Theresa Bradley-Banta, Founder/CEO, Theresa Bradley-Banta Real Estate Consultancy, is a ­down-to-earth experienced investor in apartment buildings and multifamily properties. Her approach to successful investing involves honesty. First, no hype. Second, no-holds-barred when it comes to sharing information that leads to success.

Theresa’s website is one of the most popular in the field for free links, resources and articles on multifamily real estate investing. She is the author of the book Invest In Apartment Buildings: Profit Without The Pitfalls. Theresa Bradley-Banta is a 2012 Winner of the prestigious Stevie Award for Women in Business, Entrepreneur of the Year, Business Services.

In addition to real estate investing, consulting and mentoring Theresa is a musician, award winning graphic artist and owner of multiple businesses. She lives in Colorado with her husband, Richard, who is an entrepreneur and attorney.

She can be reached via e-mail or social media at her website.

Theresa Bradley-Banta’s Invest In Apartment Buildings Profit Without The Pitfalls is a no-holds-barred guide to successfully investing in multifamily buildings. This Bradley-Banta compendium includes everything you need to know—the good deals and the “don’t go there” ones; exit strategies—and the fact that you must have more than one; repositioning a property (it’s a lot more than fixing it up); negotiating the best deals (let go of being liked); understanding the real numbers and using them to your advantage; and the often ignored value of building a first-class team.

Purchase your copy at Amazon.com by following this link: Invest In Apartment Buildings Profit Without The Pitfalls.

Paperback: $16.95
Kindle: $9.99
Nook: $9.99
iTunes: $9.99
Kobo: $9.99
Publisher: Big Fish Top Dogs Publishing

ISBN: 0985968109

About the Author

Theresa Bradley-Banta, Founder/CEO, Theresa Bradley-Banta Real Estate Consultancy, is a ­down-to-earth experienced investor in apartment buildings and multifamily properties.. Theresa has a no hype approach to successful investing and a no-holds-barred attitude when it comes to sharing information that leads to success.

Theresa’s website is one of the most popular in the field for free links, resources and articles on multifamily real estate investing. She is the author of the book Invest In Apartment Buildings: Profit Without The Pitfalls. Theresa Bradley-Banta is a 2012 Winner of the prestigious Stevie Award for Women in Business, Entrepreneur of the Year, Business Services. In addition to real estate investing, consulting and mentoring Theresa is a musician, award winning graphic artist and owner of multiple businesses. She lives in Colorado with her husband, Richard, who is an entrepreneur and attorney.

What Readers Are Saying

“This is a must have book for any serious real estate investor.”

“If you invest in real estate you need this book in your library.”

“The honest approach and easy readability make this a fun read full of useful information.”

“Do yourself a favor and read it before you invest.”

This is a well-written concise book on investing in apartment buildings. It was really entertaining too! Theresa Bradley-Banta shows you clearly how to find and understand good apartment investing markets; tour and evaluate properties (by driving by and by going to a showing with the seller or broker); obtain the actual property financials from the seller for use in property analysis; clearly understand investing terms, concepts and formulas; find a team and lead it; steer way clear of the hype around multifamily investing; and most importantly get into action free of fear and doubts. I found the book to be very inspiring.

As an added bonus, she makes all of the documents from her book available for free download. I now have all the questions I need to interview both a commercial broker and a property manager (not to mention a great sample property management agreement), due diligence documents, sample Letter of Intent, sample real estate investor resume plus other great resources.

I would encourage you to buy this book. Keep it handy as an excellent reference. And read it every three or four months as you build your investing business.

— Elizabeth H.

I am an attorney and real estate investor. Theresa’s book couldn’t have arrived at a more impactful time. Her book offers tremendous value and insight into this much-publicized real estate investing niche. She is a fresh and modern voice in the midst of the greatest media frenzy surrounding new apartment building construction, multifamily investing mania and hype.

Because of her understanding of the multifamily investing arena Theresa is able to provide great investor insight into what is now fast becoming the bright spot of our economy—real estate. Theresa’s book is an entertaining and practical guide to multifamily investing. It’s not to be missed.

— M. Kathryn

I’m a seasoned real estate investor who has invested thousands of dollars in seminars and tools to learn my craft. Theresa’s book ranks up there with the best. It is an interesting, easy to read, packed with practical information book on investing in multifamily real estate. If you invest in real estate you need this book in your library.

— Tomas N.

