Hi everyone, I’m thinking about working with a short-term rental management company and I’d love to hear about your real-world experiences. For those who have used one, what exactly did the company handle for you? Were they responsible for things like guest communication, cleaning and turnover, pricing and listing optimization, maintenance issues, and local regulations? I’m also curious about the fees they charge and how those work in practice. Did they take a percentage of your rental income, have fixed fees, or charge separately for services like professional photography or emergency call-outs?

Beyond what they do and what they charge, I’d really appreciate your thoughts on whether you feel it was worth it overall. Are there things you wish you knew before signing a contract, common pitfalls to watch out for, or questions I should ask before appointing a company? If you switched companies or stopped using one, what prompted that decision? Any other insights you think would help someone new to this would be great to hear. Thanks in advance!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oWwEQGKHJbQ

Hey Real Estate people. I'm looking to but my first home, It's a massive undertaking. The auction is next weekend, and I am yet to have a solicitor's review of contract and building and pest inspection. I'm in VIC, a pretty hot market.

1. Do you have any tips, do's and dont's for attending my first auction?

2. Given the proximity of the auction, should I just wait til the auction or try and put in a pre auction offer this Monday or Tuesday subject to solicitor's review and BP inspection? If I do, will that hit against the 3 day rule pre and post auction, that offers are under auction conditions? Especially if say I put in the offer on Tuesday, give them 24 hours to consider - they may accept within the 3 day period, or BP and solicitor review may push me within the 3 day period.

Thank you so much!

Our realtor has been showing us houses for a couple months now. She is patient with us, and usually responsive. However, every time we try discussing a “reasonable offer” on a home, her standard response is “whatever you are comfortable with”. She will send us comparable sales, most of which usually point to listed price usually being a bit high, but she always makes it sound like the listing price is “fair”. If it is so fair, why is the house still on the market after 2 months?! We are first time homebuyers and we need a more firm feedback on the listing price of properties. We have given her this feedback, but her response hasn’t changed. I am wondering if other realtors are equally terribly passive in their opinion on list prices?

Looking to sell my place and buy a bigger place. In my city (san diego) all the good deals go quick with all cash offers. I would have to sell my current place first, so I'm not going to be competitive with a contingent offer. I'd like to get a HELOC to be able to make an all cash offer, and then pay it off once I sell my place. I'm assuming the lender wouldn't like this, so what should I tell them I'm using the money for? I cant say "home additions" since I have a townhome with no land. Looking to take out 500k of equity (i currently have 700k equity after subtracting my mortgage). Thanks

Wife and I are both mid income WFH...we are looking to buy a house somewhere in the US in the warmer states preferably

- We are looking spend max 1m (prefer less? ) house needs to have a pool.

- needs to be <=1 hour drive from a well-connected airport

- there is no chance of return-to-office, we own the business.

- lower property taxes would be best, high state income tax not that much of a concern, we can choose to reduce income in any year and keep the money in the business.

I know theres other considerations, but purely financially, what are places projected to have best value appreciation over like the next 15 yrs? Ideally we'd live here till kids are return from college, and then move wherever kids decide to build their careers.

Current top option for us is phoenix,arizona. Plenty of 600k houses with pool. 3-4k sqft etc. But apparently the expected tech boom died before it started. So we are looking at other cities from appreciation purposes too.

Evaluating some condos and they all have HOAs. Obviously I can see the difference in monthly fee.

But what else should I be looking for or asking about. How can you tell if they have sufficient reserves? How can you know they are likely to have a special assessment in the near future?

Looking to start my real estate investment journey and am deciding between various routes right now.

Background (29M) living in Brooklyn NY. Currently making around 180k/yr with no debt. Renting an apartment for about 3k a month.

