All Forum Posts by: Victor Alfonso

Hey Y'all - Long time BP lurker, minimal poster. I purchased a couple of SFR properties in Metro Atlanta in 2022 with a partner and had a couple questions regarding the tax preparation for them. In the first scenario, title is in my name personally and I have the debt in my name as well. The outside agreement with my business partner is that we own the property 50/50, including the gain/loss, depreciation etc. In the second scenario, title is in a revocable land trust in which I am the trustee, with the debt in my name, and the same business partner and I are the 50/50 beneficiaries of that land trust. We were hoping to treat the land trust as a disregarded entity and not file a return for it since it only owns that one single family rental.

My CPA firm suggested I reach out to a real estate tax attorney on how to handle the tax preparation of each of these two scenarios. For those that have dealt with these scenarios, do you have any suggestions?  Do you think I need to retain a tax attorney, and if so is there anyone you can recommend?  Neither are high value properties so I'm not looking to pay an arm and a leg here, but I am willing to retain someone if I need to.

Thank you.

I figured as much since it's a SFR, but was hoping for a different answer :) Time to plan accordingly! Thanks again guys.

Victor

I'm coming up on my 1-year anniversary of owning a particular investment property that I purchased with cash and I'm looking to do a cash-out refi (for more RE investing, of course!).

First off, I'm assuming that the 12-month seasoning period of owning the home still applies if I want to use the appraised value instead of the purchase price?

Also, for those of you that are either mortgage/appraisal professionals or have been in a similar situation recently, will the appraiser use the income approach or the traditional sales comp approach? I'm hoping for the income approach since the rent I get is decent and the recent solds in the area are pretty low.

The house is a SFR in Mableton, GA, and I've had a stable renter with a 1-year lease since acquisition, if that helps.

Thanks for the insight guys!

Victor

Hey Guys - I haven't posted in a while as I've been working on my transition from North Carolina to So Cal (San Diego baby!). I've found it's pretty easy to find mortgage brokers who can do NOO loans with 25% down, W2 income, etc. for buy & holds, but fix&flip-friendly institutions are harder to come by.

I'm about to start pounding the pavement, but I figured I should reach out to my fellow BP'ers to see if anyone who is closing transactions currently is happy with their relationship. I am willing to open an account with the institution (whether it be a credit union or local/regional bank), can show a track record and am pretty flexible with the terms.

Any guidance/help is much appreciated!

Vic

Couple pointers:

If you own a few shopping centers, I would advise to become a part of ICSC (International Council of Shopping Centers) and attend the local conferences. You will get to learn about new concepts, find out which retailers are expanding into new markets (possibly yours?) and rub elbows with players in the industry (both on the landlord and retailer side).

Call the commercial brokerages in each city that you have a property and speak with the guys who specialize in retail leasing. In many cities there are a few prominent leasing brokers, and you'll be able to find out who they are by driving around town and looking for the "For Lease" or "Space Available" signs with their contact info. You should be able to extract a wealth of information if you are forthcoming about your situation in that they will be trying to win your business. Depending on how your conversations go you may even want to list with them - paying a commission to fill a space vs. having your space vacant will probably be an easy decision to make, especially if you're not locatd where the properties are. They would be able to put together nice marketing packages for each property, and regardless whether the prospective tenant is national or local/regional, presentation and professionalism matters.

Victor

In my opinion, the amount of security deposit you collect should definitely be determined by the amount of risk you attach to your potential tenant. On the residential side, I believe this is regulated by your state. If I can recall my RE education, California allows you to collect up to two months of rent as a security deposit for an unfurnished unit, three months for furnished. I have no idea what the regulations are in FL.

I don't manage residential but I have friends that do and they tell me they have charged renters 2+ months of rent as a SD due to a BK or foreclosure, and most if not all the renters have agreed (YMMV).

On the commercial (retail) side, I've collected much more than that in the past due to spotty history, a weak balance sheet and/or lack of experience.

Victor

Financed - 20% down. I've recently purchased 2 Freddie Mac properties with financing as well. Why use cash when debt can be had at less than 5%? :) Sorry that slipped, let's not go there again..

IMO, the GSEs aren't as afraid of financing as some believe, especially if you can show POF to be able to purchase outright.

J - On the house you're coming to check out on Saturday (went under contract as of May 27th) FNMA accepted $1k EMD on a $42k purchase price (not including 2% in closing costs)

Hey Rich - Would you mind expanding a bit? At first glance it seems a bit extreme to say that a 2 BR condo is functionally obsolescent. I'm curious to hear your thoughts...

Only a number of members here have access to the MLS - you'll be better-served by providing the details as well as your intentions/strategy. Answers will vary depending on whether you intend to wholesale, rehab/flip or buy&hold.