HOW CAN YOU BUY AN APARTMENT TO RENT OUT FOR PROFIT

By Joe Arias

Investing in apartments is one of the easiest and best ways to make money as a real estate investor. Apartments will always be in demand, especially as younger demographics continue to wait until later in life to buy homes. Aside from the regular maintenance, renting apartments for profit is a generally hands-off process, making it great for beginners just getting into real estate investing. In this article, we will share how you can buy an apartment to rent out for profit.


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Why You Should Buy an Apartment as an Investment

Before explaining how you can buy an apartment as a real estate investment, it’s important to address why you want to. When done correctly and knowledgeably, apartments can be a very profitable real estate investment strategy. With apartment investing, you have a guaranteed amount of money that you know will come in every single month. Many other real estate investing strategies do not have this reliable income stream. Apartments are also generally easy to maintain. As long as you are not investing in a large complex – which is not recommended for beginners – you will not need to rely on paying any management companies. Since demand is high for apartments, they are seen as low-risk investments, which is perfect for any beginner. It will be very easy for you to keep vacancy low and profit quickly.

How to Buy an Apartment for Real Estate Investing

There are many steps to buying an apartment for real estate investing. You will have to pick where it will be, find a good fit, conduct an analysis, look into options for financing, get it appraised, and then get tenants to start making an income from it. Below are the steps broken down into specifics to help you get started in apartment real estate investing.

Decide on a Location

The first step of buying an apartment is to decide where you will buy. There are important factors to consider: median home value, median age, unemployment rate, population growth, median salary, and job growth. All of these factors give you a little more insight into the area and the direction in which it is going. Areas with high job growth and low unemployment rates mean there are plenty of jobs. This, in turn, will lead to population growth and will result in more demand for apartments and eventually allow you to charge higher rates. Choose somewhere that is growing but not outright unaffordable for buying your first property.

Find Apartments for Sale

Once you have decided on a location, it is time to start looking for apartments for sale. At this point, you need to start considering what you are looking for in an apartment building. Consider things like the number of units, whether or not you will need to renovate, and home value. An apartment building may be a perfect fit with unit types, but it may not be the best option for your first investment property if it is pricey and will require work.

Perform a Property Analysis

Once you have narrowed down your search and found a few properties that you think could be a good fit, it’s time to perform a property analysis to understand further which property is the best option. Use the investment property calculator to get an idea of each property’s cap rate, positive cash flow, and cash on cash return. These numbers will let you know the property is a good investment or not.

Look Into Financing Options

Now that you have a better understanding of the costs of the apartments you are looking at and the return you expect to get, it’s time to look into your financing options. Most real estate investors do not have the capital on their first deal to buy it outright. Using financing will allow you to buy the property and use the income to pay it off quickly. You can either choose to finance through a traditional mortgage, a home equity loan, or private financing. Most beginners prefer to do a traditional mortgage for their first property, but you must do your research and find the financing option that works best for you. If you already have a home, you may be better off with the home equity loan.


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Get the Apartment Inspected and Appraised

Once you decide on the apartment you feel is the best investment, you need to have it professionally inspected and appraised. The inspection is essential to ensure you are not buying a property with any damage you were not aware of. Structural damage especially could be very costly. Your mortgage provider will require an appraisal to ensure the purchase price is similar to the appraised value.

Renting the Apartment

Once you have purchased the apartment, it’s time to rent it out and make some income. For the best results, you will want to invest in making any necessary home improvements and ensuring the apartments have a modern look with updated appliances and amenities. Make sure to screen all potential renters to lessen your chances of dealing with eviction or undesirable tenants. Hire an attorney when you first start off to deal with all of the legal aspects of renting out an apartment.

Summary

Learning how to buy an apartment is essential to a successful real estate investment strategy. It’s an excellent way for beginners to start making a reliable income from their investment properties. Apartments are generally very little work once they are purchased and are an easy way to make passive income.

For more tips on real estate investing, make sure to check out the rest of our articles.


Joe Arias and his partners have flipped hundreds of properties in the Southern California Region. He has developed cutting-edge systems to simplify and scale the entire remodel process that can easily be applied to flipping, rentals, wholesaling, and other passive income strategies. More recently, Joe founded a real estate investing education company called RealSuccess Investments, allowing him to share his tools and systems with hundreds of up-and-coming investors. 

RealSuccess is focused on education on flipping, rentals, passive income, and wholesaling.

Joe is also a best-selling author. He has written 4 books: Finding your RealSuccess, First Steps to Flipping, R stands for Rentals and Retirement, and Wholesaling Real Estate.

“I came from Argentina when I was 20, I am 40 years old now. I didn’t know anyone, I am CERO generation, usually people say, I am first or second generation but I was the one that crossed the border, no language, no friends, no family, no money, nothing, nada… If I can do it, anyone can.”

From a young latino immigrant  to a celebrated real estate investor, Joe is a true testament to hard work and discipline. As an investor, he has made it his mission to help others achieve financial freedom while enjoying living a life of passion, fulfillment, and empowerment.

RealSuccess Website

www.ourrealsuccess.com

Personal Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/joeariasinvestor/

Real Estate Investment- Instagram: 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/realsuccesseducation/

Video For Finding Money from All Day Training (10 Hour Seminar)

https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/528446162

1 Hour Webinar

https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/530996751

Amazon Book#1:

Amazon Book#2


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IS IT CRAZY TO SELLER FINANCE YOUR RENTALS—OR CRAZY NOT TO?

By Eddie Speed

IS IT CRAZY TO SELLER FINANCE YOUR RENTALS—OR CRAZY NOT TO?

We’re now in a note cycle. It’s as obvious to a note guy like me as when an oil guy hits a gusher.

I’ve been a note guy since 1980. As anyone in any phase of real estate knows, the market is constantly changing and evolving. We either change with it or get left behind. I can say from experience that what worked in one decade wouldn’t work in the next. And so on for the next, and the next, and the next.

Which leads us to 2023. We’re seeing a market phenomenon that’s producing a phenomenal opportunity.


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I’ve lived through cycles where owning rental properties made a lot of sense financially. But in today’s market, not as much. You owe it to yourself to test your investment strategy. Run the numbers and compare the profit potential of owning rentals versus selling your rentals with seller financing. Because of today’s high home prices and mortgage rates, I predict you’ll discover it makes more sense to be the bank (with NO expenses like taxes, repairs or insurance) instead of being the landlord (paying ALL those expenses). I bet you’ll also realize how much more income you’ll bring in every month by seller financing instead of renting.

