All Forum Posts by: Tom V.

@Account Closed

Here's some logic for your consideration....

Generally leverage is most useful when used to build equity in properties over a 20-30 year timeline. The tenants pay down the debt over the life of the mortgage (with a little bit of cash flow for you), and after the mortgage is paid off you've got a paid for property with good cash flow income. TIME is the key element that makes leverage work to your advantage.

When nearing retirement age, taking on more debt to build more equity doesn't make much sense because you don't have time on your side anymore. INCOME should be the focus for those nearing retirement. This would mean selling off some properties in order to pay off others, and then collecting the healthy cash flow from the paid off property as retirement income.

Unless of course, you don't need the income for your retirement.

 Ok, thanks for clarifying. I thought the list of cities on their website were the only cities they serviced, but I must have been mistaken. Looking at it again, it appears those cities are where they have customers, not their service area limitations. Thanks again, Chris.

@Account Closed

Thanks, Chris! That was the one mentioned in the podcast. Unfortunately they are not available in my city. Seems like my local area might be a bit too "podunk" for a service like that.

I wonder if there is a DIY solution that would give similar results.

@Jerry Ellis I didn't check your math, but it looks to me that you've included all the right expenses. I'm assuming that the water is not sub metered, since you included it in your expenses. Might want to double check that the electric is sub metered. Good luck on the deal!

A while ago on the podcast (can't remember which episode) I remember one of the guests talking about how they were able to sub meter the water for a multi unit building by using some type of device that can read the water flow by fitting onto the outside of the pipe. Then that device transmits the readings to a billing company, who will bill the tenants for their water usage. Basically, the landlord still pays the water bill to the city, but gets reimbursed by the tenants.

I wonder if someone could shed some light on this idea for me. I've looked at ultrasonic flow readers online, and they're more expensive than having the city install sub meters. My google searches for a service like this are coming up short.

Anybody familiar with this concept, and how is it done?

Much thanks for any help.

@Chris Pierce

Hi Chris, welcome. Great to see another person in NW Iowa active on the site. I'm a relative newbie to RE investing too, and have learned a ton from this site and the forums. Definitely check out the podcast too.

Will send you a colleague request.

@Shiv Pa

You'll find lots of them here. Spend some time reading the forums and the other resources on the website and you'll learn a ton. Good luck to you.

@Shawn Pottschmidt

1. I wouldn't trust any information from the owner about the tenants. The owner could likely say the tenants are good, even if they are terrible. They want to sell the property, so they'll say what they need to say to get it sold. Certainly ask, but know that you may not be getting the truth. The neighbors could be a better source of information regarding the current tenants.

2. Check your state landlord/tenant laws regarding tenants when a property is sold. I know in my state if you buy a property with tenants you are required to maintain any lease agreement that the current landlord has with the tenants for the duration of the lease. Of course, if they are violating the lease or not paying, then you can evict them on those grounds if you need to. Again, check your own state laws.

Good luck!

I have 2 easy and cheap suggestions.

1. Get rid of that green carpet on the front step. If there's adhesive from the carpet, sand it off and the power wash the concrete clean.

2. That big empty cream colored space on the left side. I've seen people with similar homes hang some type of decorative star or something like that on the siding. I think they're called "Barn Stars". Not my style, but a lot of people seem to like those.

Good luck!

@Rocky V.

In my experience with my business (non real estate), Paypal will side with the buyer 99% of the time, regardless of who has proof of anything.

But one thing I have seen, is Paypal will sometimes refund the buyer and then reimburse the seller as well. Essentially, Paypal eats the cost of the transaction in order to keep both buyer and seller as customers. You may want to tell your friend to call Paypal and give that a try. If he threatens to close his account and never use Paypal again, they might reimburse him to keep him as a customer.