Writings

Fire House Sold

Travis

Last October I purchased three houses from the Detroit tax auction. One I never intended on keeping but I did have a buyer already lined up… or so I thought.

When it became clear that buyer wasn’t going to come through, I got to talking with my buddy Jamiel about what we could do. He hooked me up with his partner Jamila and we listed it on the MLS.

To our surprise, it wasn’t long before we had an interested buyer. Apparently the guy owned a good sized apartment complex nearby. And, unlike me, he liked the area.

Awesome!

We wrote up a purchase agreement for $13,000 and got to work.

For such a cheap house you’d think this transaction would be quick and easy. Given the purchase price, it’s a cash deal, and those generally move fast.

Nope.

This one took forever for several reasons. First, we owned the house on a quit claim deed (QCD) and the buyer wanted to go through title, meaning he wanted title insurance. Apparently that process is a bit more complex with a QCD and involves a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

When that was finally done we hit another snag. There was an $8,000 balance on the previous owner’s water account. Obviously, this wasn’t ours and it’s common knowledge in Detroit that utility bills follow previous owners and tenants, but title was insisting we had to get it cleared before proceeding.

That took some back and forth with DWSD via phone and email and having them state in writing that it wasn’t on us was eventually enough to satisfy the title agency. We ended up closing yesterday after having the initial purchase agreement signed on February 13th. Almost two months!

We paid $10,032 for the Fire House at auction and another $1,162 in property taxes for a total of $11,194.

Although we sold it for $13,000, after commissions, fees, title insurance, etc. we only walked away with a check for $10,520.27 resulting in a loss of $673.73.

As far as lessons go, that’s a cheap one. I’ve lost far more money doing far smarter things. I’m just glad to be done with it and focusing on more important projects. At the end of the day, I’m super thankful that Jamila stuck it out and got this sold for us. It’s obviously not a huge win or big money maker for her.

Now we can dump the money into putting a new roof on the McCarty House.

Peak Pessimism as a Lagging Indicator

Travis

I was walking Pippa through our subdivision yesterday. It was a gorgeous, sunny day and people were out and about, keeping their distance. I had a couple conversations that I found interesting.

The first was with a family we’re friends with down a few streets. They’re about our age with three young kids. They said they hadn’t left the house in about three weeks. I was glad to hear that, because three weeks ago people still weren’t taking COVID-19 seriously here.

But it was what she said next that really surprised me… “I just don’t know if they’ll even be going back this Fall.”

The “they” here is in reference to the kids, and “back” is school. That shocked me because my read on sentiment has been that people are of the mindset that we’ll be back to “normal” in a couple months.

I told her that if I had to bet I’d say they would be back by Fall.

Read More

Going Broke Buying Roofs

Travis

My friend, Keyonte, texted me some photos yesterday of a garage he had re-sided. It looked fantastic, and he mentioned the guy does roofs too.

Great, I thought… I need some of those!

I gave him a call and we decided to go out looking at our house on Algonac that we just recently gained possession of and the McCarty House. I’d already had one person out to quote Algonac the other day. He said it has three layers of shingles on it and would be about $7,000 to get it done.

That’s a bit higher than I was expecting, but after seeing it today, I get it. The roof is in terrible shape and it’s bigger than I remembered. So when Keyonte’s guy Sam looked it over and quoted it at $8,000 I knew we were in the ballpark. That’s not terrible news.

That came when Sam took a look at the McCarty House. The flashing is failing on the chimney, which is not uncommon in Detroit. Most of these roofs were done by inexperienced crews that were more concerned with making a buck than doing it right. You can almost always bet on flashing issues and be right.

But beyond that, the shingles in the valleys are failing and essentially disintegrated. The wood siding on the left and right portions of the house is rotting, especially near the roof line, allowing a path for water to enter the home. And to top it all off, it seems the front of the house was re-roofed at one point. The shingles on the back are clearly different and older.

Oof. I was not expecting to have to re-roof McCarty. I knew it likely needed some repair, but not this.

I was pretty sure Kaitlin was going to kill me, because this house has been an absolute nightmare and money pit. And we’re nowhere near the finish line.

But she was pretty cool about it. In fact, while we’re doing those two we figured we mine as well do Farmbrook. That one is small and straightforward, so hopefully a bit cheaper.

I’m trying to find a skilled roofer that isn’t going to break the bank. I’m not the type to do things half-ass, and we plan on keeping these houses for a long time. So I want them done right.

But we’re definitely pushing the limits in terms of what’s left in our bank account. Hopefully we can sell the Fire House and get some cash there. I’m also hoping we see a tax refund this year to add a little more dry powder.

You know you’re scraping the bottom when you’re banking on a tax refund. Woof!

