All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Swartz

Those taxes look very low (could just be Texas is so high). Double check that and make sure you don't include any exceptions that could be giving you inaccurate numbers.

For a house that old, the maintenance and CapEx may be low. You'll want to assess the big ticket items for age and condition. Also for vacancy, are you expecting 1 or 2 year leases? If 1 year, think about your turnover time. Even at 1 month vacancy, you'll want 8-10% to cover that month.

Hope that helps!

@Oksana Patrick Love to connect on your experience with them.

Happy to share my goto contacts as well. Feel free to DM me if you'd like.

We use TenantCloud for almost all of our management. Payments, Leases, Screening, Maintenance, Accounting. 

Start with the Bigger Pockets Calculator! Numbers have to make sense or nothing else will.

Congrats on the first deal! We do a monthly check-in (usually via text) and then maintenance as needed. Except for several things (e.g. air filters) that we do quarterly which a) makes sure they get done and b) gives us an excuse to stop by.

Different states have different requirements for separating deposits from working capital. In Texas, we don't. We also use TenantCloud but create separation by property though our bank accounts. Many online banks, Ally for example, allow you to create "logical accounts" within a single account so you can keep a single account but have your money logically separated by property or deposits/working capital. Lot of options. TenantCloud makes that easy to have funds automatically deposited by property into different accounts.

@Tyre Carmon welcome and congrats on getting started. There are a ton of great resources on the forums with all kinds of good information.

Best advice I would give you is get processes and systems in place. Find a property management software that you like, and spend some time getting comfortable with it. We personally use TenantCloud, but others on this site use Cozy, Buildium, or others. Do some research and find one you like.

There are multiple aspects of being a good landlord. Finding tenants, leasing, accounting, maintenance, tenant relationship, issue resolution, turnover, and a ton more. Build your systems. Start with one aspect and build a process around it.

Lastly. Communicate, communicate, communicate. And ask for help!

Good luck!

Congrats on the first purchase!

There is a lot of guidance on the forums for PM software; from TenantCloud, to Cozy, etc. Personally, we use TC. The more systems and processes you have in place, the easier your life is. Takes time upfront to setup but worth it in the long run. You'll want to think through marketing, screening, leasing, payments, maintenance, and a whole lot more. Good thing is there is a ton of great guidance out there. My advice: Start with 1 thing, put a system in place, and move to the next. Don't try and solve for everything right away!

Best of luck.

It's your call if you want to charge your Aunt rent. As to what to charge, there are several online sources that can help you understand your market, or to Eli's point, find a local RE and get their opinion on the market.