I have always believed that there is little that you truly can't do if you put your mind to it. From very early on I was determined that I could tackle any project or task by finding a resource for basic information. I also prepared myself for the unexpected and accepted this was a part of the process. I have been able to complete many projects that if I would have had to rely on hiring someone to do it for me would have never been attempted.
In the last year we purchased a severly vandalized foreclosure home for less than we could have purchased the lot for just a few years earlier. I remember the first time we saw the house and immediately visualized the possibilities. While most others including our realtor saw the property as overwhelming and a mess my wife Jann and I immediately began seeing our home. As we discussed moving walls and redesigning the layout I still remember the look on our realtors face which was one of us being on the verge of insane.
As I remember there were 2 windows that still had glass all the rest had been broken out and boarded up. Virtually every wall had damage to the drywall and all of the light fixtures, switches and outlets were damaged or missing. The large sliders in the living room, dining room and master bedroom were gone and replaced by sheets of plywood. The drywall areas that did not have large holes had been covered in graffiti and splashed paint.
The house sat on a corner lot that was full of large mature oak trees that provided natural shading not often found in this area as the new construction almost always involved clear cutting the lot, The nearest neighbors are a block away. We knew immediately this was the house for us and we had to figure out how to beat out the investors who were snapping up cheap foreclosed properties to turn them into rentals.
Today we have a brand new home that is exactly what we wanted and we have the sense of pride that we did it ourselves. The journey was not easy nor was it without challenges and hurdles that made us question why we chose this route.
We are now setting out to provide homeowners with information and assistance to help them overcome similar challenges and hurdles in completing home improvement projects. Our site http://www.onlinehomeresource.com/ will offer DIYers help in overcoming their limitations and realizing the rewards of being able to do it themselves.
The internet contains information that can prepare you to complete almost any project that you want to tackle and it is just a matter of finding the right information is all of the clutter. http://www.onlinehomeresource.com/ is intended to be your go to source for all things around the home. We are taking baby steps at this point and it will be a long process to take it to where we want it to be but we will get there. We are building this site ourselves with virtually no experience in designing a website but we have a similar vision as the first time we saw that vandalized wreck of a house.
We are prepared for the hurdles and obstacles along the way and hope with the input of others we can overcome them and help others realize the sense of pride and accomplishment.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Investment Property Owners - Information on Property Management part 1
The owners of investment properties will have to determine how the management of their property is handled. Out of state owners will generally have to rely on a property management company to handle the rental and maintenance of their properties. The selection of a property manager is one that should be researched very carefully as the hiring of a management company will determine how well your property is managed and will impact how much you receive from your rental. The commission structure is one area of consideration but should not be the sole determining factor in selecting your manager. In our area (Florida) the monthly management fee is generally 8% to 10% of the rental income. A number of property owners do not understand that the fees dont end there. The largest expense area involved in owning rental property will be repair and maintenance. Not only is it necessary to maintain your property and protect your investments but it is often used as a source of secondary income by the property management company.
Our experience has been that there is a fee or percentage of invoice that is collected by management companies for coordinating the maintenance or repair of your property. Property management companies are required to disclose the practice of adding fees on to the service performed on your behalf. Initially you may not see this as a big deal but if you add up the numbers over the period of management you might be surprised how much extra you are paying for repairs or maintenance to your property. As a vendor who provides maintenance services to property managers we have been required to add a percentage into our invoices so that the owner of the property believes that is what the service cost but come time to pay us for the service we must provide discounting of 15% to the management company. In other cases our bid or pricing has been marked up as much as 100%.
We have seen companies form just to notifiy vendors by phone or email of necessary repairs who then collect huge percentages for making a phone call or sending an email. Recently we spoke with an owner regarding a mail box that was installed at one of his properties who was outraged over being charged $150.00 for installing a plastic mailbox and post. We were in a position of having to explain that our charge for providing and installing the mailbox and post was only $75.00 and the remaining $75 was split between the management company and the middle coordinating company. I have estimated that my profit on going to the store, purchasing the mailbox and post, driving to the property, removing the damaged mailbox and post, digging the hole, assembling the mailbox and post, purchasing and installing the address numbers on the box, putting the post in the ground and covering it up was roughly $23.00. The property manager received 15% with the balance kept by the coordinating company.
WOW !! I am in the wrong line of work. While I understand that the coordination of maintenance request require some effort I believe that this is outrageous. Take this example and use the same ratio for replacing and A/C unit or a plumbers visit.
When the fees are deducted from the rental income and you are not directly reaching into your pocket I guess it is easier to take but that is your money. Someone else reached into your pocket and took the money out for you and you didnt even know it.
I will have more tips for owners of investment property in the very near future. Let me know what you think. Visit http://www.onlinehomeresource.com/ for specific how to's and help for DIY projects.