Essential Tenant Move-Ins

Travis

We’re moving in a tenant tonight, and it’s been a bit of an interesting experience amidst the COVID-19 and stay-at-home order. The move in date has been planned for weeks, and the tenant is flying in and relocating from Louisiana tonight.

We’ve never physically met.

Now, that’s not entirely strange for me. We placed a tenant in January that was moving up from North Carolina. We did a Facetime walk through of the house just like we did this time, but I ended up meeting him at the home to give him the keys when he got in.

This time I simply left a lock box on the house and our new tenant let herself in. Honestly, it was pretty cool.

That said, it’s been a bit stressful. This home, Somerset, was the one we had the furnace and water heater stolen from not long ago. So we had to finally put new ones back in. I trusted a guy I’d never worked with before to put them in this morning, again with just a lock box on the house.

I was nervous he’d flake or something would go wrong, because I would have been left without a backup. I’m happy to report everything went smooth.

It’s been a long road getting Somerset back rented after having to evict our inherited tenants. We’ve dumped more money into the house than I’d have liked, but I’m glad we now have it rented and producing again. I’ll have to do a write up about what we did, how much we spent, and what we’re hoping to see in terms payback period.

Levels of Mourning

Travis

The GPS said it was only six hours home this time. That’s a good 30 minutes faster than the way there. But it didn’t feel that way.

I cried quite a few times.

At one point the rain was so bad I had to pull over and wait it out a few minutes. I couldn’t help but wonder if it was Rachael, pissed off somewhere. I’m not even religious.

There was a moment at my sister’s house yesterday that I won’t ever forget. We were all sitting in the living room attempting to make small talk while the morticians retrieved Rachael from the bedroom.

When they emerged, loaded her onto the stretcher in the living room, and zipped her up, we all fell quiet. As the door closed behind them all you could hear was the rain on the rooftop and everyone in the room, one by one, begin to cry.

I tried my best to hold it in. I think we all were. I think we were trying to hold it together for her two little girls. Right then, her oldest, Cherith, walked across the room and sat down on the couch next to me and cuddle up.

There were nine of us sitting in that living room, but it felt empty. Not physically, but void of energy.

It was an odd moment because I’d felt like I had accepted she was gone. But it seems like every time you feel that way there’s something new that triggers a deeper form of mourning.

I can’t imagine how my parents feel. I can’t imagine how Caleb feels.

I hope I never have to.

Sorries, Tears, Death is Raw and Hospice Sucks

Travis

It was 12:28am last night when Rachael took her final breath. I was there.

I didn’t like it, but I’m glad I was. My mom needed me.

There are no words for the end. Just a lot of sorries with inferred implications whispered through tears and sniffles.

“I’m sorry…” (you’re going through this).

“I’m sorry…” (this is happening to you).

“I’m sorry…” (we don’t have more time).

“I’m sorry…” (it came to this).

“I’m sorry…” (it’s not me instead).

And so many more.

Everyone was sorry for everyone. There’s just nothing else to say.

I’ve never sat with someone through hospice like that. It’s not pretty, and I felt myself getting angry at the process when I called my brother to give him the news at 12:35am. I was dropping a lot of F-bombs paired with “hospice”.

Maybe I just needed someone (or something) to be mad at. But it feels like there should be a better alternative. Nobody should have to go through that. Nobody should have to watch a loved one go through that.

Yet we all wanted to be there. I’d want to be there again.

I’ll miss you, Rach. This one’s for you:

Eerily Quiet and Cancer Still Sucks

Travis

I didn’t get on the road until about noon today. I decided I couldn’t not go say goodbye to my sister. There were more people driving than I expected, all defying the electronic signs requesting we don’t do what we’re doing.

The service center I stopped to re-fuel at on the I-80 toll road was quiet though. Signs requested standing 6 ft apart, but there wasn’t anyone to really keep your distance from. The food court was closed, and all that was available were gas station snacks at this market:

I grabbed some nuts and went on my way.

I arrived and saw my sister tonight. It’s worse than I expected. She’s skin and bone and awake for just very short stints. When she is awake and trying to talk there are only flashes of lucidity.

I sat with her for awhile and we had some short, funny conversations. At one point she propped herself up, I asked if she needed something, and she said she was going to “slit my throat open and crawl inside me to stay warm… like on those shows.”

I said, “Oh yeah, those survival shows. You know, if I was Ryan sitting here (our brother) I’d expect you to say that, but come on Rach, it’s me!”.

She laughed and said my mom would “have a canary” if she knew I was talking about Ryan that way.

It was an odd conversation, not because of the content, but because it was hard to tell if/when she was understanding what she was saying.

But there were clearer moments. I told her how happy I was that I got to visit her a couple months ago and how it was a good visit. She agreed and said she wishes we could have a better one.

We won’t get that chance.

The hotel is eerily quiet.

