Anyone here deal with real estate? apt- condo$?

[yody]

Just wondering if anyone here deals with real estate much? Me and my father are looking at a 20 unit apartment building in an already up and coming area. The idea is to rehab the needed apartments and turn them into condos and sell them all, the profit and return is huge, but we are wondering why the current owner isn't doing it themselves. We have dealt with plenty of income property but this is new. Just thought I would see if anyone who has experience with this aspect woudl have any input. thanks! (obviously my father is experienced and I am not)

[Smoke'm]

check the zoning on the unit..may be a no-go to divide them up..that gets tricky when they share the same space...
stick with little rambler type homes and rent them out...

[Bill Howell]

Cody(?),
Smoke'm beat me to it. Zoning may be the issue in subdividing, check with your local p&z board. I would advise you do your homework and find out why the present owner is willing to sell. It may be lack of funds for improvements or it could be something deeper. Depending on the age of the building you could have asbestos issues,new code issues, bla bla bla who knows. Be sure you know the extent of repairs needed and the cost before you sign any contract or even make offer.You certainly do not want any expensive surprises later. There is always more to it than meets the eye.Two things I always do when looking at a property is get a good apprisal and an independent building inspection. It is money well spent even if it convinces you to walk. Obviously condos would be the best shortterm return if you can do it, so don't get discouraged if you find out you have to jump thru a couple hoops to subdivide. Just be sure that there will be a demand for the property when you do all the work to subdivide.I do like your thinking though. Having alittle vision and foresight here in Pigeon Forge with property others were scared of has served me very very well. Working by the hour is fine but having a set every once and a while and taking that chance is so rewarding. The key is doing the homework before you roll the dice.
Good Luck!

[yody]

thanks for the encouragement, if this project gets started, I will be running the whole show(with help of course) The catch is, is that it has already been approved by the city to be setup as condos. That is why we are a little curious why they are selling. We have had a lot of luck in real estate. This sounds like a great idea, but its a lot of money down. Gonna dig a little deeper, but we are already putting a bid in. Thanks!

[Smoke'm]

have the place inspected for HAZ Mat's!!!....nothing is free in life unless its a buddy deal.... and if its on the open market with agents. ... well they have buyers on the hook looking for deals and snap them up as soon as they hit if they are truly a hot deal..if it looks like you can steal it...alarms should be going off....just a FYI... put in a offer with a feasabilty study and haz mat study..that will lock it up and you can do your home work quickly..if the seller declines this offer something may be up he is not disclosing....good luck.

[Matt]

That's some good advice. I don't really know anything about the subject, but they could be just too damned lazy to do it themselves. I've seen many people pass up on great opportunities because they just wouldn't sieze it.

[vintageracer]

Search your immediate area of the country and see if there is a "real estate investors" club/group in your area. If there is, this is a WONDERFUL place to network and meet people who are NOW doing what you want to do. Keep you mouth shut most of the time and listen to others. Ask questions and listen to the pro's answers and you will be suprised how much you will learn. Most metropolitan area have a club/group such as this.