All Forum Posts by: Teri Feeney Styers

@Matt Ten I bought a piece of land and went through the development process to the "paper lot" stage. Now I am selling the land to a developer who will build the infrastructure (roads, sewers, etc) and some or all of the houses. He may also choose to sell some of the "developed" dirt lots to other builders. The best place to start is a:) with a local Realtor who has either done development or represents developers. And b:) with the Planning Dept specific to the area where you are located. My planning dept listened to my idea and then provided me with a comprehensive checklist of what they would need to approve my project. It is much more complex and expensive than most people realize. "Dirt" needs to be cheap because by the time you do the engineering and all the required infrastructure that "dirt cheap" lot costs a whole lot more. For example - I paid for the dirt, spent $60,000 on engineering, drawings, etc. and the developer will need to spend another $900,000 to build out the infrastructure. That's before the first house can be built. My parcel is 3.25 acres and will be 18 building lots when completed. 

@Amrit Babu it may be too late - not sure how far along you are - but to be super ADA friendly and maximize storage make all the lower cabinets pull out drawers. If there is a blind corner make it a half moon pull out. This allows for use at maximum depth. Stuff gets lost at the back of stationary shelves and can be hard to reach. Also, if there is even a sliver of space (like next to the fridge) you can have one of those vertical pull out pantries. This one is 6 inches wide. You could replace a standard 30 inch cabinet with a 24 inch and then put this in there too... 

@Jordan Thompson @Nik Moushon makes excellent points. My tiny house project was sold to an investor and they are used as rentals. My next project was a small house (934 sq feet) on a very small lot where I tore down an old trailer.  3 bed, 2 baths, set up where the master suite could be locked off for a short term rental if you wanted. This house was purchased by a very young couple. When I put it on the market it was $100k cheaper than any other new house in our county. 

@Jordan - neither. I drew the basic plans and then had a draftsman tidy it up. Yes, I had a GC actually construct them and they do meet IRC standards which is what the building dept here requires. Here is a link to see more: https://gjara.paragonrels.com/...

@Champ Leong All of the above plus take note of window screens ahead of time and create a rule about where they can set up wading/swimming pools in the yard (big killers of grass). Bi-fold closet doors also seem to suffer... 

@Jordan Thompson I built two tiny homes (450 & 350 sq feet) on a small, weedy lot where a house had been torn down. Unless there is a compelling reason to put them on wheels, I would do normal construction. Yes, the cost per square foot is higher because kitchens and baths cost pretty much the same no matter the size of the house. But the overall cost can be quite a bit lower. I would do it again. 

It is best to come right at 10am so you can hear from everyone. Casual, round table discussion. All levels of experience are welcome. Come chat real estate and snack with us! I’m making a list so let me know…

@Hunter Gibson Your question is very broad and there are a million threads here on BP addressing each of those issues. So read up! But here is a start on the math:

#1 How much will the house sell for once it is rehabbed?

#2 How much profit do you and your partner want? Subtract from #1

#3 How much will it cost to rehab? Subtract from #2

#4 How much are your carrying costs (interest, insurance, utilities, etc.)? Subtract from #3

#5 What will it cost to sell the property (Realtor fees, title insurance, etc.)? Subtract from #4

The remaining funds after all the subtractions are what you can pay for the deal. 

@Alysha Pederson I work mainly with investor clients and most are pet friendly (STR & LTR). I've heard very few complaints. As a flipper I've seen plenty of dog poop and cat pee houses; it does happen. But people were living there with those dogs and cats under those conditions! Screening your people, proper deposits and rental insurance should take care of most problems. We raised 4 kids and always had pets (and farm animals - some of which occasionally took advantage of open doors). I can say that over the years my children did way more damage to our houses than our pets ever did.

@Roberto Fernandez Andersson don't just have your "paperwork in order" - record the deed of trust (lien/loan) with your local Clerk & Recorder's office. When the property is sold that will be found in the title search and you are protected. Everyone is correct in advising you to treat your friend in a formal fashion - no loose ends. You should have a notarized promissory note that spells out the terms of the loan and a deed of trust showing the amount owed and the property legal description. Make sure your friend did their due diligence too. I don't know how ownership transfers are handled in NY - but your friend needs to make sure that all existing mortgages or other liens on the property are extinguished at purchase. Neither of you want to find out down the road that someone else is in line ahead of you for the sale monies.