I’ve been investing in single-family houses for a couple of years now and I’ve wanted to make the move to buying apartment buildings. As a newcomer to multifamily investing I did not want to make costly mistakes. Theresa Bradley-Banta has delivered the goods when it comes to practical advice. Not only does she cover successful deals she shows you why she chose to pass on deals that didn’t match her strategies. Most books promote apartment building investing as easy to do, going as far as saying anyone can do it. As an experienced real estate investor I know this simply isn’t true. Big mistakes can be made when you’re dealing with millions of dollars. I found Theresa to be refreshingly honest about the potential downfalls and mistakes that can be made. In my opinion? Priceless!

—Janet K.

Forcing Appreciation On Multifamily Properties With a Value Added Strategy

Some Before and After Pictures of Apartment Building Renovations

I like to buy apartment buildings in need of improvements, but usually not in need of major renovations. Poor management and distracted property owners often lead to deferred maintenance…simple fixes that can dramatically force appreciation by raising income and lowering expenses.

When you raise the Net Operating Income on a multifamily property (typically called NOI = Income – Expenses), you raise the value on a property. Here are some tips on how to strategically renovate a multifamily property for profit.

Major Apartment Building Renovations:

Some property renovations are costly and should be considered when you negotiate the purchase price.

Tips:

• I negotiated a seller credit for repairs for the major renovations that needed to be done on this 29 unit apartment building. During contract negotiations the seller agreed to a repair credit to redo all of the asphalt, sidewalks, courtyard and roof.
• This apartment complex is in the vicinity of a busy street. When we purchased the building the “courtyard” was a loading only zone in the back of the complex. By creating a courtyard with landscaping, barbecue area and seating for the residents, we created a quiet space the residents could enjoy. This became a marketing tool when listing the units for rent.
• This property had poor drainage after heavy rains. The new asphalt and sidewalks assured water drained away from the property and ultimately out to the city street.
• Garbage trucks used the driveway on the North side of the property. To prevent damage to typical asphalt driveways we poured concrete on that section of the drive. Heavy garbage trucks will destroy asphalt.
• We installed a bright white Durolast roofing system which had several advantages. The new roofing system came with a 15 year warranty that was transferable to new owners when we flipped the property. This was a huge selling point. New roofs are a major expense.
• Buildings with air conditioning can receive an efficiency rebate from the local energy company when they install a Durolast roofing system.

Cosmetic Apartment Building Renovations:

Not all renovations are costly. Plan for these simple improvements in your acquisition budget.

Tips:

• This laundry room renovation was a simple one yet it had a significant impact on income. A friendly, clean environment ensured the residents actually used the facility.
• Many apartment complexes come with a laundry lease in place where the owner splits the profits 50-50 with a professional laundry company. These leases run with the property, not the owner. Renegotiating the lease, or canceling before lease end, can lead to a large increase in income.

• Great first impressions are a  must. When a prospective resident enters your building you are looking for the “Wow” factor.
• Wood floors, period carpeting (as in this 1950′s apartment building) are a relatively inexpensive way to attract the right demographic of renters and to lease units quickly.
• In this property we also installed an entryway security system. It’s an inexpensive, telephone based door locking system used by residents to allow entry to visitors.
• Interior hall properties (versus exterior walk ups) can be used as a marketing tool to attract residents. You are providing an extra layer of security to the community by providing an extra set of locking doors to apartment unit entry.

• Knowing your particular “market sizzle”, will help you rent apartment units for top dollar and will help you make your renovation decisions easily.
• This apartment building is located in a market where wood floors are the top priority to residents. This particular property had oak floors throughout, but the wood floors had been covered with carpeting for decades. Of course, we knew the wood was there before we bought the property. Refinishing the floors to their original beauty was our top priority when renovating and updating the apartment units.
• A simple two tone paint job, new lighting, and the installation of ceiling fans was all that was required to create a beautiful living space for our residents.

I hope this post has inspired you to invest in apartment buildings of any size. If you’re interested in learning more, be sure to get advance notice of my upcoming book, Savvy Apartment Building Investing: Stories From The Trenches (Insider Secrets The Other Guys Won’t Tell You) (click the link).

You’ll also want to go grab my FREE resources (10 awesome downloads!). Click here: Free Multifamily Investing Resources. Do it now, you’ll be very glad you did!

Oh! And be sure to hop over to my mentoring page for more real estate investing resources: Apartment Investing Mentoring.

Or, leave a comment below!

Here is a simple, but extraordinary, list of questions to use when talking with your mentor. These are thinking questions.

And … stick around, the best part is yet to come.

