All Forum Posts by: Chris Sweeney

You say that you "just signed a new lease" so there is a fully executed lease? If so, I would go by those terms.

Just FYI in the future, in situations like this I have required the deposit due at lease signing making it non-refundable if they don't show up with first month once the lease starts.

Until you are off to Georgia to check it out put your feelers out for Subject To or Owner Finance deals in So Cal. Maybe network with some investors at a local REIA. If nothing else you will learn a bunch.

Might look at corporatehousingbyowner.com and homeaway.com. Little different niches but nonetheless good resources.

When screening property management you may want to call each of them twice: once posing as a tenant and the next posing as a landlord. Some of the sketchy PM companies will give landlords inflated rental amounts to gain the business.

I'm with Joel on this one and you have a ton of homework to do in 5 days to make an educated decision. I think Joel's comments speak volumes to knowing the area you are investing in. I know So Cal is pricey but what if you find something in So Cal at 60% ARV and can do a hard money loan refi'd into conventional with little to no money of pocket?? Could be a nice revenue stream for a buy and hold rental. I'd take Aaron up on the offer of checking it out but for me I'd run like the wind away from this deal.

Maybe someone touched on this but if not and the meter is not a smart meter it could be a misread. I have had this in the past and it was a misread. You may be able to determine from the water bill if it was a misread by comparing the ending usage from the bill to the meter itself. Or, just call them out for another reading.

I think you have to consider the necessary impressions before you get some to act on your mailer. There's a reason why beer commercials run all the time and not just once. The negative responses are a fact of the business. I have been told to do certain things to myself (especially when they see my offer) and that's fine. Also, along the lines of what Aaroon said you need to cater to their needs. Maybe tenants, toilets, and taxes keep them up at night and you can make those go away? Do you pay the closing costs? Do you buy it 'as-is'? Are you all cash? Can you close quickly? Can you deal with their current tenants under a lease? Aaron touched on the credibility front which I think is huge. I explain that I have purchased multiple investment properties and my clients prefer cash rather than the burden of property ownership. I also note my real estate business name. Reinforce/repeat the call to action. I also leave an email as some are gun shy about picking up the phone especially if a long distance number.

I've had great success with hand written notes in these cases. On the phone via a cold call just seems to make lots of sellers defensive. Perhaps a hand written note saying that you will give them a call in a few days but leave your contact info in case they want to call you. Just seems to break the ice a tad and make the cold call a little warmer when you say "hi this in Kenyatta and I sent you a note about your house."

It is enticing when tenants are in place but if these tenants trash the place, don't pay on time, and have your phone ringing all the time with nit picky issues it's a bad deal. I also find that sellers always claim that their tenants are perfect when nobody in fact is. If the existing tenants meet me screening criteria than great if not I'm taking it vacant. Now if the tenants have a lease and then maybe a cash for keys type of deal has to be considered.

I found a real estate group that for a monthly fee gives me limited MLS access. It is limited but access to comps by subdivision, zip, city, street, etc. is unlimited. Just can't rely on comps from Realtors as some Realtors send you the comps they want to see and not the killer deals that give a real value on the property. Yes, comps are all over the place but depending upon the type of sale (traditional, distress, etc.) they should fall inline.

What I usually do is not take the initial callback and on the voicemail figure out who it is so I can research the property. After I run my numbers I can't exactly put a number on the house but can say "we typically pay around $70k-$80k for homes in your neighborhood." That number is usually 70% of ARV less a generous amount for possible repairs.This way I weed out the ones who want top dollar. If they don't hang-up on me or laugh I have something to work with. If they do, just saved me a bunch of time. At the beginning of the call I talk about the condition of the house and why they are selling to break the ice and get them to chill out a bit.