All Forum Posts by: Taylor Green

@Sharon Tzib Great response....

I have not bought a multi-family property yet, just single-family, I keep having my offers turned down... I'm getting close though I can feel it! Most of the multi's I have looked at are in lower income locations. It's the only way I can find that the numbers work for the cash flow I'd like... I was about to start a thread on month-month vs 12 month leases for low income properties, so thanks for answering before I even asked!

Many of the properties I have looked at have been month-month agreements and that has scared me off because I felt that the vacancy rate would be substantially higher. Do you think that this is true? I know dealing with lower income tenants, the vacancy rate would be higher to start with, but I just figured if they had a lease agreement it would make them be a bit more inclined to stay...

Thanks for your input, again...

Thanks for the link Sharon, that is a good read.

Thanks @Sharon Tzib , everything you said makes so much sense to me...

I have a question when it comes to actual expenses the previous owner has recorded, especially for utilities and maintenance. I seem to never trust the owners P&L statement even if it does seem reasonable and accounts for an overall operating expense around 50%. Do you think I should be more trusting of the numbers they produce, even if they seem reasonable?

I agree with what you say about forcing cash-flow... I will avoid it!

Thanks again.

Thats great to hear Chris. I scrolled over past threads on this topic, and I think that probably makes the most sense for me as well... I appreciate the input.

Hi,

I have a question on cash reserves for a property. I am going to try and save 5-10% of my projected cash flow every month to put in reserve, as well as anything above my projected cash flow each month. My question is, how much should I initially put into my cash reserve for each property, assuming the major expenses won't need to be replaced for 10-15 years. I'm specially asking about smaller multi-family properties that are 12 units and less.

Also, if I owned a property free and clear would it make sense to take a HELOC out on the property and use that as my cash reserve, or should I always keep a minimum amount of pure cash available... Thanks.

Thanks Michael... Thanks for sharing your experiences. I will call the local Section 8 contact number tomorrow.

Thanks Jon. I have had people tell me all the nightmares about renting to Section 8 tenants... How have your experiences been with them?

Hi,

I am wondering how long it takes from the time of closing to get approval to accept Section 8 tenants... Also, I am wondering how the process work? How do they determine how much rent should be paid? Has anybody ever had a good experience from turning a low income rental area property into a Section 8 property. Thanks for the input!

Thanks Chris... That about sums it up for me right there!

Hi,

I am wondering about how to change a 4plex that currently rents on a month-to-month lease into a regular 12 month lease property. I was wondering if anybody has any experience with this and was curious of the risks involved with it. The property I'm asking about is a lower income property where the market rents are around $500 a unit. Thanks.