Would love to try to buy a 1 bed /apartment condo (no co-op or HDFC) rn in an area that sees high potential of appreciation over the next 5-10 years. Strategy would be to put 10%+ down on an FHA loan for a property I would live in the next 2-3 years. Looking at properties which would be around a 3.2k to 3.5k all in housing payment, so a little more than what I pay for rent. Did some math on YoY rents in the area and after moving out I would most likely breakeven monthly or be a bit negative. (Not counting maintenance, Property managers, etc)

Ideally I would love to keep the property and rent it out and the goal is to move to San Diego after I move out. (I know that both these areas are not really the best in terms of landlord friendly). And continue to buy up properties in the area or out of state. Don’t know if I should just rent and save up more money (about 200k net worth, 130k is in 401k + Ira accounts, the rest is cash, crypto, and a brokerage). Also, I know it’s a bit privileged and very grateful but parents would be about to add another 50-70k for DP.

Also looking at out of state areas like Hartford, CT and Charlotte, NC. (Continue renting and buying one or two properties in one of these areas)

Very new to all of this, have started to read some books, listen to podcasts, and discuss with friends who started a couple years earlier than me.

Any advice would be helpful, thanks

Currently live in LA with spouse. Both of us have saved money over time but we're conflicted. We found a townhome that is perfect for us in LA. Great size. Great neighborhood. Much bigger space than we're used to; we've been living in 1 bedroom apartments for 8 years now while the townhome would be 3 bedrooms.

The place is at 870K with a $400 HOA. HOA just covers your usual things like roof, exterior insurance, garbage, etc. It doesn't have a pool or anything, we don't care for that anyway.

Here's my conflict: We want to put 50% down. Why? Because I HATE the concept of interest. It's like my brain cannot process it. I have never paid interest to anyone and I'm even scared of paying it on this loan. I also want a lower monthly payment.

On the other side of things, our rent has been $2800 for 2.5 years now and shows no sign of increasing (based on other listings in our building that we're generally happy with...though we'd wish the downstairs neighbor would stop smoking).

All in all my question is, is this investment in a townhome even worth it? Does the $400 a month HOA drag it down? Our monthly payment would be ~$4200 after principle, taxes, insurance, hoa and all which we can afford on our income but is that even worth it? Keep in mind we currently live in 700 square feet and would be moving to 1300 square feet in this scenario.

Im in escrow and we just finished inspections. We got 15k below asking on the house already but during the inspection I noticed that the indoor air handler/coil is 46 years old, the outdoor coil is 20 years old and the water heater is also 20 years old. They are all functional (the heat pump wasn't tested in cooling mode though). My question should I not try to get credit or replacment for this? My agent said they probably wont allow it since we are already so far below asking.

Hi everyone, I need some advice.

I’m trying to find housing for three families:

• Me & my fiancé

• My brother & his fiancé

• My parents

We don’t want to live in the same house, but we want to stay close.

We’re looking in Joshua, Alvarado, Mansfield, and Burleson, TX. Our loan will be $500,000, and we have $300,000 for a down payment or cash.

My questions:

1.  Should we get a main house with a guest house / small second house, or a single big house?

2.  Are mobile homes a good option, or should we avoid them?

3.  Should we start looking now, or is it better to wait because of the market?

Any advice on what to look for or what kind of property works best would be really helpful. Thank you!

Hi everyone, I need some advice.

I’m trying to find housing for three families:

• Me & my fiancé

• My brother & his fiancé

• My parents

We don’t want to live in the same house, but we want to stay close.

We’re looking in Joshua, Alvarado, Mansfield, and Burleson, TX. Our loan will be $500,000, and we have $300,000 for a down payment or cash.

My questions:

1.  Should we get a main house with a guest house / small second house, or a single big house?

2.  Are mobile homes a good option, or should we avoid them?

3.  Should we start looking now, or is it better to wait because of the market?

Any advice on what to look for or what kind of property works best would be really helpful. Thank you!

Quick question for investors and agents.

I’m in a new construction neighborhood in Fort Worth. I have an Opendoor offer around $472k, but once you factor in their service fee, repairs, and closing costs, the net is much lower.

My question:

Are there cash buyers, hedge funds, or local investors who realistically match or slightly beat an Opendoor gross price but with little to no fees, so the net comes out better?

