All Forum Posts by: Bruce Lynn

I always say...don't send anything out, that you aren't willing to follow up with a phone call or personal visit.  In this case if you are sending to absentee owners, visit probably doesn't work.  Especially if you have more time than money, call first, then send the letter, then call again to make sure they got it.   You'll up your response rate significantly.

Work the sales office for a builder.  Either on the weekends when it is busy or on the weekdays when the main person has days off or both.  Offer to call all their registration card leads.  After that call realtors to get them out in the model.    You should be the neighborhood expert when you're ready to go full time....resale all the homes you made contacts with selling them the 1st time.

@Account Closed

Title...

Mike Wallace

Escrow Officer - Dallas Preston Center

Lending...

David Bradley

Just Mortgages, Inc.
13601 Preston Road, Ste 910E (Carillon Towers)
Dallas, Texas 75240

@Greg H.   How do we know there is no precedent?   I don't think JP opinions get published and probably few appeals that would get remanded to a district court.  You're probably right in most cases that perhaps neither party ever reads the leases to know this clause is even in it or might know it is a contention of dispute.  It would not surprise me at all though if a tenant wants to fight, they do a bit of research, and bring it up at JP court, they'd probably win.

Why risk it, when for a few more bucks you can eliminate that risk of having an invalid lease.

We do, but remember they're only valid for licensed members of the association to use.  It says that on the forms and in the lease.  So there is some chance if you use them and you're not a member that they could be invalid.   Better to use ones your attorney provides you.

One of the local $1billion real estate gurus here once said..... "Want to making a killing in real estate?....buy in the path of progress."   I'm pretty sure that was Ross Perot.....he built at least 3 huge projects that netted him a lot of money on that theory in real estate....remember the old EDS hdq....no one was out that far when they built that building.  Forest Lane was probably on the edge of the earth back in the 1970s.   Then build's another HDQ building in Plano as Perot Systems.... then built Alliance airport...the only private commercial airport in the United States....probably many other projects too with the same idea.

Makes a lot of sense.....I'm sure someone will and can make money in the rust belt, but that scares me.  There's a wave coming here....and interestingly enough the people I meet from Detroit, and Michigan, and Indiana, and Cleveland...etc...they're hard workers...they want work...once they get settled they look for better work....then invite the family down one at at time to work.   We're getting some of the best who are trying to improve their situation.   I'd be scared to be investing in what is left behind.

You can see arguments from the Board of Supervisors meeting here:

http://sanfrancisco.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=10&clip_id=29279

I think the trick is for you, that there is not really a good lease I've ever seen in Texas for renting part of a house.  So you probably need an attorney to help you with this versus a property manager or any lease forms you can find on line.  It may not even be legal in your neighborhood.   So you should have the attorney check that out first.   For example if your neighborhood or home is zoned for Single Family, you probably can't legally rent to an unrelated person.....that makes it multifamily.   When/If the neighbors complain (and they always find out), then you'll have a mess on your hands, because you may have an illegal lease.

I'm not sure it is easy to find someone of similar interest.  You would have to do this very informally among your friends, families, coworkers.  When you start advertising it, then I believe you can't discriminate, and especially if you are using a relator/property manager to help you market the property.

Might be easier for you to rent the entire property to one family and for you to rent a smaller place separately.

Generally I would say easier to rent in the Summer.  However that might also depend on where you buy, price range, rent range, etc.  If you buy higher end in school driven markets...then Summer rentals work best.  Then we often time the leases to end in the Summer.....rent in Feburary you might get a 16month lease....etc.

I think these days with the shortage of inventory in DFW it would be tough to time the market on a purchase and a rental and think you are going to either save a bunch of money on the purchase or rent for a lot more by waiting for a certain timing.

There sure seem to be a lot of expensive rentals on the market right now, so buy as cheap as you can stand in the neighborhoods you feel comfortable with.

$22,000 in student debt....you're young, you're motivated....get that paid off this year before you move to Houston.  Make it a challenge between you and your wife.  You can do it.  

Buy the smallest cheapest house you can stand to live in when you move to Houston.   I'm thinking less than $150,000, maybe near $100K if you can find such a thing...Maybe 3/2 or 3/1 or 2/1 maybe 1 car garage.  Fix it while you live there for a year.

Rent it when you overseas.  Now if you move does your wife and family go with you or do you commute?   Something to consider.