HERE’S WHY NOW IS THE TIME FOR SELLER FINANCING

If you’ve ever dropped a coin into a slot machine, your eyes would pop out if all the dials lined up. Well, when it comes to dropping some money on an investment, all the dials are lining up on seller financing—especially in regions of the country where rents have dropped significantly. Here are some of the factors we’re seeing in today’s market:

• RENTAL HOUSE AFFORDABILITY The cost of buying a potential rental house is the highest since at least 1996. If you get a mortgage around 8%, and pay an inflated price due to the pandemic, you’ll pay 60% more than buying the same house three years ago. This makes it very challenging to scale up your rental business. On the other hand, if you sell your rental houses now with seller financing, you’ll get substantially more than three years ago. And you’ll be getting double or triple the interest now than you would have gotten three years ago.

• INCREASES IN RENT ARE WAY BELOW INCREASES IN PRICE Averaging all US markets together, the cost of buying a house is up 60%, but rents have risen only 22% during the same 3-year period. In many markets (mainly in the western half of the country), rents have declined since last year.

• SOFTER DEMAND FOR RENTAL PROPERTIES A glut of newly built apartments is depressing rent growth. And according to the St. Louis Federal Reserve, an additional one million units currently under construction will hit the market soon. Fannie Mae predicts vacancy rates in multifamily buildings will reach 6.25% in 2024, which exceeds the 15-year average of 5.8%. Apartment stocks are underperforming. To avoid vacancies, apartments lower the rent which depresses rental income for landlords.


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• CREDIT AVAILABILITY Underwriting standards have changed drastically because of the covid pandemic. Traditional lenders arenow hurting from over two million delinquent home loans. Money from banks and mortgage companies has gotten tighter and tighter, putting eager buyers—even ones with steady jobs and solid credit—in the penalty box. The mortgage credit availability index stood at 96.3 in October, 2023; which is about half what it was three years ago. Well-qualified homebuyers are getting turned down by traditional lenders; driving them right into the arms of seller financing.

HOME APPRECIATION HAS LEVELED OFF Even though home prices shot up during the pandemic, prices aren’t maintaining the same trajectory. They’ve hit a plateau. Goldman Sachs expects home prices and mortgage rates to increase only 1.7% in the next year. That’s not just flat, that’s “stand on a brick and see fifty miles flat.” Now’s the time to sell your rental portfolio at top dollar and cash out before home prices stagnate.

TAX ADVANTAGES When you sell a rental property that has greatly appreciated, you’ll owe a bundle in capital gains taxes. But if you take the profit over time through seller financing, the Internal Revenue Service allows you to spread out the gains using the “Installment Sales Method.” This technique has allowed countless sellers to pay no capital gains taxes at all. Of course, there’s always the possibility the IRS could close this loophole in the future, so better take advantage of it now.

YOU CAN MAKE MORE THAN DOUBLE THE MONTHLY INCOME FROM SELLER FINANCING THAN LANDLORDING

Today’s home prices and interest rates are both elevated. So when you sell your rental with seller financing, the monthly mortgage payment you receive will be much larger than your monthly rent check.

In the rental world, there’s the “50% Rule” (also what they call “The Magic Number”). It means 50% of rental income goes toward expenses. If the rent checks you get don’t surpass the 50% Rule—after paying taxes, repairs, and insurance—you’ll lose money. But as a note owner in today’s market—who DOESN’T pay taxes, repairs, and insurance—even a mediocre note would easily beat the 50% Rule of profitability. And with today’s high interest rates being paid TO you instead of BY you, the checks you get every month could be lots more than you get from rent.

GET YOUR APPRECIATION NOW INSTEAD OF YEARS FROM NOW

A frequent objection people raise when they compare note investing to landlording is that when you own a rental house, the property appreciates over time. It’s a fair question that deserves a fair answer.

As long as the rental property is kept in good repair, and the neighborhood doesn’t decline, its value should increase over the years until you decide to sell it. But let’s say there are two investors; one buys a rental property, the other buys a note, and both pay the same amount. Over ten years, the note investor makes double the monthly income compared to the landlord who pays taxes, insurance, and repairs for ten years. If the landlord sells the property after ten years, he gets the appreciation—but the rent checks stop (unless he sells with seller financing). As for the note investor, after ten years he still has twenty more years of payments coming!

Even if the landlord’s rental house appreciates roughly 10% a year, fire up your calculator and you’ll see how much more the note investor makes over the life of their investments.

THEN THERE’S THE HEADACHE FACTOR

Lots of landlords think they’re getting an investment, but it turns into a job. You have to deal with showings, repairs, and midnight calls from tenants to fix a leaky hot water heater. But when you own the note, repairs are the homeowner’s headaches. Every investor who has transitioned from landlording to seller financing will agree: You can own a thousand notes for the same amount of work as owning a hundred rentals.

If the note investor’s homeowner stops paying, your investment is completely collateralized by the property. But if the landlord’s tenant stops paying, good luck collecting the back rent.

ARE YOU READY TO TURN THE CORNER ON YOUR CAREER?

It’s been said that “Timing is to investments what location is to real estate.” The time is now and the door is wide open for you to consider selling your rental properties with seller financed notes. Don’t keep doing things the same way as always, and don’t look past this tremendous window of opportunity to boost your net worth like never before.

Learning the tools of seller financing and note creation will open up a whole new world of monthly cashflow and wealth-building—and we make it surprisingly easy at NoteSchool. The first step is to take my free 2-hour Master Class where you’ll be introduced to the lucrative world of notes. Just visit: NoteSchool.com/EddieMasterClass


Eddie Speed: Author, Teacher, Innovator, Visionary

Eddie grew up around horses, but in 1980 he learned there’s more wealth to be built with a pencil than a rope. That’s when his father-in-law, a pioneer of seller financed notes, taught him the ropes of the note business. Eddie has been perfecting his craft ever since, introducing creative innovations that changed the way note investing is done.

As the nation’s most experienced note buyer, he has closed over 50,000 note deals. He launched NoteSchool in 2000, where anyone can learn the art of creative financing for performing and non-performing discounted mortgage notes. He is the owner and president of Colonial Funding Group LLC, which acquires and brokers discounted real estate secured notes, and he’s a principal in a family of Private Equity funds that acquire bulk note portfolios.

Thousands of NoteSchool students have testified to the wealth building, life-changing power of his tried-and-true, data-driven approach to note investing.


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Don’t read this (it will make a lot of people angry)

Please review this important post from our sponsor, thank you.


