USA investment properties for an Aussie

[brisbane 04]

Hi Everyone,
I was very robust in my thoughts about the USA market some years ago on these forums and actually went over there with one of the spruikers on these forums. I invested in Buffalo (yeah I know???) and San Antonio. The prices, the rental return, was just to great to ignore. I was introduced to property managers etc. I visited the properties that were being marketed to our group and purchased 3 including doing a joint investment with others in my group in a property in San Antonio. The properties I saw were in good condition and the neighbourhoods werent that bad. The property management service recommended looked professional so I went ahead with the purchases. Some of the negative experiences I experienced were: 1. The properties sold to us investors were grossly inflated. The developer purchased the properties at $2000-$3000 spent only a few thousand dollars on rehab. He then sold them to us Aussies, of course the spruiker received a commission for each property in the thousands of dollars.

2.Thefts from the properties of a refrigerator and an oven.

3. Numerous evictions due to non payment of rent. If you try to pursue rent you have to fork out monies upfront to send collection agencies after them. Done it twice with no result.

4. Numerous late night phone calls to my property manager to sort out issues.

5. At the end of each lengthy eviction we had to rehab the place again due to tenant damage.

6. Difficult to get tradies so the property manager will organise same unfortunately they see you are an Aussie and will charge more.

7. A murder in one of my properties.

8. A raid by police on one of my properties in relation to a drug bust.

American tenants I have found are a nightmare compared to Australian tenants. I have found that if you buy a decent properties you will attract a decent tenant unfortunately I have found that isnt true in the US. I have sold these properties some years ago at a big loss but am glad to be out of there. I have invested in Cairns and Rockhampton (I live in Bendigo) and had zero issues with these properties so I thought that I would be able to deal with properties in the US I was wrong. Now these are my experiences I just wanted to let others know please be wary.

 

[karina]

brisbane04,

I am sorry to hear of your experience.

Thankyou for sharing with us.

I would expect that a property that can be picked up for 2-3k will have serious rentability issues. I personally don't buy the low end of the market.

Can I ask were these properties worth 2 - 3k pre GFC or after the GFC?
If after the GFC, what were they worth prior?

Values of properties that I have been targeting in Atlanta pre GFC were worth around 110 - 180k and are able to be picked up now for 30-70k.

 

[brisbane 04]

Pre-GFC. Karina

 

[twh]

there you go sage advice...

It never ceases to amaze me the lack of moral character with these companies that in my mind make profits that are just not right.

Granted everyone needs to make some money however selling properties for these markups that are just ( well un ethical at best and worse words at worst)

I always take storys of renting a home in Atlanta in less than 30 days with a pause... It takes us 60 to 90 days to rent each house as we will get 5 to 7 applications and only approve one.

If houses are renting in 30 days or less then the quality of tenant in my mind is not optimal.. Although If a company is doing large volume. ( we do 2 a month or so) they are under pressure to get that house rented and most likly lowering the standards.

Time will tell with these tenants...

Average tenancy in the US is less than 18 months. with average cost of turn over.... making ready for new tenant 1 to 2k ... Not to mention lost rent.. so as long as those factors are used to calculate return then All is well in OZ.

If your not using a vacancy factor and 1 to 3k per year in maintenance then your return on investment numbers are like cheating at solitare, just fooling yourself.

The US is and has always been a 7 to 10% Cap return market after all is in. If you do better great,,, 90% of investor will never do better than above and 30 to 40% of investors will do far worse as they have bought from the bad people like Karina mentioned.

TWH

 

[Aaron Sice]

i only have about 20k in cash and wanted to get at least 2 properties around 40-50k. Dont have much in my super and to get it out and turn it into a smsf would cost more than its worth. So would want to borrow around 60-80k.
I wish I had $100k just laying around in a reserve!

get in line, buddy!!!

