All Forum Posts by: Bob Langworthy

That's a great goal, @Joe Vastola! I read 15 books in 2017 and will read 18 books in '18.

A few of my favorites from last year:

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook - Gary V

The Ideal Team Player - Pat Lencioni

Leaders Eat Last - Sinek

It would be worth using a professional this year. If you made improvements to the property, you could quickly run afoul of the Repair Regs. Going forward you may decide to do it yourself once you see what the accountant did, but at least one year of professional advice would be well worth it. I see a lot of DIY returns when new clients bring me their prior year returns. Rarely do I see a Schedule E (or C for that matter) that is prepared correctly. Sometimes the errors are in their favor, and sometimes they are in the IRS's favor. 

And with commercial you may have longer vacancies, but the tenants are far more likely to sign a long term lease. My first investment property is commercial and 3 out of 4 tenants are on 5 years leases, but one office was vacant for 13 months. 

There's also less drama with commercial tenants than with residential tenants. Having said that, I'm looking at buying a residential property in 2018 to diversify my holdings.

Good thoughts!

Michael Plaks , I have the gift of optimism!

I would sell. It doesn't sound like your primary was purchased because of great rental potential. I have seen many clients try to repurpose a primary as a rental because of either an emotional tie to the property or the idea that landlording is easy. Neither is a good reason to convert primary to rental. I would look to start fresh in a new area. If it was purchased with rental potential in mind, however, then run the numbers and let the calculator decide. Take the emotion out. And congratulations on being proactive about your future!

I have advised the lender in these situations to issue a 1098. My thought at the time is that it isn't incorrect to report mortgage interest on a 1098 and I want to encourage the lender to report the interest income. Although I haven't seen it, there must be times when the income goes unreported.

Brandon Hall and Michael Plaks thanks for the interesting thread. I keep telling clients that we'll know more when the IRS digests the law and issues some temporary regs. The short answer is there will continue to be creative opportunities to benefit our clients.

As others have said, be very cautious going in to this. I would want everything spelled out in writing with no "understandings". The legal agreement should be arms-length, as if it was a stranger.

I would thank the brokers for not lending to you at this point, pay down your debt, and invest when your debt to income ratio is healthy again. This website is great, but it can generate a lot of excitement and make you feel like you are way behind if you aren't closing deals every month. You have to move at a pace that works for you and your finances. And sell that car. Only use debt to purchase assets that increase in value. Just my $.02

Welcome to BP, Adam! I applaud you for having a goal and starting to research it. I'm sure you've heard others say it before, but at your age the best investment you can make is in yourself. Keep reading great books, listening to awesome podcasts, asking deep questions, and saving money. Before you know it your time will come.