Hey friend,

What I am about to say will probably offend some people and if you are one of them I am sorry.

However it is unfortunately true so here it is:

The reason tenants complain so much about security deposits is the landlord’s fault.

Yep, that is an unpopular concept among investors but hear me out.

I recently did a survey among thousands of tenants and investors and found some very interesting data.

Nearly 60% of tenants are concerned about getting their deposit back and feel the landlord will try to take unfair deductions.

But after digging in a bit further it turned out that only 19% have actually had unfair deductions in the past (per them).

Wild that so many complain but only a small amount actually experienced it!

We have all had to deal with tenant complaints and arguments on the deductions but why are they actually complaining so much?

As investors we are not “out to get” the tenants as they may think. Sure we are in it for a profit but not to put them on the streets…

So why all the noise?

I can tell you I found the reason and it is quite a shocker, even for me:

By survey, 59% of leases had no inspection done or no photos taken.

Yep, that’s right. The majority of leases didn’t even have photos prior to the move in.

So how do we expect to have any sort of agreement on deductions when it is based on what the tenant remembers it to be? Naturally there is going to be a difference of opinion.

Of course the logical answer is that tenants should take photos for themselves but do we really expect them to do that? Not likely. And it is actually our property so it is in our interest to property document it.

This was the problem I was running into and I created a simple solution for it which I wanted to share with others.

It is called Lease Protector.

I created it with this exact problem in mind and to provide investors with a cost effective way to do inspections.

After a ton of demand I later added a full suite of features so they can manage their properties start to finish for free (yeah, crazy I know…).

So if you want to learn more about it you can click the link below. It is a free account and no obligations so check it out.

>>> Learn more about Lease Protector

And if you are already using another property management software then I have a solution for that as well.

I took the inspection feature and made it into a separate app that is super simple that you can use to do inspections. Not free but very cost effective and will save untold misery…. (free account creation so you can look around).

>>> Inspection app

I am sharing these as I found them helpful with my rentals and I think you will too!

Enjoy!

Sean Tanner

RE Investor & CEO of Lease Protector

New Data Reveals the Most and Least Affordable US States for Renters

  • West Virginia has seen the smallest increase in rent prices over the past three years 
  • Colorado cities have seen the biggest increase in rent prices over the past three years.  
  • Iowa has seen the second smallest increase in rents prices 

Research reveals that West Virginia has seen the smallest increase in rent prices over the past three years. Colorado is the state where major metropolitan areas are the most expensive for renters as of 2023.  

Moving Companies Experts MovingFeedback analysed data from Zillow.com to reveal the US states whose major metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) have seen the lowest/highest increase in average rent prices over the past three years.   


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West Virginia has seen the lowest percentage rise in rent prices since 2020 of only 12%. In the first three months of 2020, the average rent price in WV was $950.54, compared to an average of $1,066.29 across January, February and March in 2023. This is a 4.5 times smaller decrease than the state with the largest increase, Colorado.   

Coming in second is Iowa with a 15% increase in rent prices in just three years. Renters in MSAs were paying on average $947.54 between January and March 2020 and are now paying $1,085.55; a $138.01 increase.  

Hawaii ranks as the state who’s major MSAs had the third smallest increase in average prices for renters. In the first three months of 2020, rent prices were $2,283.08. The state has seen a $367.05 increase in price, to an average of $2,650.13 between January and March 2023.  

In fourth position is Wyoming where renters have experienced an average 16.45% increase in prices. An increase of $173.26 can be seen in this state over the past three years.   

Louisiana places as having the fifth largest increase in rent, going from $1,108.43 in early 2020, to $1,226.59 in 2023; a 17% increase over the three-year period.   

In sixth position is North Dakota where the major MSAs’ average rent price has increased from $1,087.38 to $1,296.56, coming in just below Louisiana with a 17.67% increase.   

Coming in seventh is Minnesota with a 17.89% increase in rent prices over the past three years. Renters are now paying $1,151.26 compared to $1,357.17 in 2020.  


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Kansas is the state with the eighth highest increase in rent prices of 19.54%.  

In ninth position is Wisconsin where renters are paying on average $935.81; a $1,133.63 increase compared to 2020.  

Massachusetts places tenth in the rankings with a rent percentage increase over the past three years of 21.48%. 

Colorado has been named the most expensive US state for renters in its major metropolitan areas. The state has seen the biggest increase in rent prices over the past three years of 54%. In the first three months of 2020, the average rent price in MSAs in the state was $2,439.56, compared to an average of $3,757.93 across January, February and March in 2023. This is a 4.5 times larger increase than the state with the smallest increase, West Virginia.   

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Short-Term Rentals and DSCR Loans

Image from Pexels

By Rick Tobin

Over the past several years, most short-term and long-term rental property owners created the bulk of their wealth from the annual equity gains related to buying and holding their properties as values increased anywhere between 10% to 40% per year. In California alone back in 2021, it was reported that the average home statewide increased in value $11,000 per month or $132,000 for the entire year. If so, I doubt that many Airbnb or VRBO hosts collected more than $132,000 in gross or net rent profits.

Image from Pixabay

Did you know that San Diego, California was ranked as the #1 for having the highest gross revenues of any Airbnb region in the world in 2021? Please see the complete Top 10 list of the highest grossing rentals in the world later in this article.

Let’s look next at just some of the short-term rental listing companies which assist vacation rental property owners with the leasing of their properties:

  • Airbnb
  • VRBO (Vacation Rental By Owner)
  • Booking.com
  • TripAdvisor
  • Expedia
  • HomeToGo
  • Tripping
  • Homestay.com
  • Atraveo
  • OneFineStay

The prominent travel booking company named Expedia purchased VRBO back in December 2015. As a result, Expedia continues to be one of the most dominant short-term rental companies in the world.

As per published Airbnb data, here are the Top 10 states for average annual host or property owners earnings for 2021:

  1. Hawaii: $73,247
  2. Tennessee: $67,510
  3. Arizona: $60,448
  4. Colorado: $58,108
  5. California: $54,461
  6. Florida: $53,209
  7. South Carolina: $49,641
  8. Utah: $48,568
  9. Oregon: $42,964
  10. Alabama: $41,937

Image from Pixabay

If a rental property owner confides in you that he or she collected $50,000+ in gross income from Airbnb last year, this number may only represent a small percentage of their overall total revenue collected from both short-term and long-term tenants (30 days+) because they may have multiple income stream options by way of VRBO, Booking.com, or other companies that help supply them with consistent tenants. This is especially true when the property is located in a populous metropolitan region or a prime vacation getaway area like those found in San Diego, Santa Barbara, or Miami.