 

[twh]

Hi Everyone,
I was very robust in my thoughts about the USA market some years ago on these forums and actually went over there with one of the spruikers on these forums. I invested in Buffalo (yeah I know???) and San Antonio. The prices, the rental return, was just to great to ignore. I was introduced to property managers etc. I visited the properties that were being marketed to our group and purchased 3 including doing a joint investment with others in my group in a property in San Antonio. The properties I saw were in good condition and the neighbourhoods werent that bad. The property management service recommended looked professional so I went ahead with the purchases. Some of the negative experiences I experienced were: 1. The properties sold to us investors were grossly inflated. The developer purchased the properties at $2000-$3000 spent only a few thousand dollars on rehab. He then sold them to us Aussies, of course the spruiker received a commission for each property in the thousands of dollars.

2.Thefts from the properties of a refrigerator and an oven.

3. Numerous evictions due to non payment of rent. If you try to pursue rent you have to fork out monies upfront to send collection agencies after them. Done it twice with no result.

4. Numerous late night phone calls to my property manager to sort out issues.

5. At the end of each lengthy eviction we had to rehab the place again due to tenant damage.

6. Difficult to get tradies so the property manager will organise same unfortunately they see you are an Aussie and will charge more.

7. A murder in one of my properties.

8. A raid by police on one of my properties in relation to a drug bust.

American tenants I have found are a nightmare compared to Australian tenants. I have found that if you buy a decent properties you will attract a decent tenant unfortunately I have found that isnt true in the US. I have sold these properties some years ago at a big loss but am glad to be out of there. I have invested in Cairns and Rockhampton (I live in Bendigo) and had zero issues with these properties so I thought that I would be able to deal with properties in the US I was wrong. Now these are my experiences I just wanted to let others know please be wary.

Unfortunatly this scenerio is played out in every large city in the US... You can buy houses in LA for 25k, they are in Compton and East LA... You can get shot driving down the streets. You can then go 10 miles west to the seaside and pay 1 million plus.. or Beverly hills 15 miles away etc etc.
You can cross the Bay Bridge in San Francisco and go to East Oakland were the murder rate is one of the highest in the US and buy homes under 50k..
So when foriegners look at these super cheap houses and think hey thats not so bad they have no clue as to what they are getting into...

One can invest in super cheap housing in little Mid western towns that will not have crime, but they also have no jobs and no future,,, and rent will be tough...

What I see happening with OZ investors is the unreal expectation and fixation on gross and net rental returns. Where US investors rarely if ever fixate on those they look at quality.. The US investor by and large already been there done that with the Inner city war zone Hood properties. And if the GB AU and other foriegn investors did not come in and pick these properties up most of them would have been bull dozed or burnt down.

It really inferates me when I see these companies selling Inner city Detroit, Really anything in Ohio,,, Michigan,, rochester New york Buffallo etc etc. these states and cities are dead and dying period.

You can come to Oregon were I live and you will pay 150k for a house that rents for 900 to 1000 a month or to Use Oz speak 250 a week..... I finally figured out why you rent by the week you pick up 4 weeks of rent a year as oppposed to us renting by the month. 52 weeks in the year, only 12 months. So us US investor only get rent for 48 weeks. were as you Ozzies rent by the week and get 52 weeks of rent or another full month, Your far smarter than us.

The South East offers some good buys and I really Like very select areas of Atlanta but atlanta just to buy there is totally over built and there is going to be a glut of rentals,, its already happening, Still good buys in my mind but returns at the end of the day will be sub 10% for most investors do not let anyone tell you other wise,,

The habit of OZ marketing companies of totally underestimating running costs letting cost vacancy rates, cost to turn properties over, And Yes even in the neighborhoods Karina is talking about I will bet the best steak dinner that over 90% of the homes she is selling the Aircondioning unit has been stolen. And over 50% of investors that own a US rental really in almost any city on the East or south east will have a unit stolen over a 5 year period.

I know I buy 1 or 2 units each week of the year to replace stolen ones, and thats after we cage them. We have over 500 homes in our portfolio over 4 states and I am picky of what I buy, just reality.