23 Extraordinary Questions to Ask Your Mentor

• What qualities do you look for in the people you hang out with?
• If you wanted to encourage innovative ideas, how would you go about it?
• How would you describe your personal style?
• How do you give credit where credit is due?
• If you wanted to create an environment where motivation can thrive, what’s the first thing you would do?
• How do you show others that you believe in them?
• Who has influenced you the most?
• What do you do to challenge your underlying beliefs, paradigms and assumptions?
• What would you do differently if given the opportunity?
• When is breaking the rules okay?
• What does working ‘on’ your business mean to you?
• What does empowerment mean to you?
• How and where do you find inspiration?
• If you wanted to find the second best answer to a question or problem, what technique would you use?
• Why do you do what you do?
• How do you approach the unknown?
• How do you keep your feelings from clouding your decision-making?
• What’s the best way to keep your eye on future results?
• How do you bring courage and conviction to risky situations?
• What values are you committed to?
• What do you do to live a balanced life?
• What are 5 key books you feel I should read, and why?
• What dreams and goals inspired you to succeed?

Okay, are you ready? Here’s the fun part. It’s time to ask yourself these questions.

If you’re thinking about getting into multifamily real estate investing, this post is for you. It’s also a great resource for the seasoned real estate investor. It is full of tips and free resources to assist you in studying real estate markets and it will help you stay on top of the latest apartment investing industry news.

Free apartment market research reports

There are some good resources online for free local apartment market data. Multifamily lenders such as Red Capital Group offer free research reports and commercial real estate valuation firms such as Integra Realty Resources also have free reports on local and national apartment markets (download the IRR Viewpoint). The IRR Viewpoint is a great report. You can also go back in time by downloading their previous issues—a good tool for viewing the historical data of a market.

They may be free, but they are full of valuable information.

You’ll also find free local and national apartment market reports at most large commercial real estate brokerages firms such as Marcus & Millichap, Grubb & Ellis, and CB Richard Ellis.

All of these reports include information on cap rates, vacancy rates, employment, construction & apartment unit inventory, housing & demographics, rents & capital markets (and more).

The grass isn’t always greener

Keep the following in the mind:

Many real estate brokers, property sellers and commercial advisory firms frequently base their data on profomas rather on on actual, current data. They may present an optimistic view of their markets and properties. So verify your information from multiple sources.

It’s worth checking out LoopNet while doing your research. This is the biggest online resource for apartment building listings — kind of like the MLS for single-family properties. But, again, most of the info is inflated as it is coming from the listing brokers or the property owners.

I’m not saying do not hire a local commercial real estate broker. I work with several excellent brokers. But as an entrepreneur and real estate investor you need to lead your team. In order to do that you need to know and study your business.

Which leads me to my next tip…

Learn about apartment investing before you buy a property

Before buying your first property, educate yourself on buying apartment buildings.

The following apartment industry magazines are free and can be delivered to your door or read online.

Apartment Finance Today is an excellent magazine. This publication will keep you current on the financial markets. Multi-housing News is a magazine that covers markets, trends, finance, credit and other areas of interest to multifamily investors. Multifamily Executive Magazine has news and business strategies for apartment owners, managers, and developers.

You’ll also want to read my book Invest In Apartment Buildings Profit Without The Pitfalls. It’s available at Amazon and on most e-readers (click here to find a link to your specific e-reader).

Study your local real estate investing markets

You’ve heard the line “location, location, location” — the three most important factors in buying real estate.

Location holds the key when you’re talking about real estate value. You can buy a cheap property in a dead market — and it’s still a dead market. Doesn’t matter how cheap the property was, you did not make a good investment.

The “millionaire maker” multifamily, or apartment, markets are those where jobs are coming to the area, the oversupply is used up, the rents are starting to increase and the market is beginning to appreciate.

Some great questions to ask about real estate markets… and the resources to find the answers

Do you know what the job growth and employment outlook are for your target area? How about apartment demand? Is the oversupply used up? Are rents on the increase? Do you know what the average vacancy rates are for your market?

A good source of information for a specific area on housing, the economy, cost of living, demographics and more is Sperling’s Best Places and you can always see what the census bureau has to say, although that info is dated.

I recently wrote an article on Top 20 Criteria for Locating Hot Real Estate Markets — check it out.

Researching a rental market

Craig’s List and Rent.com will give you an idea for supply and demand for a particular area. You can research rental rates, volume of listings and competition for a particular submarket. Look for concessions such as free rent, free utilities, no deposits required, etc. If you find a lot of concessions they are having trouble filling vacancies.

A word of caution on real estate “market research”. It is critical to drill down to submarkets when doing your research.

*********

Remember,

“Doing nothing is not a successful strategy!”.