Just had a client get a counter back from a seller with the following language: “Buyer has offered to purchase property over List Price. Appraisal is NOT a contingency of this sale. Buyer accepts responsibility between appraised value and sale price if any occurs.” What does the seller mean? What he’s saying (in language which … Continue reading “Who takes the appraisal risk on an FHA loan”
Author: Moses Kagan
Another reason I love multifamily: fragmentation
This observation comes from my friend Casey, who is also in the apartment business. (But, if I’ve somehow screwed it up, the blame is mine!). The Census Bureau estimates we have roughly 40,000,000 rental households in the United States. Multifamily Executive, a trade mag, estimates that the largest owner of multifamily units in the country, … Continue reading “Another reason I love multifamily: fragmentation”
Why you can’t just compare LA and Santa Monica cap rates
Spent some time over the past few days looking at properties in Santa Monica and West Los Angeles for investors. As I looked at buildings in both places, I started to realize that you can’t really compare them easily. Why? Theoretically, you should be able to. After all, a cap rate is a cap rate, … Continue reading “Why you can’t just compare LA and Santa Monica cap rates”
Daily Candy piece
Some of you probably saw this on Friday. For those who didn’t: My friend Evvie, the LA editor at Daily Candy, asked me to do a piece on some off-the-beaten path Eastside neighborhoods for DC. Here’s a link to the article. The neighborhoods I discussed were Frogtown, Boyle Heights, Virgil Village (that’s the part of … Continue reading “Daily Candy piece”
A late post today
Busiest day in a long time. Most important news is that Jon and I removed contingencies on the first deal for our new fund. We’re super-excited about this one. But it’s a bit like the excitement that a climber must feel when peering up at the summit of Everest from base camp. In other words: … Continue reading “A late post today”
How being completely incapable of fixing anything can make you a great landlord
If you think that being a landlord is mostly about fixing things that break at your property, you’re wrong. Well, I mean, you can do that, if you want. You can learn how plumbing works, how to fix electrical sockets when they blow out, how to fix a leeky roof and on and on. You … Continue reading “How being completely incapable of fixing anything can make you a great landlord”
Mold inspection?
Am doing an inspection today on a building where the owners’ disclosures indicated that they previously had a mold problem. They also gave mold disclosures to some tenants. So we’re bringing a mold inspector to the inspection. Here’s how they work (I didn’t know this until yesterday): You pay an inspection fee (they quoted $750 … Continue reading “Mold inspection?”
How low interest rates are changing the multifamily market
Had a quick conversation with a loan broker last night about the loans available on 5+ unit apartment buildings right now. You can now get a 5 year fixed, non-recourse bank loan for 3.62% interest. Let’s take a look at what that means by using the example of a 5% cap deal, which is a … Continue reading “How low interest rates are changing the multifamily market”
To foundation bolt or not to foundation bolt
When you inspect the foundation of an older apartment building in LA, probably 7 out of 10 times, your foundation inspector is going to tell you that the foundation isn’t bolted and that you should bolt it after you buy it. Should you? To answer the question, you first need to understand how these older … Continue reading “To foundation bolt or not to foundation bolt”
Seeking an intern
Got such a good response from my post about needing introductions to hard money lenders that I figured I’d try again. This time, am looking for a part-time intern to help with data analysis and acquisitions. The work could be done from home or from my office downtown. I can’t promise that all of the … Continue reading “Seeking an intern”