Thanks for the story, Chai. I will try to remain human.
Swimpy wrote:Thanks for the story, Chai. I will try to remain human.
That didn't come out right, did it?
Chai, I would have given my right arm for tenants like that!
The only downfall for me when I had my duplex was trying to find good tenants. If they refuse to pay their rent, you're in a position to where you have to evict and that's not an easy thing to do.
I've had tenants do damage to the apartments and these are people who were screened by a real estate agency.
You never know who people are until they move into your building.
I gather things would have been better in that sense, if I had been living in the house, though.
Don't want to put ant dampers on your plans Swimpy, just want you to know that finding good tenants isn't the easiest thing to do.
Don't worry Montana. That's the kind of stuff I need to know. I think the current tennants are pretty good people. I got a chance to walk through their unit. The place was clean. They hadn't had any notice that anyone was coming since they were both at work.
I hope they stay for a long time.
Swimpy I think it's a great idea AND I think you're crazy. what does that mean?
Seriously, I agree with Slap. Nothing ventured nothing gained. do it.
Gas prices will continue to rise. Plus, look at the extra two hours you'll get, not driving every day. That's some serious time.
Regrets. My wife and I went out on a limb, and purchased a new house, without selling our first house. For a while, we had two mortgages. In that short time, we thought long and hard about trying to make ends meet, and, rent, or lease our first house. We ended up agreeing that we just wanted to wash our hands clean of the first mortgage. Now that I look back, I have regrets on not keeping that first house to rent. It was a perfect first house rental. I knew all the ins and outs about the house. At the time we were caught up with all the new house hoopla. Good luck in whatever you decide.
Seems promising, and I trust you to do your homework and make sure all i's are dotted and t's crossed. Translation: while I don't know much about this, some people seem more likely than others to make it work, and I think you have a great chance of making it work.
Do you need to worry about leaving your current house for 5 days out of the week? Crime, frozen water pipes, that kind of thing?
Swimpy wrote:Don't worry Montana. That's the kind of stuff I need to know. I think the current tennants are pretty good people. I got a chance to walk through their unit. The place was clean. They hadn't had any notice that anyone was coming since they were both at work.
I hope they stay for a long time.
They sound like awesome tenants and I hope you get to keep them for a long long time. Good tenants are better than diamonds :-D
The place was clean without notice and that's cetainly something to get excited about :-D
Soz, that is certainly a consideration. Hubs works a four day week, T-F and I plan to be home on Friday nights. That only leaves three nights when the house is empty. I'm going to look into security systems. Don't have any idea what they cost, but it might be money well spent.
alex, thanks for that.
OK, just to update. I went back and looked at the property. I also looked at two other duplexes that are on the market, one that is more expensive and one that is less. This one is definitely the nicest of the three. Soooo, we are going to find out what the seller paid for it four years ago. Once we know that, we'll be making an offer tomorrow. The seller is asking $69,750. I'm planning to offer around $53K. The offer will be contingent upon passing all inspections.
I learned today that the antique boiler on the second floor is shot. It doesn't work at all. I will be getting bids on replacing it with electric baseboard heating units. The bottom unit has a relatively new gas forced air furnace. The electrical could be a problem, but we'll see what the inspector says.
It has been warm here over the weekend and it has been raining. I was pleased to see that there was no evidence of a leaky roof and no water int he basement.
Wow, that's a great price.
Plus, you tenant will be glad you're fixing it up.
$69K for a DUPLEX?
We're in two different worlds.
Slappy Doo Hoo wrote:$69K for a DUPLEX?
We're in two different worlds.
I know, the people next to me bought the 750 square bungelow for $250K....so they could tear it down and build their house.
I had to look to see where Swimpy lived....Iowa.....is that a typical price Swimpy?
Slappy Doo Hoo wrote:$69K for a DUPLEX?
We're in two different worlds.
It ain't the Taj Mahal, but we are in two different worlds. I would pay twice that in the town where I live. I can't imagine what it would go for in Boston.
Well, the assessed value is $56K. They paid $60K for it four years ago. I'm still going to stick with my original offer price. I don't want to pay a penny more than I have to.
You go girl. It's certainly a good time to buy :-D
And what a great price!
I'm going to wait until Friday. The owner's in Florida so there's no hurry.
