All Forum Posts by: Doug Merriott

Your systems are defunct, I say that out of love for you and would also say that to a stranger. You have some takeaways here and others can learn from your mistakes.

1. Only you or a professional should allow a prospective tenant access to see a property.

2. Only you or a professional should collect money on your behalf 

3. Document everything, particularly a notice for him to cease and desist alterations to your property 

4. Your potential tenant trespassed

5. Your potential tenant altered your property without permission 

The last two points are red flags in my book. Couple that with the fact that you have been dancing around for about 6 weeks and rent is not paid in full. Please tell me you have not accepted partial rent...

What is occurring is a set up where he runs the show, not you. Considering that this is your house this is not a good set up. You don't have to be a jerk but you can fully explain to him the reasons for your needing him to not alter your property and to pay rent on time. 

Just like with children; you train your tenant or your tenant trains you.

I love your tagline @Wayne Woodson !

#1 reason I avoid video opting instead for the written word is that video can be hacked and edited to make even the most innocuous statements seem like the shockumentary to end all shockumentaries. Not that these statements were in any way innocuous. I would just remind these folks that buying a house requires some education, money, and communication on their part. If you hate your agent so much, fire them, seriously, it seems like an abusive relationship with some folks and their agents. "He's always late, he never calls me, he never closes his eyes anymore when we kiss..."

Rant over.

@Paul Springer , @Colin G Murphy and @Reen Wade I am definitely interested in being on your buyer lists. I am not so much interested in co-whosaling with anyone but I do come in contact with a lot of buyers. 

Funny thing is that today's podcast with Anson Young talks a bit about co-wholsaling and what to do.

Reen, I hope you join us on St Pete Beach at Keller Williams Suncoast after you become licensed. The training program is second to none. 

@Paul Ewing  my situation is with a home buyer. The two cities are on different sides of the bay. I personally prefer not to work Tampa, but for a homeowner it would not matter as much.

@Bill Morris that is how it should work. It would be nice for you to use your friend exclusively, if he is worth his salt and you are very clear about your criteria then there should be little that happens in his market that he does not know about. However if you do find one on your own or if you are brought a deal and there is no margin for him then you should not be obligated to give him 3% regardless. 

Man, I am going to have to try that line...

This is bogus. It is a suggestion from major brokerages that buyer's agents try and get some kind of contract to ensure that the buyer agent is compensated for the amount of time spent with the buyer. This can even include some fee paid at closing (typically to compensate for another bogus "MLS fee" that listing agents charge). I am currently in a situation where a buyer I have been working with for 6 months is working me in Clearwater and another agent in Tampa. Had I gotten this agreement I could have saved myself some grief, but I personally feel that it is an affront to my integrity to lock a buyer down with a contract rather than my personality and work ethic.

@Dawn Brenengen hits the nail right on the head. Most agents are creatures of comfort (I won't use my usual term because there are so many agents posting here). Many agents do not like the added work of having to make sure that all of the paperwork is filled out by the seller. Calming the seller's fears about this process or that. For the most part it is quite a hassle, though I am coming off a really great FSBO experience.

So at the end of the day like any salesman Realtors are likely to steer their clients away from FSBO or limited service listings because they know they are going to have to work harder for their 3%.

I personally prefer posts from Mark Ferguson. That being because I am an agent who wants to flip and landlord and he focuses heavily on visualizing, believing in yourself and goal setting. Dave Van Horn is kind of like an idol for me as I see myself as a money lender someday in the future. Others include Kevin Perk and Drew Syglit and I would be remiss if I did not mention Ben Leybovich and Brandon Turner. If you notice, my personal preference leans toward buy and hold investors. You may want to discover who your favorite flipper is and start to read more about them.

@Michael Linquist I think you should spend your $300 on gas and head down to some local REIA and meet the full gamut of people doing deals in our area. I will see you at Tampa REIA on Thursday night and Larry's on Monday night. You will be able to meet and get advice from people who have been doing this a lot longer than 9 years.

Be really cautious about who you are giving your money and/or time to. 

Welcome to Bigger Pockets.  

I am particularly fond of east Clearwater, Countryside, Safety Harbor, Palm Harbor and Dunedin.  Though North St Petersburg may be just as easy to get to MacDill.

Regarding rental properties I dislike HOAs dictacting your profit margin with escalating fees and assessments. A well planned lease and excellent property management company can help alleviate some of those maintenance woes.