I have not had a murder, but I have had all other sorts of social issues in my houses.

If you get seduced into 25% returns you will soon end up writing a story like the one above... Stick to better properties,,, And do not get spruiked by paying middle men huge mark ups.

there is no reason for this,,, just call any reputable US real estate agent and have them send you Links to the local Multiple listing service and you can see what houses are listed for and sold for. Have the agent run you a solds report as listed price will alot of times be far higher than sold price. do not trust Zillo its worthless on values either too high or too low.

And once you get serious just hire a local apprasier to do a drive by apprasials or general report of an area you want to invest in. Spend 200 bucks and you will get a 3rd party non biased opinion of value, Just like any US lender would do...

TWH

 

[spooky]

Phoenix Arizona Maricopa County tops list for home vacancies

Have been doing due diligence and this article popped up "New nationwide data shows just how profoundly the housing boom and bust left an impression on metro Phoenix.

Maricopa County has the highest overall number and percentage of vacant homes among the 10 most populous counties in the U.S., according to census data released Thursday.

Almost 14 percent of all homes are empty in Maricopa County. The data shows 227,696 single-family homes, condominiums and apartments were empty when last year's census was taken.



Read more: http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarep...y-tops-home-vacancies-list.html#ixzz1kRzKTbsc

so may be I will give Arizona a miss

 

[FormerLurker]

Great posts twh - much appreciated.

 

[karina]

TWH,

I am not one of these people that is overly concerned with yield. To me if the property has a reasonable return and is positive cashflow that is enough. I am certainly not a number cruncher and am more concerned with the quality of the property I am buying but it needs to meet a minimum standard for me in terms of cashflow. I see the opportunity as 2 fold in the US. To me buying a home way below replacement value that cashflows is a great deal. Although the cashflow is important I think the greatest returns in the longterm will come with capital growth and timing the market to take full advantage of currency fluctuations and when to bring money back home. Homes cannot be built for anywhere near the prices we are currently paying and when construction begins again prices for existing housing will need to increase.

Maintenance issues are to be expected with real estate ownership, that's just part of the business but compared to what the Australian market is currently offering the US presents to us a great buying opportunity. I mean a median house in sydney Australia costs $600,000! Thats 10 houses in Atlanta at up to $1000 a month in rent , yes I know there are expenses from the $1000 per month but let me compare to Australia. A $600,000 property MAY get you $2000 a month in rent less all the expenses. So thats $10,000 per month rental income in Atanta vrs $2000 a month rental income in Australia. Of course there are 10 lots of expenses , taxes, management fees, insurance to pay etc vrs 1 but to me its a no brainer. I also feel we will see more capital growth in the US than in AUS but thats just my opinion.

I have 8 properties in Atlanta currently and have not yet had an air conditioning unit taken. Its bound to happen. I am prepared for that day, its just part of the risks of US ownership.

Its common for foreclosures to be missing air conditioning units, these homes have been sitting vacant for a long time whilst the banks go through the red tape to get them sold and as there is a market for copper in the US , people steal the copper whilst these homes sit vacant. Its unfortunate that this happens but it does and I expect it will probably happen to me at some stage. Regardless of this I see the benefits outweigh the risks. Will I buy a home if its missing copper or an aircon unit, sure I will at the right price as long as its in a nice neighbourhood.

In regards to rentals I don't think its fair to say that if we source a tenant in 30 days it must be a bad tenant. I think it totally depends on the desirability of the property. A property with great street appeal, in a nice well presented subdivision thats been freshly painted and looks fantastic and is priced properly is likely to have people want to live in it. I wish we could rent all of our properties in 30 days. I am sure there will be some that will take longer and thats to be expected but I do my best to make sure the property selection is right so as to give myself the very best chance to secure a tenant early on.

In regards to tenancy renewal the management company I am dealing with has been running at a 71% tenancy renewal rate for the last 2 years. I think that is a great result. That means that if you have a 1 year lease you have a 71% chance of getting that lease renewed for another year.

