All Forum Posts by: Dale Stevens

County Treasurer is the one that sends out the tax bill.. they have the address.

As to mailing the Vacants. Take the extra step. See where the tax bill is sent!!!  Mail it there.

I asked when I was at my first meet. The Windy City Round Table, is not what it stands for. That was another group that started up after the WCRT in attempt to use the name of WCRT. I was told it isn't an acronym. It is the name. There is a meaning to it, but he holds it person. He jokes that it stand for "We Can't Really Tell".  Great group of people. I have done a few deals with other members there. You should really attend.

I have attended many local meetings, and if you shoot me a message I will tell you my personal thoughts privately. 

I have attended just about every single one you can attend. Some I know are started by people that were asked to leave other, more established groups, because they have been dishonest, etc with other members. Others, as someone shared, are nothing but a stroke to someone's ego as well as a way for them to make money. They make their money selling stuff, not investing. If you want to PM me, I would happily share with you my thoughts and personal experiences. I don't want to get into mudslinging, so just drop me a message.

Networking is crucial to success, but networking with honest and helpful people is the best.

I can not recommend anyone, but I did use a company out of SW Michigan. They used a liquid clay injection in the ground that was supposed to fill the cracks, dry and seal it up. I attempted this on two of my properties, but neither worked. 

I just googled it, it is called Bentonite Clay. The results weren't good.

I am now having fun with this. I just searched Wendell. And my, his photo on here, is dated, let alone the one of his profile pic on Linked-IN. I am sure those that have met him, will say his is an older middle aged gentleman that has greying hair. But, why not put a high school looking person on your Linked-In profile? Ok maybe college??

https://www.linkedin.com/in/wendell-de-guzman-994885118/

But look at the "Grandfatherly" looking man on his photo for his YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW949Vlxfeyi2oznjrHTLIw

Or do you believe the younger looking family photo used as his picture here on BP?

https://www.biggerpockets.com/users/mister4closure

I was going to be known as Dale, but then became the Investor formerly known as Dale. But that was too long, so I just went with "The Investor". But that was still to much to type, so I just went with changing my name to an emoji of a HOUSE. So now I am just called The Symbol. ha ha.

I still stick with I went to this club because it has been ongoing for decades, and I spoke to those that have obviously been around a while.  (You know Jay, when we drive every day, the roads are full of all types of drivers but we drive them anyway, not a waste of time). The guy running the group gave me all the background I needed on "Trace".  Then from there, the asking of questions in multiple ways, see if the answers are the same, then pull up that information later to verify.

I once attended a presentation at what I have been informed is the longest running club in Chicago. The guy presenting was extremely full of himself. But his presentation was full of spelling errors. He claimed that either he or his company were never sued or had any legal issues.

Well the meeting was at a local college that had wireless. I used my laptop, and found over 20 cases in under 5 minutes in which he personally was named as defendant as well as a few he was found guilty of.

This made me laugh at the suckers that paid him. But moreso, made me stop attending the group. Because if they would have taken the 5 minutes to verify their presenter.... Or if they did and still chose to have him present, then they don't care about those that attend, but rather just lining their pockets with the commission split they receive from the gurus that sell their crap.

PA = Per Annum. So does the note state it is 12% annualized interest? So you are at least owed that? you can file legal recourse, but my guess is that Trace (Wendell's real name when he was busy scamming people in 2010) will just file Bankruptcy and take on another new persona.  

What it says, from my take on it, is that if the profit is only 10%, then you get just the 12% interest. If it is greater, then you get 25% of that profit.

But without seeing the entire thing, I can't comment.

After reading some of these horror stories. Being pretty local to Wendell, I reached out to the leader of the local REI club I attend about it. The facial expression he had when I said the name Wendell de Guzman was enough for me.

I got a long list of horror stories he had been told about from people that were "Scammed" by Wendell. That for that reason Wendell is never allowed to attend the local group anymore.

I am sorry this happened, but I appreciate everyone posting their stories. It is the same as being Catfished. People can make online profiles and make themselves out to be experts. It then becomes very hard to verify. We place value in those that have 1,000's of posts, but if we stop to think about it, If they are doing the deal volume they claim, how do they have the time to post 1,000s of times on here? Maybe their business is just posting to find new suckers. (PT Barnum reference).

BP is a great resource, but like every great tool, people find a way to take advantage of it. In the end, Caveat Emptor translates as "Buyer Beware".  

The initial poster said she never met Wendell in person, despite living less than an hour away. I will never ever give money to someone I have never met in person. There is something to body language, vibes, looking in a person's eyes, etc. That can never be replaced.

Before giving out money to people, go to the local clubs, but first research the clubs. Find out if they have been around longer than say a decade. That way they have stood the test of time, and can share the experience of the years... not the ones that just popped up. I find the more recently started groups tend to be run by people no longer allowed at the well established ones, or are only there to self promote. 

GO to  the clubs that have been around for at least a decade and start asking about a history of the people you are about to invest with. Listen to the full details of the answers. Then ask questions (you know like a detective) where you basically ask the same question, just phrased a different way.  Those that are not honest always screw this up.  I invested with a few people now that others said were "terrible etc" but I went with my gut and it was great. Had I listened to the scammers I would be broke now most likely.

Don't give up on Real Estate. Just learn from this experience and apply the lessons learned to future deals.

Actually @Michael Lee, Chicago has a shrinking population. only large city in American to have lost population over the last couple of years. People are leaving due to the financial issues and massive tax increases. Of course there is this little thing called the "VIOLENCE".

So, not all is good with Chicago