All Forum Posts by: John Doss

Hi Govinda, we are a full-service PM company based in Greensboro. We serve GSO and the greater Triad area. We have a pretty extensive network of contractors/GCs that have very reasonable pricing... actually I am doing a full scale remodel on one of my personal rentals right now in Greensboro. Happy to talk further and see how we may be of service to you. Most of the landlords we manage for are not local and some live in CA/AZ.

Typically if we just need to replace an HVAC, a roof, or paint then we can coordinate that and just add a small mark up for you to leverage our time and network. Often this still ends up coming out cheaper than if you found the vendor yourself. They tend to give us very competitive pricing because we do a lot of business with our vendors.

For a full scale remodel like a kitchen or bathroom renovation, we would outsource that to one of our GCs.

Hi Dionna, we're based out of Greensboro. Would love to hear more details about this deal.

@Enrique Toledo Hey Enrique, happy to connect. I'm an agent/property manager in Greensboro. Currently we have a duplex under contract, I'm always on the search for a great investment as well. 

@Jason Wray What lender do you know of that offers investment loans with anything less than 20-25% down? I've probably spoken to 30 different lenders, some conventional, some hard money, some local banks and 20-25% is the minimum

Brian, MTR's can be very strong in Greensboro. We have a handful that we manage for clients. We're connected with a lot of relocation networks at Cone and several through BHHS (which I'm affiliated with for buying/selling). Funny story, but actually one of our MTR tenants is an interim VP for Cone hospital who is in charge of their real estate development acquisition department. Happy to connect or take a look at your property to see what it may be able to rent for.

I also house hack and rent rooms. Although most of them are longer-term tenants, I just had a midterm in my guest bedroom. My house is walking distance from UNCG, and a furnished room with a shared bathroom can command around $800 to $900. But keep in mind room rental is a lot more management intensive so that is something you should budget for if you plan to hire a PM.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $93,000
Cash invested: $53,600

This property was being sold by a wholesaler near the Greensboro coliseum. It was owner-occupied but hadn't been updated in at least 40-50 years. The floors also were very uneven - indicative of some joist/support issues underneath. It had poorly taken phone-photos on the MLS so it was passed over by most retail consumers. It provided a great opportunity for us to go ahead and purchase it under listing price.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This property needed a good amount of work and it was poorly marketed which is the perfect mix for a good deal. We also had the another property under contract at the time so we were looking for something else that was around 100,000 or less purchase price.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

We found this deal on the MLS and negotiated a bit with the wholesaler that was working the deal to get it 7,000 under list price.

How did you finance this deal?

We financed this with a conventional fixed-rate 30 year loan.

How did you add value to the deal?

We did a total remodel on this property. We had the roof replaced, new insulation in the attic/crawlspace, new bathroom, kitchen cabinets, windows, floors, paint, and we had the house jacked up and reinforced where several joists had failed causing the floor to slope.

What was the outcome?

We were able to successfully rehab and turn this house into a long-term rental.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

We have a roofer that we use for all of our roofs. However, he also does total remodels for other investors. We decided to let them do some of the joist work underneath. They are fast and they are cheap but they do not have the highest quality workmanship. We ended up having our main contractor/carpenter come behind after them to fix the shoddy work they did underneath the house.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Lender - Guaranteed Rate

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $117,000
Cash invested: $63,400

This is a 3/1.5 house in the Glenwood neighborhood of Greensboro. When we first saw it, the previous landlord had done a lipstick remodel on it and you could tell they tried to cover up certain issues. For instance putting new LVP over soft, rotten subfloor. However, because of the location and proximity to the university, I felt that it was a good investment.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

The house is located in an area that is up and coming due to its proximity to the university (UNCG) and I thought it would be a great opportunity to rent to students at my alma mater.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I found this deal on the MLS. At the time interest rates were still in the 3-4% range. We were able to offer about $7,000 over listing price without it really affecting our monthly mortgage payment. We also put up a good amount of due diligence and earnest money to secure the deal.

How did you finance this deal?

This deal was financed through a conventional mortgage with a 20% down payment. This was the first deal where my family started to become more involved and put up a lot of the money for down payment and renovations. After witnessing the successes of my first deal, my parents wanted to get involved and build a rental portfolio to secure their retirement.

How did you add value to the deal?

We did a total remodel on this house. We added a mini-split HVAC (it was previously window units and baseboard heat), changed all windows, new roof, new siding, new plumbing, new light fixtures, new kitchen cabinets, total bathroom gut and remodel.

What was the outcome?

We were able to rent the house out to several graduate students at the local university for $1385/month. The mortgage payment is only $585 thanks to the 3.875% interest rate.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

In this deal I learned even more about remodeling, working with contractors and the importance of good negotiations during the due diligence period of a purchase. There was a tree that had grown in the foundation which caused significant damage to the foundation wall. We were able to have the sellers pay for the $4,000 repair which helped to offset some of our expenses.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Kelly Irvin - realtor
RJ Meyerhoffer - lender

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $310,000
Cash invested: $90,000

The house is situated in Sunset Hills which is an affluent neighborhood in the heart of Greensboro. The house sits approximately 2 blocks from the local university and a few minutes from downtown. The location is prime and the property has already appreciated around 30-35% since purchased. This can be contributed to sweat equity and market conditions in the Triad area.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This was the perfect deal to get started in real estate investing - a house-hack in a duplex, in an affluent neighborhood which left room to add sweat equity, appreciation, and plenty of cashflow by renting out the rooms.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

The deal was brought to me by Jason Coleman, a local investor-agent and contributor to the BP forums.

How did you finance this deal?

It was financed with an owner-occupied conventional loan with a 5% down payment.

How did you add value to the deal?

We did a total remodel on the house. New floors, new insulation, updated the kitchen, new bathroom vanities, new light fixtures, new HVAC and paint throughout.

What was the outcome?

It is a duplex with a unit upstairs and a unit downstairs. Each unit is 3/1 with a kitchen. I currently live in one of the bedrooms and rent out the other 5 in the house. The rent per room is $615 ($750 if there's a couple). Everyone living there is a mix of young professionals, students, or young adults just getting started in life away from home.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

This house hack was my first introduction into real estate investing. After starting the remodel I ran into multiple issues - active termites, mold that had spread through half the bottom floor, bad HVAC, electrical wiring issues. It was stressful at times but in the end, I learned a lot about remodeling and working with contractors.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Jason Coleman - agent
RJ Meyerhoffer - lender

He has signed the lease, but I haven’t signed it yet. I am asking him today for clarification. @Nathan Gesner that would be my concern - that he may be using it for some potential illegal activity.

And as far as I know, his wife and him still have the primary residence residence in Chicago. He said he just needs a place to stay for a few weekends while he’s traveling in between the places.

Typically I like to do certified funds for the first month rent and security deposit but I am not sure how to do that when they are signing virtually, aside from having it sent via snail mail.