Our experience has been that there is a fee or percentage of invoice that is collected by management companies for coordinating the maintenance or repair of your property. Property management companies are required to disclose the practice of adding fees on to the service performed on your behalf. Initially you may not see this as a big deal but if you add up the numbers over the period of management you might be surprised how much extra you are paying for repairs or maintenance to your property. As a vendor who provides maintenance services to property managers we have been required to add a percentage into our invoices so that the owner of the property believes that is what the service cost but come time to pay us for the service we must provide discounting of 15% to the management company. In other cases our bid or pricing has been marked up as much as 100%.
We have seen companies form just to notifiy vendors by phone or email of necessary repairs who then collect huge percentages for making a phone call or sending an email. Recently we spoke with an owner regarding a mail box that was installed at one of his properties who was outraged over being charged $150.00 for installing a plastic mailbox and post. We were in a position of having to explain that our charge for providing and installing the mailbox and post was only $75.00 and the remaining $75 was split between the management company and the middle coordinating company. I have estimated that my profit on going to the store, purchasing the mailbox and post, driving to the property, removing the damaged mailbox and post, digging the hole, assembling the mailbox and post, purchasing and installing the address numbers on the box, putting the post in the ground and covering it up was roughly $23.00. The property manager received 15% with the balance kept by the coordinating company.
WOW !! I am in the wrong line of work. While I understand that the coordination of maintenance request require some effort I believe that this is outrageous. Take this example and use the same ratio for replacing and A/C unit or a plumbers visit.
When the fees are deducted from the rental income and you are not directly reaching into your pocket I guess it is easier to take but that is your money. Someone else reached into your pocket and took the money out for you and you didnt even know it.
I will have more tips for owners of investment property in the very near future. Let me know what you think. Visit http://www.onlinehomeresource.com/ for specific how to's and help for DIY projects.
A Woman's Point of View
My husband has introduced you to us @ onlinehomeresource.com and told everyone how we took a trashed out, foreclosed home, and made it into our dream home. Yes, there was a lot of blood, sweat and tears.........What he didn't say was how many times the tears were a result of us speaking totally different languages. And I don't mean we are from different countries. We both speak English, but through the home remodeling process, more times than not, we weren't speaking the same english!! You see, I was the one with the vision. I could see the living room, dining room and kitchen being turned into one big "Great Room". And my husband was able to turn my vision into reality. How it happened, I'm still not quite certain! There were so many times that I would walk out the door, ready to scream, cause I just didn't think he got it. It seemed like we would talk in circles. But in the end, the house turned out to be everything I had envisioned, and so much more. I will blog about the experience from my point of view and try and share some of the things I learned along the way.
DIY Home Repair and improvement
Home repair and maintenance, DIY ?
DIY home projects are more popular than ever with the current economy and real estate market. Many home owners are taking on repair or remodeling tasks as a way to save money and increase the appeal and value of their homes. The decision to DIY vs hiring contractors should be made only after proper research and planning and honestly evaluating your skills. There is plenty of information out there to provide home owners with basic information to tackle the most common DIY tasks. Most contractors will provide free estimates that will identify how much is involved in completing your project. Often times the best approach is to determine what you are comfortable in doing and working with a contractor to perform a portion of the work while you complete work that you are able to do.
We are currently developing a new website www.onlinehomeresource.com that will be a community of DIYers which will allow home owners to research projects, view videos and communicate with other home owners who have tackled the jobs you are considering. We have over 30 years of experience in DIY projects as home owners and we also work as contractors providing home repair and maintenance to home owners, investors and real estate agents. This experience allows us to understand the process from both sides and share this experience with others via www.onlinehomeresource.com.
Many of you are like us in that the work we do ourselves allows us to do more than we could if we had to hire all the work done. I will be providing additional information on our recent project where we purchased a heavily damaged foreclosure house and transformed it into a brand new house exactly as we wanted all for under $100,000. We live in Florida and even in todays real estate market $100.000 buys you either a former rental that is destroyed or a grow house that has been gutted.
The blood, sweat and tears put into this project will be outlined in future blogs but is so worth it every single time I walk in the house and feel the pride of knowing we did this.
Feel free to contact me if there is an issue you would like to see discussed or if you have any questions or comments you can email me at info@onlinehomeresource.com.
We are currently developing a new website www.onlinehomeresource.com that will be a community of DIYers which will allow home owners to research projects, view videos and communicate with other home owners who have tackled the jobs you are considering. We have over 30 years of experience in DIY projects as home owners and we also work as contractors providing home repair and maintenance to home owners, investors and real estate agents. This experience allows us to understand the process from both sides and share this experience with others via www.onlinehomeresource.com.
Many of you are like us in that the work we do ourselves allows us to do more than we could if we had to hire all the work done. I will be providing additional information on our recent project where we purchased a heavily damaged foreclosure house and transformed it into a brand new house exactly as we wanted all for under $100,000. We live in Florida and even in todays real estate market $100.000 buys you either a former rental that is destroyed or a grow house that has been gutted.
The blood, sweat and tears put into this project will be outlined in future blogs but is so worth it every single time I walk in the house and feel the pride of knowing we did this.
Feel free to contact me if there is an issue you would like to see discussed or if you have any questions or comments you can email me at info@onlinehomeresource.com.
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