All Forum Posts by: Steve M.

Nice Job @Eric Thompson !!!

Welcome!

I've always told the wife that I want to move to either Alaska or Wyoming!  Someday, I hope to make that a reality!  

Your credit isn't 580 because of 9 hard inquiries.  With being a personal guarantor on pretty much everything personal & business related, I have upwards of 12-14 hard inq's on all 3 reports at any given time and my credit treads the line of 800 or so.

My credit was shot years ago.  If you search my past history, I document how I went about fixing it :)  Was able to bump it up a couple of hundred points within a matter of months :)

www.MyFico.com was my godsend on fixing my credit.  I did it myself ... and it took nothing more than time, patience, the cost of several stamps, and some good will on the part of my creditors!

Good luck!  

RELAX ...

It may seem odd, but the week leading up to it ~ I literally did no studying.  I did this because I wanted to keep my nerves in check.  When I get nervous, I second guess, which studies have shows you almost always need to go with the first answer that pops in to your head.  I scheduled my test for an afternoon.  Morning of ~ I started cramming.  I went over any area I felt I was relatively weak in (of the 30 sections, roughly 10 or so are what I really needed to go over)

Crammed ~ Went and took the test ~ and passed both portions on the first try.

Don't get worked up ~ If you fail or only pass 1 of the 2, at least the UNKNOWN is over with!  That's how I went in to it.  If I failed, no biggie, at least I know what to expect, and know where I should put my focus :)

Good Luck!

@Paul Ho

On the surface, it looks good.  Dig deep, get all the details and do all your DD and bring us the numbers.  We'll give you a better idea once we have that info.

I don't think my Prop taxes are high at all. I was mentioning the prop taxes for the OP. He has $3k+ listed on the duplex at an ARV of which I would assume is about $300k. Sounds about the same as y'all down south :)

Prop taxes are the bane of my existence. Same reason I stay away from downtown metro areas with GSD (General Services Dist/Urban District) tax rates. It just eats away at ROI.

Parents sparing the down payment or floating the note?  You won't be able to get a conventional with only 10% down.  You'll be in the 20-25% range.

What sort of area is it?  You say not so nice.  B? C? 

Right off the bat ~ Numbers look good.

Reno'ed in 2002 sounds good ~ but still at 13 years, I'd check all majors (roof, hvac, water heater, windows, appliances, etc...)

Who pay utilities?  Can you give us an actual expense breakdown?

Couple other things:

1)  In your estimates ~ you have 4.25% listed as interest ... Is this legit?

2)  Insurance at $50/month?  That seems awfully cheap ~ Especially on an investment rental nevermind a duplex.  I'd seriously consider adding an umbrella on top of this and make sure this quote or estimate is legit.

3)  Property Tax out that way sure ain't cheap.  For Reference:  Our $300k rental home pays $1714 annually in Prop Tax.

How old are the majors?  Roof?  HVAC?  Water Heater?  Appliances?  etc...

On the surface, with how it sits ~ It doesn't look like a good deal to me.  Not being updated in 30+ years plus God knows how much deferred maintenance ... That price just doesn't sit well with me.  

If it was $275k rehabbed, all majors replaced within the last few years, and you could capture $2400 right off the bat ~ I'd be a bit more intrigued, but I would still look to see how I could improve the ROI.

IMO ~ I'd shoot high on your rehab estimates, account for a new HVAC (x2) and roof, and put all that information in to an offer.  Explain that the deferred maintenance and below market rents is the reason for the offer and see where you go.  At face value, I'd shoot for $200 - 220k ... Remember, Duplexes have a much smaller buying pool, and therefore, smart investors won't be offering top dollar.  

You may save water, but Dishwashers are the #1 problem appliance I have.  The money saved in water will likely be put in the fixing, re-fixing, and replacing those dishwashers.

Ranked Appliances (from most issues to less issues)

1)  Dishwasher 

2)  Fridge

3)  Stove

4)  Microwave

I tend to go Electric on the stove and that has really brought down repair calls.