No Income Verification Loans for Rentals

Most real estate investors usually need third-party mortgage financing to purchase one or more rental properties even if they are very wealthy themselves. Many years ago, it was quite challenging to qualify for a rental property because you were asked to provide two years’ worth of tax returns, a detailed profit-and-loss statement, and the mortgage underwriters would only give you credit for 75% of your gross monthly rents when attempting to qualify or deny your loan request. This 75% number was due to the fact that lenders assumed that you had property management fees, vacancy rates above 0% throughout the year, and operating expenses for repairs.

As a result, that $2,000 gross rent turned into just $1,500 (75%) and many investors were later denied because few lenders wanted to lend on a rental property with negative monthly cash flow if the proposed monthly mortgage payment (principal, interest, property taxes, insurance, and homeowners association fees, if applicable) was $1,501 or higher.

Image from Pexels

Today, many investors are qualifying to purchase short-term and long-term rentals by way of non-QM or DSCR (Debt Service Coverage Ratio) programs which don’t require borrower applicants’ tax returns, W-2s, or other formal income documents to qualify. Now, some lending programs take the closest look at the subject property before determining if the rental property can at least break-even at a 1.0 DSCR number where 100% of the gross monthly rents are at least equal to the proposed mortgage payment. In these underwriting scenarios, 100% of the gross rents are used to qualify instead of just 75% like was more the norm in years past.

For a DSCR loan, it allows borrower applicants to use the market rent (actual or future, in some cases) of the property to qualify rather than the borrower’s business income. This is especially beneficial for self-employed business owners or investors who have a lot of tax write-offs and minimal net income shown on their tax returns.

Some of these DSCR program highlights include:

  • 640+ FICO
  • Up to 80% LTV
  • Available on investment properties only
  • Finance up to 20 properties
  • Loan amounts up to $2M per property

Some of my other lender programs allow negative cash-flow for rental properties up to 70% LTV for cash-out or purchase transactions while not requiring any additional income from the borrower applicant.

Airbnb Statistic

Image from Pexels

Because Airbnb is the biggest name in the short-term rental business sector, let’s review some of these shocking numbers that confirm how successful this investment property model has been for Airbnb corporate and for individual hosts or property owners.

Airbnb History

  • An average of six guests every single second check into an Airbnb listing.
  • Airbnb listings represent 19% of the total demand for lodging in the US.
  • Over 150 million people have booked over one billion nightly stays.
  • The average US Airbnb occupancy rate is 48%.
  • The average stay is 4.3 nights.

2021 Data

  • The global Average Daily Rate (ADR) was $137 per night in 2021 as compared to $110/night in 2020.
  • California properties had a much higher nightly average of $258 per night.
  • In December 2021, there were 12.7 million listings worldwide.
  • There were 2,249,434 listings in the US in 2021.
  • 356.9 million nights were booked on Airbnb in 2021.

Highest Gross Revenues Worldwide for Airbnb Properties

Image from Pixabay

Surprisingly, these populous metropolitan regions such as Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City, Paris, London, or Hong Kong weren’t ranked #1 for being the most profitable Airbnb region in the world with the highest gross revenues. No, the honor for the most profitable Airbnb region in the world in 2021 was San Diego, California.

In 2020, seven of the Top 10 highest gross revenues for Airbnb properties were all in the US. One region that stands out is Big Bear, California, which is the best-known mountain resort community in Southern California. Listed below are the 2020 gross revenue numbers for the Top 10 regions in the world:

Compounding Wealth With Equity Gains

There are many individual or family investors across the nation who have acquired 5, 10, 15, or 20+ short-term rental properties. The bulk of their family’s net worth doesn’t usually come from the net annual rental income. No, the family’s net worth is compounding each year with double-digit appreciation rates like we’ve all seen for several years now.

To better understand how the acquisition of multiple rental properties is more likely to create the bulk of your net worth, let’s take a look at a fictional California property owner who saw each of his rental homes appreciate $11,000 per month or $132,000 for the entire year in 2021:

Investors can apply any excess net rental income each year to paying off their mortgage faster. With consistent annual rents, a 30-year mortgage or a shorter-term 5-year or 7-year interest-only mortgage with much lower monthly payments than the best 30-year fully amortizing rates can be paid off much faster as more principal is paid off with extra payments.

The sooner that your homes are free and clear, the earlier you can retire and live off of the monthly cash flow while not touching your equity gains. A fairly consistent plan of buying and holding short-term and/or long-term rental properties is a prime example of letting your money work hard for you instead of the other way around.

Rick Tobin

Rick Tobin has a diversified background in both the real estate and securities fields for the past 30+ years. He has held seven (7) different real estate and securities brokerage licenses to date, and is a graduate of the University of Southern California. Rick has an extensive background in the financing of residential and commercial properties around the U.S with debt, equity, and mezzanine money. His funding sources have included banks, life insurance companies, REITs (Real Estate Investment Trusts), equity funds, and foreign money sources. You can visit Rick Tobin at RealLoans.com for more details.


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BEWARE: Social Media Fakes Make Poor Tenants

Image from Pixabay

By Stewart Levine

Are unprecedented legal changes and scam tenants making it time to rethink rentals as investments?

Even for long-time real estate investors with decades of experience, things have changed.

Social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram seem to be spawning an increasing number of phonies and scams from cryptocurrencies to NFTs, tech startups and real estate gurus.

Image from Pixabay

For the average investor, becoming entangled with just one of these scammers can bankrupt them and rob them of their life’s work.

So, how are they operating? Who do investors and property owners, in general, need to watch out for? How have recent policy changes negatively impacted things?

NOT “As Seen On TikTok”: Scam Tenants Will Cost You Huge

One of the new catchy fads has been things being advertised “As Seen On TikTok.” It has replaced the old “As Seen On TV” infomercial controversies. For better or worse, the highly controversial TikTok platform surpassed Google as the most popular website in 2021.

One retired doctor and long-time investor recently found out just how dangerous it can be.

This is a medical professional who has been investing in real estate for decades. It enabled him to retire at just 51 years old after running a successful dental practice.

He bucked common advice and the tradition of investing in public stocks with stockbrokers that don’t have their customers’ best interests in mind.

Image from Pixabay

During a recent interview he shared some of his early lessons in real estate. He did well, and it enabled him to take control of his own future, along with gaining many tax breaks. Yet, he ran into early issues when actively investing in rentals. He discovered the headaches of vetting deals, the costs of management, and both cash and Section 8 tenants that didn’t perform.