I certainly am not trying to paint a picture that all is rosy, there will be issues and problems to resolve during ownership but having invested in real estate now for over 12 years I am prepared for that.

In Australia I have had malicous damage, tenants not pay rent, wind storms knock down fences, houses needing to be rewired, more tenants not pay rent, tenants do a runner, tenants suffer hardship and apply to the courts to be released from their lease, tenats challenge rental increases, property managers forget to advertise my property for rent for more than 2 months, etc etc so I totally get that this is part of the risk. It was only an hour ago that one of my property managers called me to let me know she has just started at the management company and was I aware that the tenant was 2 months in arrears on their rent.

Regardless of all of these hurdles, property investment has been good to me and I will continue to remain positive and look for opportunities in all markets.

 

[brisbane 04]

Thanks twh wise words.

 

[karina]

TWH,

"And Yes even in the neighborhoods Karina is talking about I will bet the best steak dinner that over 90% of the homes she is selling the Aircondioning unit has been stolen. "

I think you owe me a steak dinner

I think off the top of my head of the properties we have sourced that required new AC units (because they did not have any) would be around 20 - 30% not 90%. (and I don't consider those to be bad neighbourhoods)

 

[engelo10]

there you go sage advice...

It never ceases to amaze me the lack of moral character with these companies that in my mind make profits that are just not right.

Granted everyone needs to make some money however selling properties for these markups that are just ( well un ethical at best and worse words at worst)

I always take storys of renting a home in Atlanta in less than 30 days with a pause... It takes us 60 to 90 days to rent each house as we will get 5 to 7 applications and only approve one.

If houses are renting in 30 days or less then the quality of tenant in my mind is not optimal.. Although If a company is doing large volume. ( we do 2 a month or so) they are under pressure to get that house rented and most likly lowering the standards.

Time will tell with these tenants...

Average tenancy in the US is less than 18 months. with average cost of turn over.... making ready for new tenant 1 to 2k ... Not to mention lost rent.. so as long as those factors are used to calculate return then All is well in OZ.

If your not using a vacancy factor and 1 to 3k per year in maintenance then your return on investment numbers are like cheating at solitare, just fooling yourself.

The US is and has always been a 7 to 10% Cap return market after all is in. If you do better great,,, 90% of investor will never do better than above and 30 to 40% of investors will do far worse as they have bought from the bad people like Karina mentioned.

TWH

If you can only get 7% - 10% net in the US, then there is no point investing there. Same yields can be bought here in Australia everyday of the week.

 

[twh]

7 to 10% in this market is realistic net returns for one who has to hire a property manager manage said manager, travel expenses to come and look at thier properties once or twice a year.

that number can go up with scalability IE buy 10 to 50 homes...

Karina,

I don't beleive the 20 % number on airconditioners... my 90% was probably too high I think we can agree on a solid 50%... Remember the unit may be there but it could be gutted also with all the insides taken out,,, and or the copper connection to the house snipped off.

I agree with all your saying,,,, otherwise I would not be in atlanta... And getting tenants in a timely manner is just what we experince.. We run thourough checks we drive by the last known house they lived in. Or the one their currently living in to make sure it looks OK... we do criminal background check, credit of course verified the job both in writing and verbally... So its a process we go through to get the best client we can get...

Of course we do not drop in any of the appliances heating and airconditioning units water heaters etc. until the day before the tenant moves in. And these are in neighborhoods were the houses sold for 150 to 200k 5 years ago so we are fishing in the same pond.. I am sure we have competed with you at some of the Auctions... My guys tell me about the Aussies at the Auctions so probably you and the TRR folks.

We rehab everything else..

Also we do not spend a large amount of cosmetic paint etc. We are not trying to sell these to the tenant... Most rehabbers spend too much on that part because they are trying to paint a very pretty picture for the investor they are selling it too.. We spend the money upgrading the mechanicals. B/C we know we are just going to have to repaint and carpet the property before we can retail it no matter how long we own it.

