.) we also brought a form with us to "double check" who was living there, any pets or kids that might not be on the copies of the leases we had, and get their contact phone numbers in case of emergencies.

long story short, within 3 months, everyone had moved out because they decided not to pay the rent. it seems the previous manager had been extremely loose about rents and maintenance. it was a nightmare at the time, but a blessing in disguise! today, we have a nice, clean, repaired property with great tenants that we hand-picked.

for asset protection, you would want one entity (for example, LLC, corporation, trust, etc) to own only one or a portion of all your holdings. one for the land, one for the single family (and some future single family), one for the MHP, one for the development land. you don't want to risk losing everything if someone sues you.

for accounting/tax purposes, talk to an accountant who can advise you on which type of entity is best for each type of investment (land vs income, buy & hold vs flip, etc).

a new construction cost estimate for 2 apartments 800 SF each might be $7.50 psf, or $12,000 for the whole duplex.

but get cost estimates from local a/c contractors. the cost estimates are FREE, but will be CUSTOM to your duplex. with current energy codes, there is no rule of thumb anymore. the sizing of the inside unit, outside unit, and ductwork will be based on the "load calculation" which include the size of each tenant space, ceiling height, the amount of insulation in walls/ceiling/floors, the leakiness or tightness of your walls and windows, and the climate.

hi Dan, welcome to investing. Tampa Bay is a smorgasboard of investors and properties, so plenty of deals to be had anywhere. you should check out the local REIA groups and attend several on a weekly basis to get a feel for the local market and pricing and such. also to learn about different ways to hold properties (use an LLC, corporation, or land trust).

there are many strategies to make your buy-and-hold work. multi-family is great for income per purchase value, but SFH (single family homes) may have less maintenance and renter turn-over. you'll find your comfort zone and start there.

Ryan, come on over to Tampa Bay and pitch at the meetings! or just come to network, and find out who's who, so you can contact them privately. there are a small but serious group of investors here looking for MH's and MHP's.