Jason and Elizabeth got what they deserve
Sam Schneiderman, Broker-owner of Greater Boston Home Team continues his Monday series.
Nine years ago, Jason and Elizabeth were a young couple living in an attic apartment on the Brookline/Brighton line. Someone told them that they couldn’t afford to buy on their own, but they had friends willing to help them with the down payment on a two family in return for a percentage of the tax benefits and profit.
They had questions about home buying, becoming landlords and buying with partners. We talked and it became obvious to me that if we could find them a two family with numbers that worked, they could buy without partners and keep the tax benefits, income and profit potential for themselves.
Since children were part of their 5 to 10 year plan, we discussed what would happen when they needed more space. We came up with four options that would depend on their incomes and the future market:
1. They could expand their living space into the second apartment.
2. They could keep the two family as an investment and buy a single family.
3. They could sell the two family and buy a single family.
4. If the location warranted, they could convert to condos and sell them for more than the two family would be worth.
I sent Jason and Elizabeth to a reputable lender that verified their credit and told us how much income was needed to support various purchase prices. We discussed where we would be most likely to find the right two family. After many disappointments, we found the ideal property near Tufts that would give them good rental prospects and was in a neighborhood likely to support condos in the future.
Over the years, we discussed refinancing, upgrading, converting the front porch into a playroom and general upkeep, always with their “master plan” in mind.
Now that they have children and their daily commute required them to spend too much time commuting, they were getting anxious to implement the next phase of their plan. Over the past couple of years, we developed another long term plan for their next home and they have been holding off until the market in their neighborhood became profitable again and the time was right.
Congratulations to Jason and Elizabeth. Last week, they closed on the sale of two condos (sold at and above asking price with multiple offers on each unit) and bought a great renovated Victorian single family on a dead end street closer to their jobs.
Last week, I wrote about the benefits of planning ahead when buying a home.
Jason and Elizabeth are a couple that developed a 5 to 10 year plan, stuck with it and got what they deserve.
Perspective: Having an exit strategy BEFORE you buy is the best way to insure success.