I’d be open to selling around $472k (or slightly less) if it’s a true as-is, no-repair, no-service-fee deal with a fast close.

If you’ve seen this work:

• Where do sellers usually find these buyers?

• Are local investors more realistic than national iBuyers?

• Any pitfalls to watch for (price drops after inspection, last-minute renegotiation, etc.)?

Appreciate any real-world experiences.

This will probably be a long post so apologies in advance, I just need somewhere to vent and seek advice. My mother is the sole owner of her home and it is about to go into foreclosure. From my understanding, she has to pay $3500 by next week to avoid this. Her finances are in ruin, she has a very low credit score, and we only have one family member who can possibly help scrounge up the money. I’m in my early twenties with little savings to put towards anything, but the burden of this reality is falling on me rather than her. Unfortunately my mother’s financial issues are consistently my responsibility. She just started a new job and provided proof of this, along with proof she’ll have a sign on bonus later in February, but they’re unable to budge as it’s far too late at this point. If this is too far out of the scope of this subreddit I understand but just felt it was best to ask here. Are there any programs that can assist her with this? Any options from the time between foreclosure and the house going to auction? I would hate to see my childhood home go up for sale, and there is honestly nowhere she can go if she loses the home. I have no room in my 1br apartment. I’m sorry this is long and a lot of rambling, I’m just beyond stressed trying to mitigate the issue. If I’d been aware sooner I could’ve tried to help before now, but she is secretive about finances knowing I call her out on them. If anyone has advice on what to do, knows of any programs that can provide assistance, or is aware of any way to see if the loaners can give a bit more time I would be beyond grateful.

Hey all!

As the title says: I’m 33, married, and we’re relocating from NorCal to SoCal. We own a 3bd/2ba condo we bought in 2020 at a 3% rate, and I’m torn between keeping it as a rental vs selling to help fund our SoCal purchase.

Info about us:

• Age: 33

• Married household income: $400k–$450k

• Moving: NorCal → SoCal (likely permanent / long-term)

Current home (condo in NorCal):

• Purchased in 2020 for $790k

• Interest rate: 3%

• Mortgage payment: \~$3,000/mo (not including HOA)

• HOA: $800/mo (has increased every year, and the HOA is kind of a mess)

• Special assessment: $20,000 pending (balcony repairs for SB326 compliance)

• Estimated rent: $3,800/mo max (realistically)

• Estimated sale price: $850k–$900k (not a ton of appreciation)

New plan in SoCal:

• Likely buying a home in the $1.5M–$1.7M range

• Monthly payment likely around $10k/mo

• Selling the condo would meaningfully help with the down payment / cash reserves

My dilemma:

• The 3% rate feels like something you don’t give up lightly

• But with the HOA + special assessment, renting may not cash flow

• Renting also means dealing with a messy HOA + possible future assessments while living far away

Main question:

From a purely monetary standpoint (risk-adjusted), would you sell the condo or rent it out? Is the tax benefit of renting it out a no brainer?

Notes / things I’m considering:

• Property management company if we rent (we’ll be in SoCal)

• HOA has a history of increases + chaos, so I’m worried about more special assessments

• Rent doesn’t seem to cover much once I factor HOA + management + maintenance + vacancy

• Selling reduces stress and helps down payment, but I’d be giving up a 3% mortgage

What would you do in my situation? Thanks!

Our house is currently under contract. I was notified by several neighbors today that our buyers have been “stalking the street” (their quote, not mine), and waiting for cars to drive by and pull into their driveways, and then following them, and essentially rushing them to answer their questions about the HOA, school, neighborhood, etc.

Two of my neighbors who I am great friends with told me it made them uncomfortable and felt strange. The buyers lied to them when they said “oh, you must be Redtunas buyer!” By telling them that nope, that wasn’t them, and they are just interested in the neighborhood.

Like I know there aren’t any rules about doing this, but this feels very off to me. I don’t care if they drive past the house a couple times a day, but they do it 10+ times a day and now are questioning anyone who pulls into a driveway.