Most of these houses if used for a rental for any length of time will require another full blown rehab to be able to sell on the open market to a home owner. One has to keep in Mind WHY with a 5 or 6 year old home that has been in most cases owned by a homeowner are they in Need of complete rehab. BECAUSE thats how a lot of these people live their normal life.. So when you bring them in as tenants your house will suffer the same wear and tear as when these same tenants were home owners. Very rare to walk into a home that has been lived in for more than 24 months and not have the carpets badly stained, vinyl ripped in spots, walls marred with holes and or crayon etc.... JUST THINK I just bought this nice house thats 5 years old and it needs total rehab WHY is that HOW Can that be... I know most of you reading this live in a house and I doubt during the course of your normal life that you need to totally rehab your personal home every 5 years. Yet in these markets with these demographics home owner or not thats what you get... Not all of them but I think Karina and I can agree 90 plus % are in this condition when they are bought at auction... And its not malicuous damage by a unhappy homeowner who wrecks things on the way out its just how these people by and large live.

Now here in Oregon in the foreclosure business, we have a lot of Russians. You buy a house at foreclsoure that a Russians has lived in and owned. And by the time you get the keys you will in most instances walk into a home that has been totally gutted. a lot of times right down to the studs.. All cabinets and appliances are gone, wiring pulled out, Plumbing taken in some case even all the windows and doors. I will not bid on a russian owned foreclosure for that reason here in OREGON.

At time of sale your going to be competing with New Construction,, And a house thats not brand new on the inside and out is going to languish on the market.. We are retailing houses in this market as well.. Its a completely different rehab process and product than a rental rehab.

So I think this second rehab prior to sale is never really ever talked about by the companies selling these homes and its never figured into the NET or Gross returns. To sell for Capital growth and actually achieve this the investor will in 95% of cases need to spend 10 to 20k on a RETAIL rehab to be competitive with builders. You can buy brand new for 99k to 120k in Atlanta today.... And the buyers are not super analytical in this price range, How they buy is simple,,, Do they like it is it new and What does it cost down and how much a month.... Its as simple as. that.

That is why the mortgage industry imploded these buyers had no clue or understanding of what a variable rate mortgage was. And they got qualified on the teaser rate only to have the Home payment double and heck no they could not afford the new payment and there you go, sub prime default and in to foreclosure they went. The US was way to slow to react to Mortgage modifications. Had they stepped in and forced lenders to modify the loans and rates to the same rate that the buyer qualified for intialy you would not have nearly the foreclosure problems.

Then the other half of the avalaible foreclosures especially in the Northern states is dominated by Investors walking from properties.... Remember our California investor ( 40 million people in CA) they pioneered this whole turn key buy a house for the price of a car make 20% net returns. And this whole group realized that this was just proforma and reality was no were near what the nice salemen told them the house would rent for and vacancy factors and maintenance. So the investors not only did not make a positive return they were losing money hand over fist. So there you go thats the other half of the foreclosure inventory investors from CA walking from the property, Even from CA to the mid west or east coast, you get a management issue and have to go look at your property its 1500 bucks or more, There goes 2 months of rent just for inspections. Figure 1 month vacancy another 1 to 2k in on going maintenance unless your going to be a slum lord... And there you have it 300 to 400 a month just in fixed cost before management fees letting fees tax s insurance etc.

SO thats the reality,,,As a hard money lender in this asset class for 10 years I have done well over 2000 loans in 9 states to this turn key industry, and these are the truths about absentee ownership.

Now is the time to own and we are loading up no doubt but we do it for a business and we own every single house we do not flip... We do not hire property managers our managers and rehabbers have equity ownership... I would never again trust my asset to a third party vendor manager, they have no skin in the game... They make very little and take all the grunt work. its a thankless job in my mind being a property manager.

