All Forum Posts by: Steve Katuska

HI folks - I'm looking to convert part of a finished basement in my house into an in-law suite. The future bathroom is already dry plumbed, so this job would be bathroom finishing, installing a kitchenette, putting up some additional walls, and possibly adding a 3-season room on the side of the house. I'm in Fairfield County.

Any recommendations? Thanks!

Congrats! Sounds like you have a solid strategy, hope it works out as planned for you

@Jacqueline Carrington

Unfortunately I have plans that night and can't make the drive up, but I appreciate the heads up and can hopefully make the next one!

Thanks @Tony Velez, I'll reach out to Patty and see if she can help me out here.

@Upen Patel - so my experience with commercial is fairly common, that the order is basically: 

1. Find a specific property
2. Work with the bank to quality financing on that specific property
3. Using that financing, finalize the offer

Makes sense on the <4 unit properties, shouldn't be too hard to find a bank that will pre-qualify that and then I can just take my time finding the right place.

Appreciate the response.

 Is this something fairly standard that the banks do, or do I need to find a specialist / someone who actually does this? Thanks.

Hey folks - I'm looking at acquiring some multi-family properties, and struggling to find the right bank to partner with. I'm either looking at 4 unit multi-family properties (and can just do a conventional mortgage) or a 5+ unit commercial mortgage, mostly trying to go wherever I can get the best financing / deals. 

Can anyone recommend a strong broker that I can work with on financing? Decent credit and going to do 30% down on any property so qualification shouldn't be an issue, but having trouble actually getting the right people on the phone...

Thanks!

Hey folks - I'm in the process of looking at a few medium-sized multi-family properties (4 - 12 units) and am finding that for the commercial loan needed for 5+ unit properties, I'm stuff in a chicken and egg situation. The banks I have reached out to say that I need to have an offer letter signed before I can apply for a loan, but my agent is telling me that a good offer needs to have a pre-qualification attached.

How did others navigate this - am I just working with the wrong banks, or should I push for my agent to make offers with a contingency on the financing? Not sure what I'm missing here. Thanks!

Welcome Rob - I would think if your plan is to buy a property and live in part / rent out the rest, you'd be far better off with a multi-family. I agree that in CT a bunch are in less desirable areas, but I think you can still find some in decent towns (Danbury seems to have a few on the market). Good luck with the search.

So it does sound like the costs increase in % terms when the purchase price goes down, as if there are any fixed costs then those will rise.

Are there any costs that are higher in % terms for more expensive properties? That would surprise me, but it's possible...