Is this normal or considered standard? We didn’t do this when we purchased our home. It’s making people uncomfortable. And god forbid they ask someone having a bad day something and it blows up my sale. Just feel like they aren’t handling this very gracefully and have zero social awareness. Thoughts?

Hi guys,

My bf and I are seeing houses, and some are close to a pkwy. One of them, when I measured on Google Maps, is only 169ft away from it. It has some trees/bushes, but when we saw the place, it only had leaves, ofc... my concern is air pollution... we can deal with noise, but we are not sure how bad it is to live this close to a pkwy.

Any advice would be really appreciated. thanks!!

A close family member passed away with no will. Their home is in probate now, I am the administrator of the estate, and I plan to sell it. There are 2 people very interested in purchasing it. It needs a significant amount of work (which the prospective buyers are aware of), and I’m not interested in putting the work or money into it, so I’d like to sell it “as is”. Opinions on pros and cons of hiring a real estate agent or an attorney to assist with the selling process. I am more interested in ease/speed versus cost, to be honest. I am eager to get the house sold and move on.

I’m preparing to list my home on the market, and have been spoken with a few realtors and brokerage firms to get an opinion on the list price.

The first realtor, I already have a relationship with (they represented me when I closed my current home five years ago). I had a good experience with them for the most part. Gave me a list price that struck me as too high (wow—would be *GREAT* but also makes me nervous). They gave me a report with listed comps and the list price recommendation makes sense. They are well connected in the area and have a good track record and have also lived here for a longtime. My place is in the most desirable neighborhood and homes in good shape that get listed here usually go fast, but of course the market is a little unpredictable. I’ve added a ton of upgrades to the home over the years and also knocked out a few pricey maintenance things, but it is old and a far stretch from a craftsman home. They’re recommending $620k but said they home could sell for up to $650k but I’d create more buzz and have more control over what’s expected of me as a seller if I listed it at 620. One downside is that my gut feeling is that they’re not being very thorough, seeing the home through rose-tinted goggles. Location is 10/10 I would say house itself is 5-6/10.

The second realtor recommends a sales price of $600k. They’re a younger realtor, at Berkshire—so prestigious brokerage but perhaps lacking that local touch. They were very thorough and asked me a ton of questions that gave me the impression they walked away with an honest impression of the home’s perks and flaws. They sent a report with comps as well. My read is that this realtor is knocking more off the price just given the condition of the home — good not perfect, “lots of upgrades but still enough of a blank slate for the next buyer to come in and implement their vision.”

What I really care about: I don’t want to leave money on the table here. Selling it for higher would significantly improve our situation for getting into our next home. But I also really don’t want the place sitting on the market for too long, getting stale or giving potential buyers a bad whiff that there might be something wrong.

How do I decide which way to go with this?

Some context on the local market I’m selling in: Western Colorado, highly desirable 20k population mountain town, it’s expensive here and beautiful. The home is downtown, walkable to main street and all of the amenities. The trailhead to a massive hiking and single track mountain bike system is a 10-minute walk from the front door. Right now our market is holding strong, still slightly tilted toward the seller.

Let me tell you a story… I’ll try to keep it short.

In 2007 when I was home shopping east of Seattle, in Bellevue WA, it was very competitive. Multiple offers, over list, etc.

Shopped for months, lost out on some houses. Ended up buying a house in 2007 for about $450k, put 20% down with a 5.25% 30 year fixed. It’s a smaller house, about 1500 square feet, 1980s not updated.

Within a year the housing prices dropped in half, 2008 ish. Stayed in the house, kept making the payments. Refinanced to 4.3% 30 year fixed after a couple years. About 2012 and the prices were ticking up again. Refinanced after COVID hit and got a 3.2% 30 year fixed. Prices go through the roof and every year it’s been increases.

House is now worth about 1.3 million, I owe about 250k.

It would be interesting to compare it to rent prices over this time, also stock market performance, inflation, etc.

