All Forum Posts by: Chanté Owens

As always, I appreciate Will's knowledge, expertise and willingness to be forthcoming with the ways he gets and views his deals. 

I always like to dream big, so when I see articles like this it helps me "keep my eye on the prize."

I'd love for others to share how they dream big and keep themselves motivated and charged up in this crazy real estate business!

Here's the link to a hotel that is up for sale in the Bellevue, WA area. I LIVE to be in a position where I could be in serious contention for an opportunity like this:

http://seattletimes.com/html/businesstechnology/20...

 You're very welcome. 

No, it's not free. The current price is $59 (I think this is an early bird rate). It's a breakfast type of event - arrival time at 7:30am and ends around 10:30am.

Here's the link:

http://www.cvent.com/events/4th-annual-seattle-sta...

I'm new to Seattle, so I think this would be beneficial for me to attend in order to meet people, but also to get a feel of the marketplace, as I recently attended a hospitality industry breakfast where they spoke about the boom of growth and development in the Washington State landscape; especially the waterfront area. I'm eager to hear more and soak it in.

I signed up for this site called bisnow.com about a month ago, and you can drill down to receive updates on markets in various cities. I signed up for Seattle, Denver, and Phoenix.

Anyway, there will be a Seattle State of the Market discussion and networking event being held in September. There appear to be a lot of big players in the RE world attending/speaking at this event, so it may be a good event to attend and soak up some information. Here is a brief bit about it:

Hi Kien, I'll keep this fairly high level; however, I'd recommend you contact a broker in your area, as they will be able to obtain proposals from various carriers that may underwrite these properties.

There are a lot of varying criteria that they look at: age of property, square footage, etc, so that will affect any quotes you will get too. Further, each property that you obtain will need to be insured as well, and there are various ways to do this. Sometimes carriers will have schedule of properties, so you can add/delete as the properties are bought and sold, and they pay something similar to a retainer at the onset of the policy issuance, and then it's deducted from as the insured adds properties, then once that retainer amount is depleted, they just have to pay whatever it costs to add the additional properties.

Hopefully you'll find someone that will be able to assist you in this area, as it is a lot of work to ensure those schedules are maintained and up to date.

Each state is different; therefore, the competitive carriers may vary as well, so a carrier that may be competitive in New Hampshire may not write, or be competitive in your area, that's why it's good to have a broker as they will usually know who will write that business, as well as who is competitively priced.

@Justin Case, I don't know how they know if an individual owns a rental property. Since I don't own any (currently) I'm not sure how that is monitored.

@Carl Gipson  Good luck to you and your new ventures! You will find in any business endeavors, that there are always those people and/or entities that are standing there with their hands out :) Not saying that's good or bad (as some services are necessary and should be paid for); however, when you are in business, you definitely prefer to see the $$$ flowing in at a higher rate than it's flowing out.

@Marcia Maynard The unfortunate thing about bills like this, is that the people they are trying to rid themselves of or feel are taking advantage, will continue to do so, because (typically) those parties likely have deeper pockets than an individual who owns one or two properties and is renting them out. 

In my very limited experience, I've known a few individuals who've purchased one or two condos and/or single family properties to rent out, and they maintain their properties in good condition, and take care of any issues the tenants let them know about, with minimal delays. 

Oftentimes, these types of bills and measures typically hurt the "little guy," more than anything.

I don't know if this subject has been broached elsewhere on the forum (I did a cursory search and didn't see anything). 

I attended an REIA meeting here in Seattle, about a month ago, and this was the big thing they were discussing at the meeting. There was a handout too that discussed it in more detail w/links to the areas this needed to be checked out. I'd HIGHLY recommend that any individuals that own or manage rental properties in Seattle check out: www.seattle.gov/RRIO.

Those required to register is anyone who owns or manages  a rental housing unit in Seattle; unless they qualify for an exemption (note: most probably won't qualify for an exemption).

• All properties with 10 or more units must be registered by September 30, 2014
• All properties with 5-9 units must be registered by March 31, 2015
• During 2015 and 2016, single-family, duplex, triplex, and fourplex properties with rental units will be registered. The specific and complete schedule of due dates is available on the www.seattle.gov/RRIO site. 

As we know EVERYTHING has to do with $$$$:

Number of Rental Units:

1 - Base Fee property + 1st unit) $175.00 (unit fee 0) Total for five years $175

2 Units - Base fee $175 + $2.00 unit fee - Total for five years $177

10 Units - Base Fee $175 + 18 - Total for five years $193

100 Units - Base Fee $175 Unit Fee $198 - Total for five years $373

Just wanted to give this FYI for those who may be unaware.

Also, during my meeting, a Construction Defect Attorney was there, and he gave FABULOUS information on common areas of inspection and how to spot water intrusions. He discussed what were the best (most recommended) ways to set-up (LLC, Inc, etc) when you were an investor.

Having been in claims for a long time (worked at Progressive at one point). I would agree with those who have said to: not put ANYTHING on the internet (you said you've changed your name and other identifying information); and also, seek your own counsel, and if you can't afford it, you need to really communicate with the counsel your insurance carrier has provided.

I won't go into graphic details, but I will say (as someone else alluded to above); people can seek whatever amount they want to; however, that does NOT mean that's what it will settle at. It's a tactic that is used in various industries where negotiations are going to take place, that they seek an amount they know is likely NOT going to be accepted, knowing there will be settlement negotiations. Further, most insurance carriers do not want their insureds to be sued, lose and have judgments (liens) filed against them. They work hard (I know I did) to ensure that releases are signed for ANY settlements, in order to protect the insured.

I had ridiculous starting offers for settlements that claimant attorneys filed for 1 mil dollars and guess what? We would settle WAY south of 35k. 

Unfortunately, since you are gainfully employed and you own some properties; the likelihood of you being "judgement proof" are slim, but if you work with your assigned attorney and can bring some $$ to the negotiations, you may be able to get this settled. Again, I am NOT an attorney, and I am NOT giving any legal counsel.

*Note, when I say "Unfortunately" that you are gainfully employed, that's a good thing to be employed! Didn't want any misunderstanding about that!

 I agree with the above about asking for referrals too. Also, once you do get a property manager/management company in place, I would STRONGLY encourage you to have people you know and/or hire to "secret shop" the property management personnel. I recently moved to Washington State, and spoke with at least 30+ property managers and I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt, only 2 were superstars; 2 were ok, and the remainder were horrible. 

The overall lack of professionalism and lackluster attitude was horrific. People answering phones unprofessionally; not providing information, or being very "cagey" about pricing were just the tip of the iceberg. 

Good luck with your search!