Eventually, he graduated to the point where he had built up enough capital that he wanted to spend more time actually relaxing and enjoying life, and began investing through private funds, private money lending, and other passive real estate strategies.

Still, when it recently came time to move from the Northeast to Florida, he ran into a combination of new and old problems.

Like many others he decided to put his home in the Northeast up for sale right during COVID.

It was a great home in Colts Neck, NJ. Boasting 7,000 square feet, and which this doctor had enjoyed living in for many years himself. However, it was September 2020. Lockdowns meant that real estate agents were hardly working, and most buyers couldn’t get to viewings or were too scared.

An agent representing the tenants brought them a prospective renter as an alternative. The agent sold their clients hard. They included a ‘wealthy DJ’. An online ‘influencer’ and entertainer, who supposedly has 3M followers on TikTok, where he recently bragged about being put in jail by his ex-girlfriend, and 275k on Instagram where he likes to show off fake money, and even promote NFTs.

Image from Pixabay

He was presented under his real name as Anwar Gavilanes, aka DJ Diddy. Along with Adam Zakaria under his business name Pizza Crave, and Frank Baldassare. They were supposedly rich and successful and had a nice car.

After signing the lease, this landlord told us that he never received any rent, after the first payment. On which was supposed to be a two-year lease for $7,300 per month.

Normally, that wouldn’t be a huge issue. Tenants don’t pay, you get an attorney and have them kicked out.

Unfortunately, the government went to the extreme of issuing an eviction moratorium, and shutting down the courts. His attorney simply couldn’t process the paperwork to get them removed. While the president went to extreme lengths to protect rogue occupants like this, landlords paid the price. He says he felt they ruined his life’s work on this property and jeopardized his finances. Those moratoriums were eventually overturned by judges who found them unconstitutional, but many may be asking where the compensation is for landlords.

These tenants continued to occupy the property, without paying any rent for a whole year!

It wasn’t until late 2021, when he was finally granted a Zoom court meeting to get the tenants evicted.

When the landlord was finally able to access the property again, it was a disaster.

Image from Pexels

There was a soccer goal set up in the living room. No basic maintenance had been taken care of on the property in a year. The garage door was busted. Plus, broken fencing, damaged landscaping, and scratched and broken wood flooring which had to be completely replaced. The destruction ended up costing Levine $80k in repairs to restore the property to prepare it for sale. They found fake $100 bills in the property and all types of other craziness leftover from parties.

They even found out the occupants had been renting out the house to others on Airbnb, with no permission to sublease the property in their contract, taking their money, and still not paying the rent. They had even been advertising parties on the home on Eventbrite, at which they had been found serving alcohol to the underaged, and possibly drugs, which resulted in a summons from the police. It is unknown whether they have disclosed the income they illegally made from this operation to the IRS or not.

To make it worse, the utility companies started coming after him as the property owner. The occupants had never paid any utilities, and the utility companies had never bothered to cut them off or bill them, because of ‘COVID’.

WANTED: Social Media Con Artists & Real Estate Fraudsters

Thankfully this property owner’s attorneys have been able to track down two of the perpetrators, and have served them legal papers. He estimates they owe $125k in back rent and legal fees. Not including the actual damages, and utilities. He says he doubts the courts will accept those phony $100 bills as payment.

Image from Pixabay

Anwar, aka DJ Diddy, who turned out to just be a fraud, is still at large, and “hiding out like a rat.” He is still posting on social media, promoting a virtual party online each week on Sundays. The attorneys are very interested in any information that can be provided to track him down, and ensure he is served and brought to justice.

They are also looking for the renters’ real estate agent involved for their role in misrepresenting and failing to vet the tenant. They have been served, but have since been hiding out, without a response.

The Big Takeaway: Things Are Different Now

Most of all this landlord agreed to share his story with us as a warning to all other real estate investors, landlords and homeowners out there.

Be on the lookout for these fraudsters. Don’t become their next victim.

Image from Pixabay

Be sure you are on the alert for other social media phonies as well. In addition to questioning some of those promoting scams like these, and encouraging others to Airbnb out homes they don’t own, or to try and pull scams to take over people’s properties.

He says he is not excited about renting out his personal homes again.

There is just too much risk. Too much fraud. With the new dictatorship we appear to be living in, there is no more security, and very little private property rights and protections.

If you are going to rent out a property, we strongly suggest using a well-vetted, third-party property management company, and having a great real estate attorney on retainer.

However, he is not giving up on real estate as an investment at all. Though he is certainly doing it differently, and more carefully vetting those he works with.

If you spot these fraudsters, let someone know, and share your stories, and alert others in the business to scammers, so they aren’t the next victims.


Learn live and in real-time with Realty411. Be sure to register for our next virtual and in-person events. For all the details, please visit Realty411Expo.com or our Eventbrite landing page, CLICK HERE.

Kathy Kennebrook Discusses the Secrets of Land Lording

Image by Schluesseldienst from Pixabay

By Kathy Kennebrook (The Marketing Magic Lady)

You’ve all heard the tenant horror stories from people who have had tenants in properties, but being a landlord doesn’t have to be difficult as long as you learn some strategies for handling your tenants. My husband used to say that handling tenants was like having a group of children that you have to train and discipline. But it doesn’t have to be that difficult.

You do have to make some specific rules for your tenants and stick to them. Every time you change the rules you give your tenants the upper hand. You must also have an iron clad lease that specifically addresses the issues that you may have with tenants including getting your rent paid on time.
rules-1752405_1280

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

This is one area in which I am steadfast with the rules. I don’t care what the tenant’s situation is, their responsibility is to pay me on time and in full or they are stealing services from you without paying for them. My tenants are responsible for having the rent in our post office box or direct deposited through zelle or paypal on or before the date it is due or they are served with a three-day notice the next morning as required by law where I live in order to begin the eviction process. There are no exceptions. We even have tenants who send their checks to me priority mail to make sure they get to me on time. Most of our tenants have been with us a long time and many pay early.
You must also take the time to pre-qualify your tenants’ right from the beginning so you can avoid some problems right from the start. Don’t just accept a tenant into your rental property because they have the money to move in. Don’t let greed be your guide. Have your tenants fill out a specific rental application. Then you run must a tenant check with a reputable company. Don’t try to do this yourself just by looking at public record. You will miss credit issues and anything that may have occurred out of state. You need to find out the information you need to know about your tenants’ right from the start before renting them your unit.
For example, if the tenant check shows the applicant was just evicted from another premises, this certainly isn’t going to be a tenant you want in your property. Or if your tenant has had recent felony convictions, this isn’t a tenant you want in your rental unit. If your applicant has multiple animals, this is also not someone you want in your rental unit. I will mention however, that I will allow a tenant with a small dog or cat to rent my units. I find that usually a tenant who has a pet that they have had for some time will make a good tenant who will stay longer in your unit.
cat-3266675_1280

