All Forum Posts by: Jason Stratman

@Jon Q. - You must have skimmed over his post... He was $16,000 ALL IN. 

$10,000 purchase price, $4,000 in rehab, $1500 in closing costs.

Great question Sarah, as I've been looking into WRA.org myself, but haven't signed up yet.  So I don't have any advice for you on that, but am anxious to hear what others say.

Another question that I have had, and one that you may have as well, is what brokerage would be the best place to hang a license for someone using it for investing vs the standard agent path.  I know it's a question asked a lot on BP, but maybe someone has some insight that is Wisconsin specific, or if a bigger brokerage like Keller-Williams is a better option.

@Ryan Kraus Welcome!  I'm a newer investor in the La Crosse market, just getting our first rental property this last August.  Always nice to see others from around the area on the site!

@Russ M.

Disclaimer: I'm not asking you for legal advice, I will contact my real estate attorney with any questions... that whole thing :)

If I give tenants my name and contact information as the Property Manager of a unit, and on the lease agreement have the LLC listed as the owner that is on the deed, that would satisfy the WI law requirement for this instance, correct?

The fact that I am also the owner of the LLC should not play a part at all, and that would not need to be disclosed to the tenant. It is the strategy for self managing properties that has been spoken about multiple times on the podcast... tenants work better with property managers than they do owners. They don't need to know they are the same person.

At least that is the way that I read it, wondering if others read it the same way.

@Paul Hormann

Thanks for the insight Paul... it's a really good point.

I have not seen the rent rolls from the previous owner, however... that is something that I am going to have to ask for before close.  I appreciate the reply.

@Kelly N.

Thank you very much for your reply... your response points me in the right direction.  It may seem common sense to most, but the biggest question I had was how the month to month lease would work out since it was with the previous owner, but you validated that my thought process was correct.

Also a very good point with paying the background checks for them.  It's a couple that currently lives in the property, so I'm assuming if I use a site like SmartMove I would run a background check on both of them.  $70 out of my pocket is well worth the cost if they want to stay.

Thanks for all the answers, but I'm still questioning my specific situation...

If I close on Aug. 12th I have to uphold the current lease for 3 days, as it's only through Aug. 15th.  At that point it would have gone month to month with the old owner, but they would no longer be the owner... do I screen the current tenants within that 3 days to see if they meet my criteria?  If they don't, then what?  Extend the current lease by 30 days and give them notice?  Can I extend the current lease if it's not even my lease?

I'm probably over thinking this process as I'm just starting out, but with the way the dates are falling with closing and the current lease ending, I feel like I'm in over my head... but I'm sure I'd feel that way even if it was vacant!

EDIT:  Just to clarify, I would like to keep the current tenants, because they want to stay and it would be easier on my part, but I want to make sure they are good tenants as I didn't screen them previously.

Hi all -

We have our first investment property under contract, with an estimated close date of Aug. 12th.  The property has current tenants, which have expressed interest to stay.  Their current lease expires Aug. 15th, and if closing gets pushed out at all they would go month to month with the current owner, per the lease agreement, however this has the potential to be a very quick turn-around.

I'm assuming I would still run the current tenants through my own screening process.  Do I move forward with them filling out the application before I've even closed on the property, along with paying for the credit/criminal/background check?  I've sent them the Estoppel Certificate to verify the information with the lease agreement, but how far can I keep going before closing on the property?  With it being such a quick turn-around with their current lease expiring I want to have as much lined up as I can, as I don't want to keep bad tenants if they don't pass my screening requirement.

Is there any sort of guide on the site on how to handle inherited tenants?  A search on the subject returns many results on specific questions people have had, but with this being our first property I'm looking for a general guide on what I can and can't do before we close.

Thanks in advance for any help or guidance!

I realized I didn't state that this property was located in La Crosse, Wisconsin.  

Getting the inspection set for next week, so very excited to be moving forward towards my first deal.

Last year this was a HUD property that the owner purchased for around $35,000. They put quite a bit of work into fixing it up inside and also had a new roof installed. So there isn't any repairs that needs to be done right off the bat. The only concern is the furnace is getting close to end of life, but my plan is to purchase a Home Warranty for $500, which would cover the furnace if it went out, among other things. If the furnace is still fine after that first year or so, and I have enough reserves in my CapEx to cover replacing it if need be, I won't renew the Home Warranty.

So because the home is of average quality, it's not run down or anything, I think $200/mo in repairs & Cap Ex should be sufficient.