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Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Apr 26 No Comments

Financing a Small Multifamily Property! Benefits of House Hacking

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties,Uncategorized

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

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Apr 05 No Comments

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

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties

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

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Mar 13 No Comments

Renovation planning tips for rental property investors

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: Due Diligence,New Investors,Rental Properties,Uncategorized

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

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Feb 10 No Comments

Where to Buy Rental Properties | Lansdowne, PA

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: Market Update,Rental Properties,Uncategorized

Is Lansdowne PA a good place to buy rental properties and be a landlord? Take a neighborhood tour with me of Lansdowne, PA in suburban Delaware County.

This is one of the towns that have a large number of small multifamily properties in its housing inventory.

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Dec 09 No Comments

Is it Worth It to Hire a Professional Property Manager?

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties

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

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Oct 12 No Comments

Financial Planning Tips As You Scale Your Real Estate Investing

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties,Uncategorized

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?

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Aug 29 No Comments

Renovation Mistakes to Avoid for New Rental Property Investors

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties,Uncategorized

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?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Aug 10 No Comments

Rental Property Risk: Insurance Tips for Scaling Rental Property Portfolio

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties,Uncategorized

As you scale your rental property portfolio, many investors think more seriously about how they manage their risk. You may view rental property insurance differently with 1-2 rental properties vs. 5+ properties.

This video is an interview with investor property insurance expert, Jeff Jones of Best Insurance Pro. (https://www.bestinsurancepro.com/contact)

During the recording, we touched on some of the burning questions I hear as a property manager in Philadelphia around managing risk as a rental property investor including:

Question 1: What safety measures should landlords install in properties to reduce risk?

Question 2 What are the top repairs to reduce overall insurance costs?

Question 3: Which repairs are best kept as the landlord’s responsibility

Question 4: What is the difference between putting the property in an LLC vs keeping it in owner’s name from a liability perspective?

Question 5: What is most important to know about insurance as you scale your rental property portfolio

Want more insight?

Veronica comes from a family of real estate investors. She is passionate about helping clients create wealth, build a legacy, and design a dream lifestyle through real estate.

What makes Veronica stand out from other realtors is her financial background. With an MBA in Finance from The Wharton School and a bachelor’s degree in Economics from Northwestern University, she does not run from the numbers. She spent over a decade running financial models to help her employers evaluate projects and products. This skill allows her to simplify the bottom line for a homeowner or forecast the return on investment for a developer.

Veronica is a licensed realtor in PA. Veronica helps her clients buy, sell, invest in real estate in the following neighborhoods in the Philadelphia metro area: Cedar Park, Chester, Cobbs Creek, Darby, Drexel Hill, Germantown, Kingsessing, Lansdowne, Marcus Hook, Overbrook, Overbrook Farms, Sharon Hill, University City, Yeadon, and Upper Darby. Her company also provides property management services for single-family homes and small apartment buildings in the area.

Apr 27 No Comments

How to Buy a Duplex and Rent Out Half

Author: Veronica Woods

Categories: New Investors,Rental Properties

In this video, I discuss some tips to buy a duplex or triplex and live in one unit and rent out the others. This strategy is known as house hacking.

[1:00] Overview of house hacking

[2:29] #1 Focus on the neighborhoods that have the supply of multi-families

[4:26] #2 Check out tenant-occupied properties

[5:30] #3 Look for homes that do not need major repairs

[6:58] #4 Look for a property with separate utilities

[7:50] #5 Run the numbers on the investment over the long term

[9:14] Tip to avoid lender surprises

Want more insight?