Image by Quang Nguyen vinh from Pixabay

I also have a separate pet lease which addresses specific rules regarding pets in my units. The pet lease requires that the dog or cat is an indoor pet and I have an additional non-refundable amount of security deposit for the pet lease and additional pet rent of 25.00 per month. I find that this works out very well. If the tenant gets a pet that is not on the lease, this is grounds for immediate eviction, and we do have someone who checks our units about every 60 days for us to make sure all is well with our rental units.
I also check out where they were living before by going by the address and checking it out and I talk to their previous landlord. I want to see how they have been treating the place where they were living before. If it looks like a pig pen or if they have multiple animals, this is not someone I want in my unit. If they don’t give me this information on the rental application, I won’t even consider them to rent my unit. I know some of this is just common sense but it bears discussion. If a tenant makes it through my rigorous screening process, I also have them pay first month’s rent, last month’s rent and the security deposit either by cash, cashiers check or by money order. I do not accept personal checks for the move-in amounts.
dollar-3313761_1280

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

During the following months I do not accept personal checks from them for the rent, we only accept money orders or direct deposit. The first time a check bounces for insufficient funds or any other reason, they must make it good immediately or I will immediately begin the eviction process. This is all covered in the lease they have signed. I also make sure that the person I have putting tenants in units for me thoroughly covers all the items in the lease with them before they sign it.
If a tenant does get their rent to us late, they are responsible for additional rental fees of one percent per day. These fees are in our lease as additional rental fees as opposed to late fees since some courts won’t allow you to get a judgment for late fees. Within the body of our lease we also require our tenants to have renters insurance and I want to see proof of the policy before they move in. This way I can’t be held liable for any injuries or the loss of their possessions due to an accident, fire, hurricane or any other natural disaster.
signature-3113182_1280

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Additionally, once my tenants sign a lease with me, I will not give them keys until I see proof of utilities in their name for the unit. In certain counties like ours, the landlord can’t turn off utilities in their own name. The only way the name changes on the utilities is with a new lease and then utilities get put in the tenant’s name. This rule may be different where you live, but a lot of the time if the tenant doesn’t pay their utilities it falls back to the landlord. This is just one way for you to protect yourself.
These are just a few of the basic techniques that will make you a happy and successful landlord. Monthly cash flow is a wonderful thing if your properties are managed correctly.

For more information on becoming a successful landlord and finding all the deals you need for your real estate investing business, check out my website at www.marketingmagiclady.com. While you are there be sure and sign up for my Free Monthly Newsletter!!

Wondering What to do NOW In Real Estate? (Part 2)

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

By Jimmy Reed

So, what do you do when the market is flooded with so much Competition? How do you really get Wealthy in Real Estate? Getting fed up!?? How about Real Wealth Deals???

