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Benefits of a Financial Planner Who Gets Real Estate Investing

How can a financial planner protect you from making financial mistakes as a new investor?

Are you finding it difficult to find a financial advisor that doesn’t give you a blank stare or worse yet try to talk you out of going too far down the real estate investing journey?

In today’s video, I will show you how a financial planner who is knowledgeable about real estate investing can help you better reach your overall personal financial goals whether its more financial freedom today or wealth that can be passed on to your family. I am sharing an interview with Cynthia Meyer of Real Life Planning, who is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ and holds the CFA® charter.

00:00 Intro
03:20 Cynthia’s role as a financial mentor to rental property investors
05:39 What should be in a financial plan for real estate investors
06:23 Why financial planners are famous for discouraging real estate investing
07:45 Areas of financial planning focus as you scale
11:22 Financial planner who invests in real estate
12:51 How do you know whether it is a good time to invest
16:08 Confusion over what makes a good real estate investment deal
17:24 How do you set expectations on a “good enough” deal
20:35 Risk management questions as investors
22:34 Biggest risk is in your 1st property
24:15 Managing vacancies
25:18 Avoiding the mistake of overleveraging
28:54 Taking a holistic view of debt
32:00 Nothing goes up in a straight line in real estate investing
34:05 Challenges for short-term rental investors in 2023
35:10 Achieve your life goals with the right financial plan
37:18 More on the higher risks with your first rental property

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Ask These Questions BEFORE You Buy a Property With Existing Tenants

Is buying a rental property with a tenant already there a bad idea? How will you know whether the tenants that you inherit will be a headache?

In this video, I will show you how you can better protect your interests when buying a property with existing tenants so that you make more money.

Here are 5 questions you should ask while you are evaluating a property with existing tenants.

00:00 Protecting your interests with inherited tenants
02:06 Type of lease?
03:39 Balance of security deposits held?
04:45 Long term tenant?
06:05 Tenant payment history?
07:06 Ease of managing the tenant?
08:59 Other due diligence tips for buying rental properties

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Are home inspections worth the money? Tips for investors and home buyers

Is the home inspection a step that you can afford to skip when buying a property as an investor or even a traditional home buyer, especially with an as-is sale? In this video, I speak with Ross Kennedy from Kennedy Home Inspections about how you can best use a professional home inspection for due diligence and leverage during negotiations.

0:00 Overview
2:35 Kennedy Home Inspections background
3:47 How you can be fooled by online photos
6:00 Sellers getting home inspections prior to going on the MLS
8:13 How do you approach home inspections for As-Is sales
10:55 Using home inspections to get swag at renovation budget
12:00 Major vs minor home defects
15:40 Importance of specific wording on home inspection reports
18:02 Where buyers should focus attention during home inspections
21:45 Learn about the most important systems of the house vs. cosmetic repairs
22:58 Misunderstood defects
25:19 When an old house becomes a problem
28:10 The facts about knob & tube wiring
31:55 Difference between local municipality requirements and home inspection checklist
35:56 Appraiser’s (or lender’s) repair checklist
39:00 How the house tells the story
41:00 Setting expectations about what could come up at a home inspection
44:05 Discovering renovation work done without proper permits
47:00 Value of knowing overall health of the property

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Financing a Small Multifamily Property! Benefits of House Hacking

Many new real estate investors worry about coming up with the down payment to finance a rental property. In this video, I speak with Katy Sychtertz from Princeton Mortgage about how you can put less money down when buying a multi-unit property like a duplex or triplex if you live in the property.

0:00 Overview
2:55 Defining Owner occupied vs. Investment only loans
4:38 How lenders view risk on investment only loans
5:49 Lender as a partner vs. cash buyers
7:22 Similarities and differences in loan process
8:12 Rental income help in qualification of loan
10:08 Appraiser’s role in rent rate
11:30 Residency obligation explained
12:38 Asking a current tenant to vacate to fulfill residency requirement
14:58 Deciding which multi-family unit you will live in
15:49 Scale of down payment from 2-4 units
16:38 Financing for renovations coming back
17:34 How often can you repeat a house hack?
22:05 Advice about showing rental income on tax returns
24:40 Few thoughts on mortgage rates

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Where should you buy your first rental property?-Selecting your initial criteria

How do you pick your initial real estate investment criteria as a newbie when you don’t want to close yourself off to a good opportunity? If you are a busy professional, it is easy to get overwhelmed in your quest to make sure you dodge getting into a bad investment. This is an excerpt from the live Getting Started With Rental online workshop hosted by Veronica Woods and Samira Kiett.

