All Forum Posts by: Gere W.

When buying a property, what are some "normal" costs to have to get up front before move in ready? For instance, does one always buy a washer/dryer? Is new paint always a given? Even if a place is supposedly turnkey, or close to it, what kind of expenses should I anticipate? Not necessarily big expenses that seem obvious: needs new roof, hole in a wall, new carpet, broken fixtures, etc. , but small things I'm not anticipating paying in addition to all the big ticket stuff (like the mortgage, duh). 

How much would you budget for extra just in case? I know this is largely dependent on property, but say for an average duplex in an average neighborhood and I put 15k down, what other expenses can I expect to incur or have to buy/replace immediately? 

Hello,

I'm from Buckeye Lake, OH. I'm looking to invest really anywhere in Ohio. Closer the better, but if it's a good deal and the numbers are good, then that seems good too.

I'm looking for multifamily properties in Columbus, OH or Sandusky, OH.

Columbus: closer to me (35 min), more $ to buy, most don't meet 2% rule, but around 1%. Industry seems to be growing and so is population. With higher property cost, would be harder to cash flow well. Properties I'm looking at are average to just below average. 2/1 goes for around $500-700 neighborhood depending. 

Sandusky: farther (2:45 hrs), less $ to buy, most exceed 2% or are close to it, not sure if industry is dying or growing, neighborhoods are C-B, but seems mostly poverty, and not necessarily surrounded by worse neighborhoods and other crime. Just kind of a small lake town. I sail up there occasionally. Properties are average to below average. Rents for 2/1 are again $500-750 depending on building. 

Better to go in on something cheap, with decent quality and potential to make better, better cash flow, but potentially dying city and a little farther (3 hrs)

OR 

something closer, less cash flow, higher mortgage, but more/growing city stability?

If I'm cash flowing well, does it even REALLY matter? 

I'm conventionally financing, plan to buy and hold, but don't have much capital (around $15000) to invest. Cheaper, potentially higher cash flowing area seems better option as of right now. 

Thoughts? I'd appreciate any. Thanks. 

What's the best way to shop best rates with mortgage lenders? Google search, have them pull credit report, and then see offers, and keep seeing who can beat that?

What do they need from me to expedite the process? Send a file of my finances? What exactly do they need to see? Ie. What should I send them or have on hand ready to send them? I want to stay in the 14 day window to only get 1 inquiry on my credit score.

For a multifamily, when a property says owner pays sewer, trash, water, etc.

Is there a way to get those utilities transferred into the tenant names so I wouldn't be responsible for paying a variable and potentially expensive cost?

Are there legal issues? 

Why would multifamily units have the owner paying for those utilities in the 1st place?

How can you find out what those costs are per month? Call utility companies and ask? I'm guessing they can't tell you. 

Hello, new to real estate. In looking at properties, storage units seem like a great investment. About same price as houses and even multifamily for smaller storage businesses. I'm looking to buy one for less than $150k. Seems like a better option: no plumbing, not much repair costs, no evictions, easier screening process, no electrical generally, etc.

Opinions on starting with one as first property? 

Come June 11th, I'll only have around $15k saved up. That's literally all of my money to my name saved up. 

What are general % of down payments required for commercial? 20%, 25%? I'm assuming I can only get a commercial loan, correct? 

How do you calculate things like property taxes, expenses, but especially cost of the mortgage/loan? Besides just trusting the owner, which is foolish. I basically want to figure out how much all of my costs will be: loan payment, property tax, insurance, pmi if I can pay less than 20%, etc but I'm not sure where to start. I read in the BP beginner guide book how commercial loans tend to be shorter terms, higher rates and fees, amortized over 25 yrs, but only fixed for 3-7 yrs then variable after 5-10 yrs. But also says commercial lenders can structure loans how they want, changing down payments, rates, fees, etc. 

With so many variables, I can't even begin to estimate my monthly expenses, so I'm not sure how to calculate a deal or if it's worth it or not. 

I can see why commercial can be difficult, but the returns seem more profitable. Little more complicated, but once I'm educated on the topic and understand it well, perhaps it's a great option. Thoughts?

Ok, what are the differences of commercial vs conventional loans? Here's what I've surmised so far:

Commercial: 

-have to put more money down (not sure what % though)

-have to make/have a lot more capital

-have to operate through an LLC/Corp typically

Conventional:

-require less money down (25% for investment, but down to 3.5% for FHA loan when living in it)

-can do through and individual (myself)

-generally better options for mortgage shopping I'm guessing (big banks, small banks, credit unions, brokers, mortgage companies, etc)

But, if say I wanted to buy a storage unit business, or build one, I would need a commercial loan I'm assuming, correct? Who actually gives these loans out? As in, who do I talk to about getting one? Would say my personal bank, Fifth Third, give me a commercial loan? How do you find these entities? Google "commercial loans" and see who pops up? 

Or say I wanted to build the above, where do you find contractors for big projects like that? It wouldn't be Joe Schmoe at basic tile flooring contracting, correct? Where do you find contractors for big jobs like that? 

Is it possible for multiple people to go on a mortgage? How does that work? Say for instance, 4 people go in on a $400,000 house. They all will live there (primary residence). Now, each will pay $100,000, but all need a loan for it, so how does that work? 4 people's names on the same mortgage? What if one person stops making payments for instance? Are they other 3 now required to pay the financial slack?

What would everyone consider fundamental categories of things to learn about in real estate? ie. pillars of knowledge

What would subsets of those fundamentals should you learn after you have the basics down?

When do you know enough to start realistically? How much do you need to know? 

I realize the above can all be answered with "it depends" and it certainly does. Moreso, I'm looking for general direction to plan on what to learn. 

Investing in real estate is turning into paralysis by analysis. I'm starting with the podcasts, and I've just started reading the BP rental property investing book, but just want to flesh out ideas of where to start. It's overwhelming and I need help paring it down into bite-size chunks. Here's my ideas of pillars to learn. First one is an example of what I'm looking for. 

Pillar: Financing

   Subsets:

       i. conventional loans (20% down)

ii. FHA loan (3.5% down, first time home buyer, house hack)

       iii. et cetera

-Analyzing deals

-Developing a Network

-Estimating Rehab Costs

-Taxes

-Legal stuff

-How to plan for it all

What else to add? Useful subsets of each one to learn as well?

Hey everyone,

I'm Kyle. I've recently been looking into developing my future and finances. My family was never wealthy, we were never good with money, and I didn't grow up learning about money. I went to college, went into debt, made bad credit choices, and paid more money than I ever needed. Yeah, I've got a lot of regrets. I'm a loser, but have found something that speaks to me. I've been floating through life looking for a calling; for something I'm truly passionate about AND that can also make me money and more educated. I'm addicted to learning and I've thrown myself into real estate and investing. I'm very much in the beginner stages and don't know what I don't know. My issue is that I can get caught up in trying to learn everything first before taking any action. It's a weakness I need to improve on. 

I've started with the BP podcast, got the BP rental book, a bunch of other investing books, and have a lot to learn. 

I wanted to throw myself out there, make a post, hopefully find some connections, and start bringing value to those around me however I can. Thanks to BP for all they do and everyone on the forums.....(steps off soapbox and puts cheese away).