All Forum Posts by: Stephanie Walker

I’m in Charlotte, NC but I manage over 50 MTRs almost exclusively. I’m happy to answer any questions you have about MTRs that aren’t specific to NJ. 

I love this idea. My husband and I go to a place called Simulate Golf and HangTime Golf - both in Gastonia, NC. There are a handful of similar places within 30-40 mins, including 2 TopGolf locations, so there’s no shortage here. Still, we would love to open a place with a little bit of everything we love from each venue.

It seems to be profitable but we’re not in a place where it makes sense for us (yet) because we’re focused on further building our rental portfolios to be able to comfortably afford the land, building, and equipment we need to operate at a high level. The overall annual projected profit as shown in your attachment is less than what we can make with 2 of our MTRs and with less start up costs. A dream of ours regardless!

Absolutely not. You have every right to want to be involved. This is your house. However, some PM companies aren’t as transparent - especially bigger ones. I would read your PM agreement. I personally don’t have anything written regarding repair processes because that can be pretty situational but my owners are always aware of costlier issues, myself and my team are open books and they all have access directly to me or my husband/co-owner.

I recommend setting a time to chat with your PM and set expectations for communications that work for both of you.

Most of my owner clients want less communication. They hear from me once a month when they receive their statements and they hear from me if/when there is a non-emergent issue beyond $500+. I have some owners that prefer to keep in pretty constant communication and that’s okay too.

When I take over management, I treat the homes like my own. I make decisions with the owner’s best interest in mind, first and foremost. My owners get to know me in the process and most of them trust me right off the bat to handle things as I see fit. I don’t like being micro-managed but understand that some owners need that extra reassurance and I’m happy to give that to them. 

I love hearing people’s backstory on how or why they want to get into investing. I’m a mom of 2 and stepmom of 3 - it’s not easy and the rat race 9 to 5 isn’t enough to set them up for success in the future. 

We spend a looot of time in Kings Mountain. We’re members of the country club and are there 2-3x a week 😂 I also manage 5 in that town alone. I’m happy to chat about what you’re looking for and what your goals are.

Definitely a possibility! I can tell you we get plenty of inquiries for the Salisbury/Lexington area. You’ll definitely find a tenant for it as long as it’s marketed correctly. Finding a property with a garage or convertible income-producing space sub-$300K will be your biggest challenge. 

I’m a property manager for MTRs and I will say it’s completely possible IF you have a team of people you trust and know near the property and you have the time to handle the inevitable issues, communications, etc. The biggest challenge I’ve heard from owners that went from self-managing to under my management is that it is time consuming and a learning curve because STRs and MTRs are not just housing solutions. It’s a hospitality business as well. 

There are a few ways to approach this. Do you currently own your own home? If not, I'd start there!

- Buy something that you can add value to, refinance in a year or two (or when it makes sense), take the cash out and buy an investment property
- Buy new construction, let the builders build the equity for you while you live there, sell in two years (or LTR - MTR typically isn't allowed in new construction neighborhoods)

If you are thinking of self-managing, what about Winston Salem/Greensboro area? It's still drivable from Raleigh area and much more affordable. I manage a few MTRs in that area and they perform well. Or what about areas outside of Raleigh? I have an MTR I manage in Benson and that one performs well too.

You can do it yourself! I've done it a few times myself but in NC. I don't know if there are any extra difficulties in TX. 

Personally, my husband and I have only purchased new construction (both for investments and personal homes). It's our preferred method because we find that they appreciate faster in our market. However, that's not always the case and is pretty heavily dependent on location. We work with a mix of investors: some who share the same sentiment and like the idea of less maintenance and others who prefer BRRR method to keep recycling their cash.

What are you looking to do with the property? LTR/MTR/STR? Is it in an HOA neighborhood? If so, review the CC&Rs to make sure you are able to use your preferred strategy.