All Forum Posts by: Chase Gochnauer

Is he paying?

If you can cashflow anything while living there free I think you're in good shape.

What do you mean by online foreclosure auction? This can mean a variety of things. Most REO online auctions provide a warranty deed, therefore there wouldn't be any issues really. There are sheriff sale risks, but those aren't online.

My current model is purchasing, basic rehab, and renting. One rented, one ready to rent this week, three more ready end of May, and two end of June is the current outlook. Flipped one in January but that was a sweet deal and an easy one. Hoping to average about 2 a month, give it a year and see how this model works.

When rehabbing to rent you can get by not putting in quite as much $$, have a house with newer mechanicals/utilities(3 of them I've had to do wiring, plumbing, hvac, some windows, one roof, etc), so in theory that'll reduce ongoing maintenance costs.

My current dilemma is whether to hire someone in house to help property manage, or outsource to a property management company.

I agree that something doesn't add up. You should be able to see what the guy purchased the house for on the assessor. Why did he decide to move back into his old home?

I own a property preservation company. We do this service for banks. Just be sure to secure only a secondary door(back/side door) so it cannot be mistaken for you locking them out of their property. Banks often turn the electric on in their name as well to keep sump pumps running if applicable. As Mike said, basic yard maintenance, securing, winterizing, etc. also.

Code violations can get crazy depending on where you're located. If you find that the property has some issues(overgrown, broken windows, etc) it might be worth a call to the city to verify if there are any outstanding violations as the fines can accrue quickly.

I'd also go so far as to post a notice somewhere on the property with your contact information, in case the city or someone arrives at the property, they will know who to contact. It could also be a way to make a list of potential buyers when the time comes.

- What did the seller buy it for originally?

- What's the mortgage on this?

This sounds to me like a possible short sale situation and the bank wouldn't negotiate?

I think your $35k repair estimate seems high considering you're doing everything yourself.

My business maintains bank foreclosed houses. We maintain redemption properties in some states. You're essentially "on hold" for that 6 month period. You can do basic maintenance but can't touch the stuff inside the property. You wouldn't want to do any repairs either. I've always wondered if someone has ever bought a property in redemption at sheriff sale, only to fully rehab it, then have the previous owner come back and redeem. Luckily my home state doesn't have redemption periods but I imagine it'd be difficult to do sheriff sale purchases in some of these states, unless you just ignored the redemption and hoped it wouldn't come back to bite you.

Other things to watch for are code violations. Some major cities can be horrendous on code violations. We are maintaining a home for a bank with $31,000 in fines, from yard maintenance and some minor exterior repairs that never got addressed(city didn't fix the repairs, just fined).

I'm heading down to PR(staying in a VRBO) for my second visit next month and am looking for a vacation rental while I'm down there. Hoping to hook up with a property manager. I really like the eastern Palmas Del Mar with it's location to some of the eastern islands but the pricing is higher there.