All Forum Posts by: Shari Posey

Steve has a great point! (Well, actually everyone had great points.)

Also, if you are without kids now why not rent the least expensive place you would ever consider living in and save the money so you can buy a nice place outside the city sooner? I do not know the SD rental market but in my area landlords will negotiate quite a bit. Check on Craigslist for apartments that have been on for a while and been dropping in price. How much are you paying now? Of course there's a cost to moving but if you can find a place $500+/mo cheaper it might be worth it for a few years.

Any opinions good or bad about La Quinta Cove? I'm thinking about buying one or two rental single family homes in this neighborhood.

Homes priced $130-150k appear to rent for $1200-1350/mo. in good condition and at least moderately updated.

I looked at some dogs too but since I am out of town, I don't think I want to rehab extensively.

My questions/concerns--
--The quality of tenant in that area?? Although I own property in questionable areas and luckily haven't had problems but I know what to look for in my town.

--Getting a tenant in the middle of the summer??

--Do prices usually drop in the summer??

Yep, Bill, you seem to be right.

I've really never thought much about RESPA but it is too far reaching. I (and the State of CA) don't think there's anything wrong with what I proposed. Oh, if we could make the rules in this country it sure would be a better place...

Well, after a lot of research, I am finding it would be pretty tricky to do any type of payment legally to the wholesaler for the lead. California state law allows for it as long as it is limited to just giving a name and address but then RESPA over rules that so it's not possible. Buyers pay 3rd-party short sale negotiator fees all the time but that is for services rendered which is allowed by RESPA, but I can't see how a wholesaler could claim a service rendered.

I guess I could establish a relationship so that if the non-licensed wholesaler buys a property and flips it, I would agree to list it at a very reduced commission in repayment for a prior lead. K. Marie Poe--You could work out this arrangement with your listing agent. For every short sale lead you give him that closes, he/she gives you a break on commission on your next listing.

K. Marie Poe--I have seen quite a few short sale listings where the agent puts in a low offer for an investor and then waits to see what the bank says. I occassionally track what happens and often times the bank comes back with a higher price that is noted on the MLS as "Approved price of $X--need to close fast!" because the investor didn't want the deal anymore. In this case the investor is out and gets nothing. These are probably listings obtained by the agent first, rather than the investor.

Bill has the right idea but I think it's simpler to just refer the seller's listing as an agent-to-agent referral for x% of the commission. I would be doing this all day long instead of sending them to Keep Your Home CA. I mean, give them the info but make the referral as well. (I have not heard of anyone actually getting a substantial loan mod working with a govnment agency so how much help is the info.) In the event that the wholesaler wasn't licensed, a fee from the buyer could provide a monetary compensation for the referrer.

This is exactly the kind of relationship I want to build with someone down in my market with the deals that just don't work out for them for whatever reason.

*I think a co-brokerage on a deal is more difficult because of potential liability. The one with deeper pockets has the most liability. I did one last year and it was convoluted compared to a simple referral.

I LOVE living in CA!! I've lived A LOT of other places and I can't find anyplace I like better. If you ignore the news and just live your own life you'll be a lot happier. I've never been a W2 worker here so I can't say remark, but as self-employed worker I'm happy and I love being able to take my lunch runs on the beach!! Can't beat that!

If you can afford a single family home in a good location go with that. In California, condos and townhomes are much harder to get financed, for example, FHA won't work for most of them so resale down the line will be harder. Also these days there are quite a few homeowners delinquent on HOA dues which have to be paid by someone--YOU the homeowner who is current through dues increases.

Tom, I'm wondering why you would consider selling at all if you are hoping for income throughout your retirement? Although Monica has a good idea IF you could get two rentals that generate more income with the proceeds of the sale of your home.

Paul & Keith--Thanks for the tax tip. I had not heard of that new rule. Bummer. I don't know that I really want to live in any of our rentals for 2 years before selling but it was in the back of my mind as an option. Now I don't have to think about it.

Jerry--I don't personally know any wholesalers and am just voicing an opinion I have read quite often on this forum; maybe "high & dry" was too strong. Also, I'm assuming that these new wholesalers (who aren't licensed) are the ones who would like a second opportunity to make money if they can't find a buyer for the property. I know wholesalers like you get buyers fast--I assumed you work without agents' assistance.

Vanessa--You've got the idea of what I'm talking about and compensating the wholesaler for the listing in some way.

I hope some wholesalers chime in here. I would love to hear from someone already in this kind of relationship or if not, their thoughts about it. (I know there are hundreds of wholesalers lurking on this forum.)

I think the buyer premium is a possible way around slim margins and of course if it ends up being a short sale the bank pays commissions. In either case, I think most lenders allow a fee paid by a buyer to a 3rd party as long as it's in the contract (not sure about FHA buyers).