Corona Sentiment Shift

Travis

I’ve noticed a very clear shift in sentiment toward the Coronavirus in the last 24 – 48 hours. I don’t know if that’s due to our recent stay at home order or something else, but it’s encouraging.

There’s now prolific public shaming in my real estate investment group on Facebook for contractors announcing that they’re still working. I talked to someone quoting cabinets for the McCarty House kitchen that said she wanted to stop by solo because she’s “freaked out”. We’ll Facetime instead of meeting.

I spoke with a roofer today, trying to line up when we can re-roof one of our other properties. He’s not working, and mentioned a $500/person fine on his guys if he were.

Whether people are scared for their lives, their loved ones’ lives, or the risk/reward balance is tipped too far against them in terms of fines, it’s clear the attitude has changed.

Just days ago people were still brushing off the dangers of being in public or cracking jokes about the virus. It’s incredible to see such an abrupt change in behavior and sentiment.

It’s nice to witness. It’s starting to feel like society is uniting, and hopefully that gets us through the other side of this thing faster and in better shape than we’d be otherwise.

Impossible Decisions and Cancer Sucks

Travis

My sister, Rachael, has been battling cancer for awhile now. She is not going to beat it.

The targeted therapy they had her on to combat the stage IV melanoma did not work. We knew that the other week, and she’s been in and out of the hospital a couple times since then.

She’s back in now, but will be discharged on hospice in the next day or two. They’re out of treatment options

By the sounds of it, talking with my mom, there isn’t much time left. Rachael is pretty doped up on pain meds in an effort to keep her comfortable, but it also drastically reduces her lucidity.

My knee jerk reaction is to pack a bag, drive the 6.5 hours to Altoona, and say my final goodbyes. But those thoughts are quickly checked by my social responsibility.

My dad and stepmom are there, traveling from northern Michigan. My mom will be there, coming from Florida. My brother in-law, Caleb, has been in the hospital with Rachael, and I have no idea what precautions any of them have taken.

Yes, I may have already been infected with COVID-19, but I’m not certain of that. I do know that traveling right now is an irresponsible thing to be doing, but I also can’t imagine not saying goodbye to Rachael.

McCarty House Movement and Playing Handyman

Travis

I did a virtual showing for our Somerset house, stopped by the McCarty House to meet with our electrician, and swung by the Dougie Fresh Duplex to look at getting the Ring doorbell properly setup for one of the tenants.

It felt good to be on the ground doing real estate related stuff again.

The virtual tour went well. If this pans out, it will be the second time I’ve Facetimed a prospective tenant and have them move in without stepping foot in the home before. She seems great, and her background and credit check both came back positive. Promising.

The (no longer moldy) McCarty House is coming along. We’re definitely not as far along as I’d hoped, but I’m happy that we’ve made some progress while I was away. And we hit some speed bumps, too.

We’ve been mostly focused on the main level, because we’re doing some serious changes there. Here is a shot as you enter the home, looking in the the living room. There was a “bonus” room with an arched doorway to the left. Ms. McCarty was using this as a makeshift bedroom.

We blew out the arch and framed it with a real door so we could turn this into a real bedroom. The problem is it’s a small room with not much squarefootage to add a closet. So, after lots of back and forth, we decided to close up the doorway you see on the right hand side (in the photo on the left), blow the wall back all the way into a half bathroom that sits a few feet lower than the main level.

Here’s a better shot at the make shift door that led to the “bedroom”:

The half bath is accessible from a landing on your way to the basement. So we’ve raised the floor of that bathroom to accommodate a small master suite. Here’s a shot from the landing on the way to the basement. You can see how we raised the floor to be level with the first floor:

Also notice the rotted out floor of the old bathroom. This has been an ongoing theme in the house.

Here’s a shot from the opposite side, standing in the new bedroom:


We decided to put a pocket door in to save space. The bathroom is quite small, and I think I’m going to try putting in a wall hung toilet to make it more comfortable.

The basement is also coming along nicely. We’ve at least got it mostly removed. Getting this done cleared up 90% of the stench throughout the house. All the mold is now gone:

Don’t mind our electrician, Gene, relieving himself in that last photo. We don’t have a working bathroom in the house yet. I kid.

It’s definitely some progress, but I want to move faster. We likely have a tenant that’s already going to jump on this house, and I’d like to get her in sooner rather than later.

After leaving the McCarty House I headed to the Dougie Fresh Duplex. I haven’t written about that one yet, but it’s one of my favorites. The tenant that lives in the lower unit is also one of my favorite tenants. She cracks me up.

I looked at her Ring doorbell that isn’t set up, and it turns out I need to call customer service to get it transferred to me since I’m not on great terms with the previous owner (long story). She also had a light fixture that wasn’t working that I managed to fix.

All told, I was home by 1pm and it was only about three hours out of my day. But I enjoyed it. Funny how people think being a landlord sucks. Or maybe I’m still too green.