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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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Where to Buy Rental Properties | West Philadelphia, PA

Is West Philadelphia a good place to buy rental properties and be a landlord? Take a neighborhood tour with me of Cobbs Creek and Cedar Park in West Philly.

These are great neighborhoods for both single family and multifamily rentals.

00:00 Introduction
01:54 Current development projects in University City
02:55 MLS view of West Philadelphia
06:20 Walking Tour of parts of Cedar Park and Cobbs Creek
11:23 Sales and Rental Stats for West Philadelphia 19143
14:22 Upside to investing in West Philadelphia

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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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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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Multigenerational Living: Is Buying A Duplex an Option to Support Caregiving for Seniors?

Is buying a multifamily a housing option to allow a senior to age in place in Pennsylvania? In this video, I explore the benefits of buying a duplex to allow extended family members to help with caregiving while managing costs.

[0:10] Rising costs of senior housing in PA
[1:41] Duplex as alternative option
[3:04] Benefit #1 Supply of first-floor bedrooms
[3:49] More privacy for extended family
[4:43] Long-term investment upside
[6:08] Need to start early with search

Download a free guide on 5 Questions You Should Ask to Decide Whether to Sell or Keep Your Inherited House: https://dwoodsrealestate.com/inherited-house

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Where to Buy Rental Properties | Lansdowne, PA

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.

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Real Estate Market Update-Multifamily West Philadelphia November YTD 2022

In this video, I will take you through some of the key November YTD 2022 housing market stats for West Philadelphia. The focus of this video is the multifamily sub-market. I cover why I think it is still a good time to invest in West Philadelphia.

The stats come from Bright MLS and represent only the transactions conducted on market vs. off the MLS.

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