The Aussie market is really just like the California Market, at least the Bay Area and Better parts of LA and San Diego.. Price's on the SF penninsula are probably double the 600k your talking about, and rents will be in the 4k range...Bunch of facebook and Google young money renting those.

Anyway keep up the good work...

Question:

As a US citizen could I just land on the shores of OZ and just start up in the real estate business flipping houses Like Karina is doing in Atlanta..??

And Karina are you a licensed Real Estate agent, Or are you personally buying these properties then reselling them to your clients. Or are your clients using their own money to acquire these from the Auction companies or from a traditional short sale or real estate transaction.. ?? And your charging a fee for you showing these clients were the auctions are and your bidding on their behalf? then cordinating a rehab crew and referring them to a PM?

Just curious how you guys do this legally,

 

[lawsjs]

I think the only thing wholesalers (like Karina) do that is illegal is to conduct business in the US on a Tourist Visa.

Technically they are just selling their own house to foreigners. Everyone knows they are not their 'own' houses, but that would be the argument I guess. In the end, Uncle Sam is probably just happy for the money. Makes a bit of a mockery of the genuine Realtor and US property laws (my US agent thinks its a disgrace) but they are helping put a floor in the market - one way or another.

Our immigration officials are probably not as swamped as yours, so you would get hammered trying the same thing in Aus - we have boat people - you just have people

After 15ish years of getting 'good' (not 'incredible') buys in the US I agree with you. 7-12% net is what I have achieved in cash-flow terms. You need a couple of years (at least) experience to 'really' see the returns - I am also highly sceptical of anything on paper, and as you also rightly said you need 5-10 to make a difference. Any Australian needs to factor in airfares and time into the equation, that requires numbers. And whilst I would not hesitate to buy in the foreclosure pond now if I was starting out, I am not (though very tempted) simply because it is hard enough managing my managers in one area without inviting more problems in different areas. It seems to me, given the size of the US that logistically you may as well look at each city as a separate country.

You make some great points.

 

[twh]

lawys

I would think some in the RE community are going to take offense to the Aussie selling properties without a license.

Of cousre if they use their own funds to close on the sales and then resell to their clients there is nothing wrong with that....

But if they are just acting as middle men the I see a major issue. Its just grossly unfair to US RE agents that people can come into our markets act as agents with no impunity make what in most cases is more than the real estate agent and have no liablity... thats no right>>>

 

[karina]

TWH,

Let me assure you that we operate legally and sought legal advise from both USA attorneys and migration lawyers on how to set up our business model and are following that advise.

We are very transparent with our clients. Also I don´t feel a public forum is the place to discuss our business operations or visa status.

 

[geoffw]

People have been accusing people in this thread of illegal activity based on suppositions.

There have been milder statements made in the forum in the past which have led to the forum being threatened with being sued for libel.

Karina has had a link to a video removed as it came too close to direct advertising. Apart from that, she has assured the forum that she is acting within the law, and therefore, as long as she is not directly advertising, she is fine to post.

Jeremy- there is room in the US for everybody to run their businesses. Please do not make disparaging references to Karina's business.

As is the case with anybody who makes remarks which can be construed as libellious, the posts will be removed, and possibly, the poster will be banned.

I emphasise that Karina has not raised the issue of libel herself. It is unfortunately something which we have encountered more often than we would want.

 

[geoffw]

OK. Last words have been said. The topic is now closed.

Karina has stated that she has set up things to operate within the law.

Any more discussions about the legality of anybody operating within the US are out of bounds- any such posts may be edited or removed.

We have our own minefield called libel. We don't want to go there.

 

[lawsjs]

Emma is a US/AUS citizen - she has always been within the law of the countries she operates in

Aside from that tongue in cheek comment Geoff, I would like this paragraph that you deleted reposted. It is nothing against anyone but does point out I have a reasonable idea (as much as an Australian can) about the US.

I know the US is vast. I probably have more of an understanding of that than most Australians. The county (not the city) I buy exclusively in has a population greater than Australia so, yes, I do understand the market has just enough room for more than two salespeople.