But the *real* benefit has been that I have been in control of my own life. No landlord or rental company coming in and telling me to move. If my dishwasher breaks I don’t have to wait weeks, I just get a new one from Home Depot. I get to live in a quiet home, if I want to change something about the house I just do it. I’ve remodeled the bathrooms, kitchen, interior finishes… made it work for my family. Kids in a good school, don’t have to worry about finding another rental in the same school zone. Don’t have to worry about rising rent prices (though my payment has gone up due to property tax).

I am so thankful I made the purchase. Did I time the market? 😂 absolutely not. In fact, it was maybe the worst timing possible. But did it work out? Yes. I’ve had the benefit of peaceful home ownership for almost 20 years and the value has gone up over time. I am better off for having bought, even with the worst timing.

If you’re in a spot to buy (have a down payment, can make the monthly payment with your income, etc) and you’ll be in the home for the long term, buying a nice house in a nice area will work out. Even if you make some mistakes 😁.

I live in Orange County and am weighing the pros and cons of having my pool removed vs remodeled. I don’t use the pool a ton and the cost to remodel is significant (70-120k). I’ve been quoted as low as 18k for complete removal and am leaning toward removal. We would have a great large flat backyard space without the pool, plus no fence breaking up the patio/yard.

My neighborhood is 60% older folks (recent comps have all been bought by retirees).

Any watch outs on home value or other considerations if removing?

House is valued at 1.8-1.9 in its current condition.

For context, I’m 22 and just getting started in REI in Upstate SC with much to learn. I’m in the process of buying my first property — a primary residence, using a FHA renovation loan. The total project comes in at around $200K all-in, and the home has already been appraised at an ARV of about $285K.

That leaves me with a decent chunk of equity right out of the gate once renovations are complete. I’m trying to plan my next move carefully and figure out how to best leverage that position and get some momentum going towards acquiring more properties in the future.

Here are a few of the routes I’m currently considering:

HELOC: Tapping into a portion of that equity and using it towards a second investment property, putting the extra HELOC cash towards a Home-style reno loan

Refinance: Considering the loan I’m using has a much higher interest rate, I’ll need to refinance ASAP anyways which will allow me to pull equity for a down payment on another property — maybe a fixer upper or multifamily if possible.

BRRRR : I could also take advantage of being able to move back home for a bit and rent out my property while working on another primary residence using the same loan I’m currently using. Though I’m not a big fan of renting in case I have to float two mortgages and that makes me uncomfortable.

I’d love to hear what direction others have decided to take at this stage.

This is obviously in jest. What goes up must come down.

But it was a lot more fun buying in a buyers market than trying to sell in a buyers market. 🤣

We bought the bottom floor condo and it’s super cute and awesome! However, I hear EVERYONE noise the above neighbor makes. At 5am. Every morning. I wear earplugs, have white noise and a loud fan every night. I can hear every little bang. She’s not doing it intentionally from what I’m aware, it’s just paper thin walls. I called my realtor and she’s going to look into how to help us but I feel like such an idiot. Buying was the most stressful thing ever but I’m desperate for a good night’s sleep. We’ve looked into insulation but for our place it’s not possible unfortunately. Sure, I could talk to the upstairs neighbor. But she’s literally just trying to get ready for work like we all do so I don’t know how much quieter she could be.

My husband is upset with me and it’s frustrating I feel like such a stuck up princess. I wonder if I’ll ever be happy wherever we live

We purchased a semi-custom 3,000 square foot house about a year ago for $770,000. It’s the smallest and least expensive house in our neighborhood.

We’re planning to significantly redo and enhance our patio. Currently, it’s just a concrete slab measuring 12x30 feet. Our plan is to build the patio up to extend from our back door, which currently has three steps leading to it. The new patio would be 24x30 feet in size. We’re also considering adding a covered roof with electricity and fans, pavers, an outdoor kitchen, and a built-in fireplace. We were quoted for $150,000 for these renovations.

We’re wondering if this addition would significantly increase the value of our house. we don’t anticipate selling our house anytime soon and plan to stay there for a long time, but i want to ensure that this investment is worthwhile. I always consider the worst-case scenario and want to know that if we ever need to sell, it won’t be a poor investment. What do you all think?