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Today, I have another member story to share with you all! We have Holly telling us about her real estate journey and how for her, condos were how she started out.
Holly and how she became an accidental landlord…
Holly moved from New Jersey to South Carolina. She decided to move after doing an east coast road trip until she found a place she felt called to. Sometimes you gotta explore until you find a place where you feel comfortable and willing to get to know, and grab up some property!
To start, she bought her first condo in Washington, DC, which was a 1 bedroom. Then she got a 2 bedroom, and she kinda fell into real estate.
We call that becoming an "accidental landlord"
Did all the wrong things first, then eventually found real estate podcasts to learn how to turn her purchases into positive cash flow.
What to do to make Condo Investing Work?
Even though Holly told us she doesn't love working with condos, if you are going to go that route, here are her suggestions!
✓ Get your condo on the highest floor you can! She had a lot of plumbing issues to deal with, and well, gravity isn't kind to condos on the lower floors in case there's a problem upstairs!
✓ Make sure the rental price is right, know how often the fees are raised. Be transparent with prospective tenants, but make sure you don't scare off potential tenants.
✓ Factor in any Condo Fees or Homeowners Association Fees into your deal analysis. You don't want any surprises down the line!
Work Smarter, Not Harder - Less can be More!
It's so easy to take on too much and all of a sudden, real estate isn't profitable for you, or it's just too much work and pressure! Know your boundaries of what you are willing to work with. Look for properties that you actually like and understand the issues it comes with. You want to have fewer properties that you know well and make you good money, than have too many and now have too much on your plate, and they aren't lucrative.
Investing in the same area, you can use the same service people, building a reliable team. That way you know what you're getting, you can build relationships for the long term, and possibly negotiate prices for work on multiple units. This can also mean you can have one property manager, versus needing several in different areas.
How to Save some $$$ on your Properties
Try and figure out what you can do yourself! You may be very surprised at what you could do on your own or with a partner. See if you can do some repair and maintenance work yourself to save money, and hire out the rest when needed.
Never underestimate the power of what you can access and learn nowadays!
You can take classes online or at community colleges and community centers. Even places like Home Depot can have educational opportunities. Leave no stone unturned in the pursuit of knowledge, as many of these can be free or low cost.
Holly's story is just one of the many that we hope inspires you to start or continue this path of real estate investing! Join us and see what you're capable of!
Listen to Holly's Full Story here on the Lady Landlords Podcast!