 

[Emma171]

When I first started in this business, every word that Bris and TVH times my own experiences over 12 years of owning properties in the US almost prevented me because I knew by doing this I was going to have to be there for every single instance. I would help people with every one of the lessons I learnt and do everything I could to avoid the pitfalls. For all I love about this prevention is the best cure

The buy??? In 5 years time if any of us remember what we paid for our properties? No you will remember the last late fee and the last tenant nightmare.... and if you do remember the price you paid you probably do because you only have 1 and it was a nightmare.

You will face tenant evictions, you will face repairs - both start up and ongoing, you may face theft, you will have tenant issues and you will need someone there. You will want to sell and rebuy, you will want all sorts of things.... Who is there and how they deal with it is the one question you need to ask NOW. Before you invest - and you had better trust them and they had better know your expectations as well. Not now but in 5 years time.

Thus when I started all this it was knowing 100% that I was saying, for as long as we are here together, I will deal with it however I can. Yes, I do go into every property before any offer by any client is made I know every faucet intimately. Yes my clients do it the 'hard' way and write every offer themselves and choose themselves which property THEY bid on. Yes I eyeball the applicants as we meet with them with our property manager. Yes I deal with the 2 am phone calls, yes the thefts yes (okay, only 1 in a year so far thank god ...a/c unit but insured at least) the translation between US property expectations (management is in house under brokerage) and our expectations as Australian buyers. I have been doing it for myself for 12 years so what is another 20 - just with lots more and a team I love. Yes, I finally get paid for it!

BUT, I am just one person who can and will only handle EXACTLY what I am willing to take on for the next 20 years....ha - I have grown not to trust anyone over here outside of our team. Imagine how much love you would have in a job that pays you 7% of gross rents and the monthly rent is only $1k??? How many properties would you need to oversee??? RIDICULOUS. Concur entirely with TVH.

Yes, again, it is also why we oversee the repairs and don't outsource (I want to know ABSOLUTELY that that stove/water heater/HVAC system etc was done properly - if it then breaks, so be it - if it is our fault - we will fix it).... it is why we eyeball every tenant - you break this perfect house - you pay for it with every inch of the law and my wrath... if you are a great tenant, we will find all your friends houses too...but we present our houses spotlessly - we want them to be maintained that way. We do do 6 monthly inspections for free. I personally will put up flyers in the neighborhoods if that is what it takes.

I differ only that I don't think paint and carpet are a waste...If there is a glut, we want our house to be the one your tenant chooses. We REALLY want only one tenant to love the house until we decide to sell it but I certainly see your point and have definitely seen the disasters... however - if disaster happens you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, clean it and rerent it as quickly as possible - all hands on deck!

If you are investing - ask the questions and get the answers that suit you. This is your life, your investment, your hard earned cash. KNOW EXACTLY what you are paying for and be happy with that. If you are paying:

ASK! NO RIGHT OR WRONG ANSWERS - YOU DECIDE
1) What fees for facilitation - know what that entails - has the person actually seen your property and been in it? Are you buying a company or a property - who is handling the closing? Where is your facilitator based (if it concerns you)

2 ) Repairs - if you pay for repairs, know what that entails, what are the ongoing warranties for work. Are you getting actual receipts?

3) Property Management - are there renewal fees (ie tenant renews their same lease), are inspections included... if not how much.. what is a standard call out to repair an item - minimum charge etc if there are reletting fees, what are they?

In other words - do exactly what you would do if you were buying a property in Oz... but make certain that whoever you go through you know NOW before you buy that you are completely comfortable.

If your gut says no, don't do this. If it takes 100 properties to be viewed before you buy, do it. If it takes you a year of research - do it.

ATLANTA PROPERTIES.

www.listingbook.com
www.georgiamls.com

Listings of both the mls systems - free of charge - find out what is available on the market for yourself...

Redfin, trulia..... etc etc... research and play - this is meant to be fun and it really can be....