All Forum Posts by: Stephanie Cederdahl

I am going through a difficult situation with my first rental property. My tenant was a bad apple... dealing drugs in the property. This lead to the swat team raiding the property and arresting my tenant. I evicted the tenant as soon as this happened and he is currently moving out. This guy had no criminal history, good credit and a stable job for 10+ years. We did a complete background check. I had also been in the property recently and saw nothing suspicious. So it was shocking to learn this was going on...

The issue I'm having is with the neighbors. This rental property is in a nice suburban family-focused neighborhood. The neighbors are outraged by what happened and want me to sell the property. There has been a lively discussion on the nextdoor app about how a rental property doesn't belong in this neighborhood (prices in this neighborhood are in the 200-300's). There have been some hateful people who want to attack me for owning a rental in this neighborhood. 

Now that my tenant is moving out, I am faced with the decision to continue renting the property or to sell. I have been making good cash flow on this property. But I worry if I rent the property to another tenant, the neighborhood will treat the tenant poorly and continue to attack me for owning a rental property in this neighborhood.

Has anyone experienced such negativity for owning a rental property in a 'nice' neighborhood? If so, how did you deal with it?? 

@Mattaniah Yip I'm a FHA and conventional underwriter. Your issue is going FHA. I recommend going conventional (you don't have to put down 20%). Your statement of intent to occupy as primary and a detailed explanation that you are moving for safety reasons should be sufficient to the underwriter.

Originally posted by @Shawn Thom:

What is the difference in what your current tenant is paying vs market rent?  Are we talking a lot of $$

is there maybe somewhere in the middle, like keep property as-is, but make a slight upwards adjustment in rent.  You could make the adjustment and if they didn't like it, they'd move out, which would also solve your issue.

I would examine the following:

Do they take good care of the property

If they moved out, how much would I have to rehab and spend to get market rent

What are my short term goals for the property

What are my long term goals for the property

Will keeping that one un-rehabbed keep the value of your rehabbed one down

How much overhead do they create as-is?  

Do they call for a lot of repairs

Do they take care of minor stuff themselves

What is their current financial situation like?  

    Are they renting due to not enough income to buy a house, bad credit etc

Are they in a stable type job where they can really afford it for 20 years?  probably so since they've afforded it for 10 years.

Its hard to say without knowing the difference in rent, but I'd be very tempted to leave the current tenant there with a rent adjustment.

 The tenant is paying $525 for unit worth about $850. I will explore all the questions.. Thanks for the insight!!

Hi All! 

I'm currently searching for my first duplex/house hackable property. I plan to move into one unit, renovate, then move into the next unit and renovate over time. The problem I have run into is that one property has a tenant that has occupied the unit for over 20 years. This is a very desirable part of town and the tenant pays well below current value for the space. Our realtor said this tenant wants to be in the unit forever... which leads me to my question.. what would you do?

I would feel horrible kicking someone out of their forever home and I don't think the tenant would go without a fight.. 

Is this a fight worth fighting? 

No, it's not illegal to be on the loan by yourself

Yes, FHA DTI limits are more flexible than conventional. If you are close to the 43% you should be able to find a bank that will loan to you, especially if you have good credit and assets. I have seen many FHA loans approved in the 50% range. It all depends on the bank's automated system and whether an underwriter is willing to loan to you based on your credit, assets, debts, etc...

Originally posted by @AJ S.:

Welcome to BP, I would invest near U.C. (Cincinnati), and cincinnati state, campus housing is always issue, especially near clifton, I went to U.C.

 Thanks, that is helpful advice. Definitely falls in line with what I'm looking to do!

Thanks! Looking for rentals in the price range of 80-90's. Ideally would like to invest in multi-families

Hi All! I'm new around here and have already found BP to be a huge asset. I have been interested in investing for a while and have been doing everything I can to learn about the subject.. My husband and I hope to own rental properties which can generate some positive cash flow for us. We hope to purchase our first rental within the next few months. I spent several years working as a mortgage Loan Processor and am comfortable with that type of financing, but I know that route can only take you so far.. So I'm looking forward to learning from others in the area about other ways to finance deals. I'm also interested in hearing about neighborhoods which others think are good rental investments. 

Looking forward to being a part of the BP community =) 

Hi All! Does anyone have any experience flipping properties in the Westwood area? Would love to hear about it.. I'm debating whether or not this is a good area to pursue.

Thanks!