Hope you enjoyed the last article! Part 1 of “What to do NOW in Real estate?” As we ended last time, we started to mention VRBO’s vs a Standard Rental. We also talked about Hot Markets and that the Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW Area) is one of the Hottest in the country. Since the last article we have also had the Covid-19 Virus which at this time has literally shut our economy down. The timing however is really interesting since we are now about to go into a market that is only 3 hours away from the DFW market and growing at the same pace. Now last time I talked a lot about the Granbury market which was only 30 minutes South of Fort Worth where we are building brand new Constructions all Brick for Rentals. But let’s now switch the mind set to VRBO where we can Double & Triple our Cash Flow! You heard me right! So now we move North of DFW to Broken Bow Oklahoma. And to help me out I want to introduce you to a friend, former student, and a Rock Star on VRBO’s in Broken Bow, Miss Kelli Haus. I asked Kelli to help contribute to part 2 of this piece since she has literally taken the VRBO in Broken Bow to a new level. So first keep in mind we are looking at cabins now verses a standard house. We are looking at Nightly rent vs Monthly rent. And this is where you will see how you could nearly triple your Monthly Cash Flow with a VRBO in Broken Bow. Now I meet Kelli a few years ago when she signed up for our Platinum Program here in the DFW area. She soon informed me she was wanting to move into Vacation Rentals, I told her it was not my specialty at all. A few years later and Kelli has become a Rockstar of VRBOS! So here is a little about Kelli, and some info on Broken Bow, OK.
The How Toos of Finding Deals
Kelli has 6 years’ experience in the real estate field, she is known as the Beavers Bend Realtor. However, Kelli does more than just help her clients buy and sell cabins, her secret sauce is her step-by-step plan for her clients so they can not only enjoy a vacation at their cabin but also turn it into a big money maker. Kelli uses this same plan on her own Beavers Bend investment properties so she practices what she preaches, and she can not only show you how the plan has worked for her, but so many of her clients. Her ideal client is someone who is looking to make memories and extra money.
Hello all, I’m Kelli Haus and I am a cabin investor in Broken Bow, OK and a full time Realtor in the Broken Bow area, specializing in helping families’ and investors purchase an income/second home/vacation luxury cabin that pays for itself.
Did you know that according to a recent VRBO report “71% of millennial travelers say they consider staying at a non-traditional vacation rental”? VRBO rentals are up 30% from last year! Broken Bow, Oklahoma. I am going to assume you’ve never heard of it. It is an outdoorsman’s paradise! It is only three hours away from the DFW metroplex. A perfect family getaway that makes most feel like they arrived in Colorado. The area is also known as Hochatown, Oklahoma which is a few miles north of Broken Bow. Through good economies and bad economies, this place is always a hot market with vacationers packing the area every chance they can. As long people in the DFW want a quick getaway from the metroplex, this market is going to continue to be on the rise until there are enough cabins to accommodate the mass influx of vacationers. Hochatown is approximately 95% luxury investment cabins that are occupied by residents from Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana that flock here YEAR-ROUND. That’s right, there is not a down season! VRBO’s travel trend report projects that the Broken Bow/Beavers Bend State Park lake area tourism will grow 50% in 2020. If you have never heard of Broken Bow, Oklahoma your first question is going to be why the heck would anybody want to invest in this remote area? The answer is Broken Bow Lake is one of the most gorgeous lakes in the country. Its pristine natural shorelines are not riddled with boat docks and lake houses. Ten years ago, this lake was a hidden gem of a secret for the locals to enjoy. This lake is crystal clear and provides some of the best fishing in the country. The lower Mountain Fork River feeds off the lake has some of the best fly-fishing in the world. Believe it or not most people never even see the lake when they rent a cabin. They’re too busy hiking some of the most gorgeous trails in the state park, hitting up the local breweries and wineries, roasting s’more‘s on the campfire, renting ATVs, horseback riding, kayaking or canoeing on the river, grilling out on the back porch and hitting the cabin hot tub! The Choctaw Nation has recently purchased 700 acres here in Hochatown and they will be building a family friendly casino right here amongst these luxury cabins. This casino is going to draw so many more visitors to the area that have not heard about Broken Bow. It’s rumored to believe that only 50% of the DFW metroplex is aware of Broken Bow. There are more than 7 million people in DFW and Broken Bow is growing in correlation with the growth of DFW. There is certainly a buzz in Texas about Broken Bow and in my opinion, there are not near enough cabins in the area to support the demand of people that want to vacation here.
The How Toos of Finding Deals
Even during this Covid crisis, all the cabins here are full of people “sheltering” at a cabin. And there has been no slowdown of investors inquiring about investing in Broken Bow either.
The question I get asked the most often is which is the best size, price, and type of cabin for an investment? There is not a good answer to that question. One-bedroom cabins are booked more nights per year but at a lesser nightly rate. The big cabins that sleep 25 to 30 people are booked less nights per year but at a much higher rate, up to $2,000 a night!
If managed properly every cabin in Broken Bow can be paid off in 8 to 10 years. So, would you rather have a $300,000 one bedroom or a $1.5 million cabin paid off in 8-10 years? Every single cabin here pays for itself every…single…month. Some months, like February and April, can be a little slow but this year they have not been at all! Each year this area is growing more and that means more net profits, even in what used to be known as the slow months. Cabins are booked every single weekend, every holiday, and every time school is out of session, I encourage all cabin owners to raise their nightly rates 10-30%. Both of my two-bedroom two bath cabins that have a loft, both sleep eight or nine people are booked 18 days a month on average year-round. June and July are the busiest months of the year. Both of my cabins were booked solid in the summer months except for the rare times of a one-night opening between bookings.
The How Toos of Finding Deals
Generally speaking, a cabin will make 45% net profit. If you hire a management company, they are going to expect 25% to 40% of your gross income. 95% of my client’s self-manage their cabins with my proven method of doing so. But that is a whole other and I am certainly happy to answer questions like them, such as:
  1. How do I manage my cabin from 2000 miles away?
  2. How do I minimize phone calls from my guests to the point where I do not get any?
  3. How do I maintain five-star reviews on Airbnb and VRBO?
  4. What do I do if I have a maintenance emergency in the middle of the night?
  5. Do you share your team of people on the ground in Broken Bow to help Cabin Owner’s?
So, let us talk about real numbers. I purchased my “Kiss and Angel Good Morning Cabin” in April 2018. It came fully furnished from a new construction builder with a sales price of $310,000. It appraised for $329,000 and today it would appraise for $360,000 or more. I put 10% down. Mortgage, taxes, insurance as well as PMI totals$2,050 a month. Property taxes are low at about 1%. My monthly average expenses to run my cabin business is $500 a month.
The How Toos of Finding Deals
In my first year I paid down the mortgage with 100% of my profits. I did not pay my mortgage down in 2019. Instead, I used my profits in 2019 to purchase my second cabin. Right now, I have $100,000 equity in this cabin. Nightly rates are between $199 and $350 a night. My first year I grossed $50,000 with $20,000 net profit. My second year I netted $27,000 profit.
I encourage my clients to purchase new construction or a cabin that is less than three years old. That is another discussion for a different day. About70% of cabins for sale can be found on Realtor.com. Not all real estate agents list their cabins on any MLS. New construction cabins cannot be found online anywhere. You must have a connection to a builder to find those hidden gems! 80% of my clients purchase a new construction cabin that has not yet been completed.
The How Toos of Finding Deals
I know I have just scratched the surface with this article and there are many more questions to be asked. I am extremely grateful I discovered the Broken Bow area. I have two young children and with the two cabins that I do own now, I will be able to use the $2,000 monthly net profit to pay for my children’s college education.
I do not see this market slowing down anytime soon as I do not see the DFW market slowing down. It has been rumored that Broken Bow will be the next Branson, Missouri, or Lake Tahoe.
I do not have enough cabins to show my clients even during this possible recession. Construction has not slowed down either. Can you think of a hotter market? I hope to hear from you soon, and Thanks Jimmy for allowing me to contribute to your article! Well I hope you just realized the opportunity you have been presented with. How regardless of where you live you can own a Vacation/Investment Cabin that can produce up to nearly Triple the Cash Flow vs that from an ordinary rental. Yes, I know if you are Old School you understand Monthly Rentals. Trust me I’ve had rental for over 30 plus Years! But go back and read the last article “Part 1”Remember the Make Money vs Wealth? Wealth is what you are looking for in real estate. But I understand if you want a rental, we have them for you as I said back in the first article down in Granbury. By the way you could VRBO the Granbury properties. See these articles were written to open your eyes to see the opportunity of not so much what you invest in but where! Hot, Emerging Markets will always out pace Appreciation and Cash Flow due to demand, and the location with in what I call the Hot Zones. Texas is a Hot Zone always has been and even more so today. Make sure you go back in read the first article from last month in Realty 411. Refresh yourself to what our Goals were. Buying and Selling vs Buying and Holding, real Wealth! Look back at some of those trainings we offer on my site at www.JimmyReed.net. Create some Cash but parlay that into Creating Wealth through Rentals are maybe even VRBO’s so you can Double & Triple that Cash Flow. Well I hope this opens your mind up to investing in Hot Zones. To understand so many people come from all over the World to invest in America because of all the opportunities. My question to you are you willing to travel a few states and end up in the middle of the country and the most lucrative Hot Zone, TEXAS! So if you’re still riding the fence here’s a thought make sure to keep an eye out in the magazine and Realty 411Marketing emails so you can make it to Texas for the Lone Star Expo! Yes in October the Lone Star Expo is right here in my backyard, Arlington, TX. And if you remember from the first article we plan on doing a bus tour down to Granbury to look at those New Construction Rentals. Who knows Kelli may be at the Expo to answer questions about Broken Bow. Fact stay a few extra days and rent a cabin in Broken Bow! In Closing, the main thing is position yourself so you can maneuver positively so no matter where the market turns. If you keep your eyes on the market and not so much on the quick buck, you can become very successful even Wealthy at this real estate game! Be Blessed with Success! Jimmy Reed
jimmy

