Hi, I bought one of the houses in Anderson and a second one in Bicknell. They are both in Indiana. It has one of the lowest crime rates in the US.
They were both repossessions and very cheap. If you send through an email address I will send you on the details and pictures.
They both need new kitchens bathrooms and decorated.
There is a good demand for rental property. Its the old story if you make the house a little bit nicer than the others available, you can always find someone to rent.
Brian

thx ! It's

aidanquilligan@gmail.com

Hi, I tried to send you an email but it bounced back. My email address is brian.calton@yahoo.com if you send through an email I will send the details and pictures.

Brian

Hi

I thought i'd contribute to the Buffalo Property Investment blog as I just got back from there (yesterday in fact). I have been investing in property for about 8 years now and have not found anywhere else that gives me a better return than WNY (if anyone can give me 15 to 20% net then i'm all ears). You will see a lot of figues stating 30% but this is gross remember and the sourcing companies leave a lot out!

Buffalo is most definatey on the up as just in the last 12 months alone i've seen a lot more investment in the city and a lot more people moving into the it (always a good sign in my book). The property prices have stayed the same for for a number of years now and when I got into buffalo properties i wasn't too bothered about capital gain because my rental yield certainly made up for it. I feel with whats happening to buffalo I may even see a 10 or 20% capital increase over the next few years which would be nice.

What is paramount when inveesting in areas where you don't live is that you have a good team in the area. I have a good set of guys over there (by the way i'm british) that look after everything I ask them to, but it took me many visits and phone calls to get these people and they are worth their weight in gold. There are plenty of crooks willing to make a few quid out of your niaveness and I too have been burnt in the past and lost a few grand on my first purchase (a costly but important lesson). My advice to anyone going into this high gains area is that its high gains for a reason. You need to know the area and its sub towns and streets. One street can be desirable but presuming the streets around it are is a beginners mistakem as one block away can be crackhead city. I've seen a few buyers buy because it as sold with the fact it was near a good area!

My experience is at first it's a frustrating investment as the paper work can be tiresome, but this game is all about making money and that is what it certainly does. The real bargains are the ones you don't see advertised and it takes a while to get those. I hate to see people lose money due to lack of advice so If anyone would like any help or advice on investing in Buffalo/Niagara Falls and it's surrounding areas then contact me and i'll be glad to.

It's an old saying but its true, "It's not what you know, its who you know".

I am interested in the area and any tips that you could give me would be great.

Hi,

I have bought a couple of properties in Buffalo.
The property manager has asked for my social security number as he has rented it to a S8 tenant.
I am going to give him my national insurance number (as I am british) and will be paying tax in the UK. Will that be OK?

Brennan property advised that I didn't need to obtain a tax identification number for the IRS to get the rent paid into my bank account from a housing benefit/S8 tenant.
Can anyone advise or anyone had any experience?

Thanks.

Hi Trophy
I dont know why Brennans said you didnt need a ITIN, I have had conversations with them (Karen) telling them I wasnt getting any help from the US agents (ABC) on this matter.

As I understand it if you have a section 8 tennat and therfore are getting paid by the State, then they want to make sure 1. who they are paying and 2. that you pay them any income tax that may be due from your rental 'buisness'.

So, either they pay you (to an identified ITIN), or they ask the agent to withhold 40% (maybe 30%?) of the rent for tax. Any surplus would be paid back after you submit your first US tax return and get an ITIN.

Witholding such a large percentage is not good for you, as with deductions (expenditure) your profits and eventual tax bill will not be this high.

Therfore you need to get an ITIN quickly and avoid witholding taxes.

This is where I am at. You need to fill in a form asking IRS for a ITIN before the normal tax year end (December). With this form you need to send a copy of the deed of purchase and a letter from your rental agent saying you have Section 8 tenants (this is what I've been trying to get from ABC).

I'll paste on another post the IRS letter I have about where/how to obtain ITIN.

Letter from IRS in London about how to obtain an ITIN - my additions in red:

To: ITIN Applicant
From: Taxpayer Services
Subject: ITIN Process

You have asked how to obtain an ITIN (Individual Taxpayer Identification Number). ITINs are issued for US tax purposes only and are not used for immigration. The application you need to use is a form W-7, which can be found on the IRS website at Internal Revenue Service.

There are instructions with the application form, but I find that Publication 1915, Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, more helpful if the instructions don’t have enough information.

Please note: Applications for ITINs are rejected most frequently for one of two reasons: lack of proper documentation for the “exceptions” and unacceptable identity document notarization.

• Regulations require that you submit your W-7 with your completed tax return. If you cannot do this, you must be eligible for one of the “exceptions” as listed in the instructions. rental income
You will need to submit the proper documentation listed in the instructions with your W-7 to show you meet the requirements for the “exception.”ownership deed and letter from rental agent

• Your identification documents (your passport is the preferred document) must be notarized by a U.S. notary or by a foreign notary with an apostille attached. U.S. embassies provide notarial services. If you are near an embassy that has an IRS office (London, Frankfurt, or Paris) we can certify your original document at no cost to you. You can bring your completed W-7 form, supporting documents, and passport into our office where we will certify your passport and send your application to the U.S. for processing. Alternately, you can post them to us by “recorded mail” and we will return your passport within one week by “recorded” mail. There is no charge for this service. Of course, if you are in the U.S. you can have a copy of your documents notarized there.

After we receive your completed form and documents, we will forward them to Austin, Texas, where they will be processed. They will notify you by mail if they need more information and will send you your number when it is assigned. At present, the process can take up to 12 weeks. If you have not heard from Austin after 12 weeks, you can contact our office and we can look in to the matter for you.

If you have any questions, please contact us. Our opening hours, telephone/fax numbers, and address can be found on our webpage at: Embassy of the U.S. London: Internal Revenue Service . Our e-mail address is irs.london@irs.gov. This page is updated frequently.

Thanks for all that useful information.
What I don't understand is that British citizens who will be paying tax on their USA income in the UK still apparently need to go through this process--considering there is a double taxation treaty.

As my property is being rented out in the next 2 weeks, this presumably means that my property manager will have to withold about 30% or 40% of the rent paid by the government, whereas the remainder of the rent paid by the tenant will not be subject to witholding by the property manager.

This witholding will continue until taxes are filed either in the UK or the USA and an ITIN is allocated.
Is that correct?
Might be a good time to consider setting up an offshore trust!

Trophy, who is your property management agent ?

Your understanding is as mine is, apart from I think the Agency has to withold x% of all your rental income. Actually that must be true as they are supposed to withold % of all rent whoever your tenant is. Its just that in practise the IRS would never know unless its S8, so they dont tend to bother.

I dont understand your double taxation comment:
IRS want tax from all people making any income from work/assets in their country, so they need to 'identify' all people with a SSN or ITIN. So, you owe USA tax (tax year ends December, you pay in April).

The UK then wants to tax all UK citizens whereever and however they earn their money. So, you owe UK tax.

Luckily, there is this agreement where you can deduct the amoutn paid in US taxes from the UK amounts owed - thus the total you are paying is whatever is the highest tax in UK or US.

I'll hunt out other emails I have from IRS with details on and post later.

PS you also have to file a New York State annual tax return, I havent many details of this yet.