0:00 Overview
1:16 Challenge with selecting your initial investment criteria
2:27 Considerations when investing out-of-state
3:04 Philadelphia as a good option for rental properties
3:58 How to match your budget to your investment criteria
6:51 Trade off with buying in markets with less appreciation
8:48 How to match repair project complexity with experience and risk tolerance

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Renovation contract mistakes: Planning tips for rental property investors

In this video, we discuss how the scope of work document can protect new real estate investors from surprises and conflicts.

We chat again with home inspector and contractor Curtis Niles of Armor Home Inspections (https://armoredhomeinspections.com/) to highlight the value of a clear written contract.

You can watch Part 1 here:    • Renovation planning tips for rental p…  

You can also find Armor home Inspections on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ArmoredHI/

Key moments in the video
1:52: Lack of detail in the requirements given to GC
4:12: At what point should contractor be paid
6:23: The importance of the written contract
7:40: The mistake of getting the wrong contractor
9:40: How much does GC outsource to subcontractors
12:00: Contractors who ask for a lot of money upfront
15:03: Having a good renovation experience as a new investor

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Renovation planning tips for rental property investors

In this video, we discuss how new investors can best leverage their home inspector along with a general contractor to get better renovation estimates and have less budget surprises.

We chat with home inspector and contractor Curtis Niles of Armor Home Inspections (https://armoredhomeinspections.com/) to cover the tips from the home inspection report to the scope of work document.

You can also find Armor home Inspections on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ArmoredHI/

Key moments in the video
1:13 Overview of using renovations to add value for investments
4:38 Tips for developing preliminary budget estimates before you place offer
6:43 Rules of thumb for costs per square foot in Philadelphia area
9:25 Role of home inspector vs contractor
11:23 How to maximize the timeline with inspectors and other home experts
13:43 What should be on your initial scope of work document?
15:43 When do you need a structural engineer to review issues?
21:12 What is project management?
25:38 Getting help as an out-of-state investor with project management

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Is it Worth It to Hire a Professional Property Manager?

Many new investors struggle with whether to self-manage their rental properties or hire a professional property management company. This video covers the questions that you should ask yourself before making a decision to DIY manage your own rental investments.

[0:53] Professional property management as an investment

[2:24] Example of slow profit erosion when tenants “manage themselves”

[4:06] What are the systems you need to put in place to self-manage?

[5:54] Do you know all the local legal requirements?

[7:14] What kind of communication should you be prepared to have with tenants.

[8:55] How do you figure out whether you have enough time with your day job

[11:43] Benefit of scalable systems with professionals

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Financial Planning Tips As You Scale Your Real Estate Investing

Ever wonder if you have set yourself to scale your rental business? No one wants to fall into a financial landmine. Many newer real estate investors may be ready to quit real estate investing too early because they lack a financial plan to help them grow their real estate businesses.

The recorded webinar focuses on financial planning strategies to help real estate investors who want to scale a profitable rental property portfolio. Watch this candid financial conversation for and by real estate investors.

The panelists in the webinar include: Veronica Woods, Real Estate Investment Advisor and Broker @reallifeplanning CFA®, CFP® Ian Scott, CPA

Video rundown:

[1:19] Ian Scott bio … understanding the real estate investing niche

[3:08] Cynthia Meyer bio…scaling as a first-generation investor

[4:08] Veronica Woods intro…bio….helping those well-positioned financially but concerned about risk

[10:50] When do you think it is time to upgrade your financial team?

[ 18:00] What advice would you give on setting deal goals in a changing economy?

[ 24:13] How should investors think about the BRRR strategy in today’s market?

[ 35:22] What advice do you give investors about raising rents?

[41:44] What mistakes do you see newer investors make with thinking about repair/maintenance expenses?

[ 54:37] What do you wish more new owners thought about before they scaled their portfolios?

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Renovation Mistakes to Avoid for New Rental Property Investors

In this video, I discuss 5 renovation mistakes that kill the profits of new rental property investors.

[0:53] Excitement around designing rental property

[1:22] #1 Over-improving

[3:02] #2 Skipping required repairs by local municipality

[4:13] #3 Picking the wrong contractor

[5:37] #4 No value-added amenities

[6:59] #5 Mismanaging the budget

[9:14] Getting your renovation budget right upfront

Want more insight?

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