Jimmy V. Reed

Jimmy V. Reed of Fort Worth, Texas has been investing in real estate since 1987.  In 1991, he started conducting full-day training sessions on Wholesaling.  He then began teaching and mentoring others throughout the country. He is currently the founder of the Fort Worth Real Estate Club www.1REclub.com and has his own real estate training company that includes Wholesale, Probate, Mentoring & a Biblically based Debt Free training course and more! More info available at www.JimmyReed.net

The Secrets of Being a Successful Landlord

By Kathy Kennebrook (The Marketing Magic Lady)

You’ve all heard the tenant horror stories from people who have had tenants in properties, but being a landlord doesn’t have to be difficult as long as you learn some strategies for handling your tenants. My husband used to say that handling tenants was like having a group of children that you have to train and discipline. But it doesn’t have to be that difficult.

You do have to make some specific rules for your tenants and stick to them. Every time you change the rules you give your tenants the upper hand. You must also have an iron clad lease that specifically addresses the issues that you may have with tenants including getting your rent paid on time.

rule-1752625_1280This is one area in which I am steadfast with the rules. I don’t care what the tenant’s situation is, their responsibility is to pay me on time and in full or they are stealing services from you without paying for them. My tenants are responsible for having the rent in our post office box or direct deposited through zelle or paypal on or before the date it is due or they are served with a three-day notice the next morning as required by law where I live in order to begin the eviction process. There are no exceptions. We even have tenants who send their checks to me priority mail to make sure they get to me on time. Most of our tenants have been with us a long time and many pay early.

You must also take the time to pre-qualify your tenants’ right from the beginning so you can avoid some problems right from the start. Don’t just accept a tenant into your rental property because they have the money to move in. Don’t let greed be your guide. Have your tenants fill out a specific rental application. Then you run must a tenant check with a reputable company. Don’t try to do this yourself just by looking at public record. You will miss credit issues and anything that may have occurred out of state. You need to find out the information you need to know about your tenants’ right from the start before renting them your unit.

magnifying-glass-1607208_1280

For example, if the tenant check shows the applicant was just evicted from another premises, this certainly isn’t going to be a tenant you want in your property. Or if your tenant has had recent felony convictions, this isn’t a tenant you want in your rental unit. If your applicant has multiple animals, this is also not someone you want in your rental unit. I will mention however, that I will allow a tenant with a small dog or cat to rent my units. I find that usually a tenant who has a pet that they have had for some time will make a good tenant who will stay longer in your unit.

I also have a separate pet lease which addresses specific rules regarding pets in my units. The pet lease requires that the dog or cat is an indoor pet and I have an additional non-refundable amount of security deposit for the pet lease and additional pet rent of 25.00 per month. I find that this works out very well. If the tenant gets a pet that is not on the lease, this is grounds for immediate eviction, and we do have someone who checks our units about every 60 days for us to make sure all is well with our rental units.

puppy-1903313_1280I also check out where they were living before by going by the address and checking it out and I talk to their previous landlord. I want to see how they have been treating the place where they were living before. If it looks like a pig pen or if they have multiple animals, this is not someone I want in my unit. If they don’t give me this information on the rental application, I won’t even consider them to rent my unit.

I know some of this is just common sense but it bears discussion. If a tenant makes it through my rigorous screening process, I also have them pay first month’s rent, last month’s rent and the security deposit either by cash, cashiers check or by money order. I do not accept personal checks for the move-in amounts.

During the following months I do not accept personal checks from them for the rent, we only accept money orders or direct deposit. The first time a check bounces for insufficient funds or any other reason, they must make it good immediately or I will immediately begin the eviction process. This is all covered in the lease they have signed. I also make sure that the person I have putting tenants in units for me thoroughly covers all the items in the lease with them before they sign it.

If a tenant does get their rent to us late, they are responsible for additional rental fees of one percent per day. These fees are in our lease as additional rental fees as opposed to late fees since some courts won’t allow you to get a judgment for late fees. Within the body of our lease we also require our tenants to have renters insurance and I want to see proof of the policy before they move in. This way I can’t be held liable for any injuries or the loss of their possessions due to an accident, fire, hurricane or any other natural disaster.

sale-3701777_1280Additionally, once my tenants sign a lease with me, I will not give them keys until I see proof of utilities in their name for the unit. In certain counties like ours, the landlord can’t turn off utilities in their own name. The only way the name changes on the utilities is with a new lease and then utilities get put in the tenant’s name. This rule may be different where you live, but a lot of the time if the tenant doesn’t pay their utilities it falls back to the landlord. This is just one way for you to protect yourself.

These are just a few of the basic techniques that will make you a happy and successful landlord. Monthly cash flow is a wonderful thing if your properties are managed correctly.


For more information on becoming a successful landlord and finding all the deals you need for your real estate investing business, check out my website at www.marketingmagiclady.com. While you are there be sure and sign up for my Free Monthly Newsletter!!

Back in Black/Airbnb is on the Upswing

By Michelle Corsetti

At the beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic, Airbnb occupancy rates dipped significantly as people opted to cancel their travel plans. Also, many counties put into place restrictions stopping Airbnb rentals from operating. Some counties restricted all but first responders and essential workers from renting Airbnb locations.

business-2904770_1280However, as of May 28th, there has been a 17.1% increase in occupancy rates. Overall, Airbnb is still down for the year but is hopeful as some restrictions are lifted. The good news is that places with smaller populations are gradually picking up the pace. People are venturing out to get rid of the lockdown blues.

According to Pittsburgh Action News, most rentals have been within 50 miles of home. Since traveling abroad has been halted to a standstill, people are having mini-vacations close to home.

While some people are optimistic about the increase in bookings and sales, others are opting for a more drastic change. CNN reported that some Airbnb hosts are giving up on their short-term rental properties and are proceeding to sell.

new-home-1530833_1280These hosts report that because of loss of sales and income, they are planning on selling not just their properties, but their furnishings as well.

Other hosts are changing from short-term term rentals to long-term rentals to compensate for the loss.

Only time will tell what the real impact of COVID-19 has on Airbnb and other short term rental platforms. As of now, while slow, things are looking on the upswing.

Holly Lynn is still very busy in business as a short-term rental expert and host. If you need your property rented– short-term or long-term, she can do for you what she does best–make you money!

For more information or booking, contact Holly at [email protected] or 415-317-6071.