All Forum Posts by: Clint Galliano

The availability & cost of insurance is likely a big factor. Post hurricane Ida, the number of carriers writing in Louisiana is severely restricted to the point of even new carriers entering the market have already stopped writing policies in certain areas, if not all. Couple that with a couple of years of FEMA's Risk Rating 2.0 for flood insurance which appears to take more of an actuarial approach to flood insurance rates than the previous subsidized regime and a lot of properties become too expensive to operate for the owners.

@Mark Ordoyne I'm going to go with @Amy Verges. If you are renting at $1500-$1600, I'm guessing it's not a 2 room shotgun house. Investigate a central HVAC system. They are expensive right now as the industry prepares to switch over coolant once again, but it will provide comfort and for your tenants. As far as window units, if you ever plan to sell the property in the future, new FHA/USDA appraisal guidelines are falling more in line with VA appraisals that require a permanently installed heat source that can automatically keep the home above 55 deg F. Think furnace or hard-wired electric wall heater.

Feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

Welcome to BP. There is definitely a lot of information to soak up!

What is making you consider Louisiana? And what parts of Louisiana?

The seller is under contract with the REALTOR® to sell their home. As @Jose Jacob said, depending on what kind of listing agreement they have in place, the seller may be allowed to bring in their own buyers, but that is usually not the case. Most listing agreements are "Exclusive Right To Sell". 

You have the seller under contract for $475,000. As also stated above, if you assign your contract & someone else buys the home from the seller, the seller will most likely still owe a commission to the REALTOR® due to a likely-existing protection period in their listing agreement. There is also the outside possibility that the REALTOR® could file charges with the state real estate commission for practicing real estate without a license due to your "kicking the hornets nest" so to say of getting an assignment contract on a property actively listed on the market. (At least here in Louisiana.) 

Welcome to BP! Dig into the forums, listen to the podcasts, and read the books. This will give you a big edge in understanding your business.

The majority of the title companies in the area won't touch title assignments due to the perceived risk on their end of a bad faith transaction. 

Welcome to BP! You're in the right place to learn about real estate investing! 

If you haven't already, subscribe to the podcasts, (RE Rookie, BP RE Podcast, BP Money, and if that's not enough, add On The Market). 
I'm an investor and a licensed agent in Louisiana. Let me know if I can answer any questions for you.

Bravo! 

That's a lot of ROI! What are you getting for rent?

@Cristen Marcotte Well, my last post doesn't help you much. Unfortunately, I'm in the same boat with properties in Lafourche, Terrebonne, & St. Mary parishes.