I closed my first multifamily syndicated purchase this week (24 unit, 7 yr old high quality condos in Des Moines),but, my second deal fell through because the largest investor pulled out at a late stage and I didn't have a backup investor so couldn't get to closing.

Up until now I've been printing the entire addendum, signing & initialing and then scanning the entire thing back into the computer to send back to the bank.I would gladly use a product like Cute PDF if I could scan and insert a single signature page, but the addendums I've seen also require you to initial every page and sign in multiple places, so that won't work.I was looking into the option of a digital signature and digital initials, but according to this article many banks won't accept those.

Having maintenance people who can get work done cheap, yet not sacrafice quality.

Familiarize yourself with plumbing materials quality ratings and cost.Their are many ways to join a pipe, learn to notice the most professional look.Look more closely at insulation materials and see the different quality standards.

Greg it will depend on the portfolio of the bank and how many performing versus non - performing assets on the books.The bank might not want to refi that type of product with too much of that type of asset class non-performing on the books already.They might have too much defaulted commercial all together.For value add plays typically occupancy is an issue.The lenders will want certain occupancy levels obtained for at least 3 months depending on loan type and typically stabilized for 6 months to a year or longer.If you buy an apartment building at say 50% occupancy using a hard money lender or private money and the going vacancy rate is an average of 10% then the lender wants 90% occupancy averaged out over time.When you refi you will only be able to go up to a certain percentage to cash out or can just convert with no cash out to the lower interest rate.Regular banks do not lend usually on sub par occupancy levels for the area.They see it as too risky and the say 60% occupancy can quickly go to 30 or 40% and they have a foreclosure or short sale on their hands taking a loss,plus inspection reports,attorney fees,appraisal and environmental review etc.

Its a fine line we have to walk on to not spend much but keep quality tenants so 2 Questions:1) How does an Investor/Landlord control spending habits?

If I look to neighborhoods on the next "quality" notch above those I've been buying in, the houses that I could get $800 a month rent on would cost more like $70-$90K instead of $30-$45K.

For less than a cup of Starbucks, a user can get the privileges to post ads for deals, buyer's lists, loans they are offering or seeking, or can advertise their company, product, or service.

Instead they just want to get the pain over with as quickly as possible.You also have to find a bank that is motivated and doesn't want the property (shopped) listed by the seller to fully expose multiple offers and compete with other investors.This is why many people wholesale.They make a few k on a marginal deal and let other investors take the high risk.Then they only buy when they get a really good deal for themselves.I would say "Do not get emotionally attached to this deal and overpay because you wanted to BUY SOMETHING" Instead just treat it as a property and if someone overpays for your goals then move on to the next.Remember it is easy to build a crap portfolio with marginal returns.It is much,much harder to build long term quality properties at a great price that will create generational wealth for the your family.

You also need to take into account if your competition is waving the security deposit for qualified applicants,charging a pet fee or not,paying for any water,sewer,trash for the tenant included in the rent,including appliances,or giving a rent credit on move in, and many other factors.Rent rates can look good until you see how many landlords you are competing with,quality of the product,and incentives given driving down the net rent before debt service and depreciation.