All Forum Posts by: Mitch Coluzzi

A lot of very good suggestions on this forum.  A commonly overlooked expense is the hot-water heater trying to keep that base level.

Is the hot-water heater in poorly heated area?  It may be that puppy is running non-stop in these cooler days.  $300 is a stretch, but worth checking!

EDIT: Didn't make it to the last page... appears this was resolved.  But regardless!  Something to consider.

Heya Amol,

I am a licensed broker and property manager in DSM.  We mainly manage our own portfolio but if you need a hand give me a call.  Will help where able.

If nothing else, can put you in contact with the big local PM companies if desired.

Thanks,

Mitch

I have tried to buy several houses off Auction.com... every time my bid gets rejected several weeks after.  The last one, I ended up buying for less than my Auction.com bid when it transferred to Hubzu.

Moral of the story... I don't bid on Auction.com properties anymore.

@Jake Kozul  As many others have highlighted... that right moment is different for everyone. And for some, there is never a right time...

For me, the decision came down to time in my day and living happily. Between my corporate life, my business life, and most importantly my family life there were more tasks in a day than hours. For 18 months I planned, optimized, and hacked what I could from each. I knew the day would come when time could not be further stretched... when true sacrifice from one of my three lives would have to be made. Family was not an option. That left me with cutting back on the business or on my corporate life. Given that most of my family is involved with helping run my business, I decided to sacrifice one life entirely for the greater good.

So last Friday I put in my two week notice to my corporate life. On January 30th, I will be walking away from a hefty salary, remote / flexible hours, paid vacation, and full benefits. A great company, a corporate position I enjoyed, coworkers who were fantastic and an outstanding manager. I was not in a hurry to make the sacrifice but something had to give.

The company had done nothing wrong, I was not disgruntled. It was not a "good" time for me to leave the company. The moments leading up to that initial conversation were gut-wrenching. But once the conversation with my manager finished and the email was sent off to HR finalizing my intention completed... a huge monkey was lifted off my back. That nagging question of "is it the right time" completely dissipated.

There are plenty of people who still disagree with my leaving, close family who are privy to my cashflow and finances. They say why leave a good paying job? Why take the risk?Why... What... Are you...

The answer to all of those questions is... At the end of the day I love real estate, the analysis, the negotiation, the networking, the hustle! I believe it is the key to a financial future superior to any other industry, career, or opportunity. Most importantly, it is what I think about 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and a hobby that does NOT feel like a job to me. I might not make millions playing the game but I know one thing for sure... without trying... I mean without really trying... without putting your heart, soul, blood, and guts into something... How will you ever know what could be?

For me, last Friday was the right time to find out.

@Rick H. thanks for the push!   Checking into Paul's newsletter now.  Absolutely looking to capitalize the free press; never heard of him before though!

@Tim Lindstorm I would love to say there was a secret sauce but this was very much right place, right time, and a whole lot of follow through.  The owners took 2 weeks to get in contact with...  once they took my phone call it was a 10 minute negotiation and a call to the attorney.

@Rick Harmon great suggestion thank you!  I will give that a gander.  Grabbing a bit of local support would be huge.  Been making strides with the right people, but yesterdaus attention drummed up a lot of buzz!

@Jean Bolger thanks for the kind words!  I will post back some post clean out images Saturday morning... should be 95 percent done by then.

I do not often start threads or self-promote but a new thing happened to me today...

My project was in the newspaper today followed by an on-site interview and 2+ minutes on the local 4:00 news!  Keep in mind, I am not much of a public speaker, and it was frigid outside but below are the links to check it out!

Recently, we purchased a soon-to-be bulldozed nursing home which had been abandoned for 10+ years with the intention to turn it into a unique apartment building.

This particular property has almost 24,000 sq ft under roof and offers a 6,000 sq foot enclosed courtyard.  Soon (by August) it will be home to 24: 2 to 4 bedroom apartments, ample off-street parking, and a lot of happy families.  All projections show this will cash-flow well (we happen to be the construction company, real estate brokerage, property manager and sole investor for this project) and best of all, it will help the immediate community, which is primarily single family homes, regain their footing!  With a bit of community support and a whole bunch of elbow grease, we'll turn this project into a catalyst for change!

When we get further along I will post some more photos and details of the project... in the meantime, check out a few of my original snapshots and the news links!

Des Moines Register

Channel 14 News

You do not need to cooperate, nor are you required to pay a commission to the agent at all. You do not have a listing agreement and DO NOT sign one.

To be honest, a purchase agreement takes under 2 minutes to do... Given that your buyer has looked at multiple houses through the agent, the buyer will probably feel some type of obligation to ensure the agent is compensated. To make the deal go smoothly I would offer a transaction fee of $750 or $1000 to the agent (technically will be given to her broker)... depending on the size of the sale.

Wait until you see the offer, the buyer may have agreed to compensate her separately... in which case you have no obligation what-so-ever. Also, technically, without written consent (and still frowned upon) the buyer's agent cannot negotiate for a commission within your purchase agreement. The argument being that it is NOT in the buyer's best interest.

You can go the route of hiring a lawyer or closing company to prep the purchase offer (most of them will)... they are typically transaction based and will give you a cost estimate upfront.

Subdivisions help but...  Style of house is huge in some areas but not all... A bungalow vs a 2 story, given the same neighborhood, sq ft, amenities, bedrooms, and baths can hypothetically be 125% higher in value just because of historic charm.    Same with an all brick home, property on one side of the highway vs the other, in a certain school district, a special neighborhood association, or top of the hill vs bottom... These are all important factors in making a usable comparable search.  

You really need to understand your markets beyond the "subdivision" and "draw radius" tool.  Before you start comparing, pull up a google map and just look for 30 seconds... what are the natural indicators (major roads, intersections, etc); take a quick look at topography, is there a ditch or a river that runs in a certain spot?

These little things can help you pick out outliers that need adjustment to be used as a comparable.  From a quick analysis standpoint, IE: this house is worth between 70-90k these details are not as important but when you are trying to really hone in... very important

Hopefully there is something usable above.  Best of luck investing!

NOT LEGAL ADVICE:

Before you start calling around title companies, get clear on the process you will be utilizing, and the correct verbage you need to know.   A reassignment fee is still viewed as compensation by MOST title companies.  Would you feel comfortable explaining to a judge the difference?  Me either...

I do nothing in California and I do not wholesale properties in the "traditional" bigger-pocket verbage but here is what a quick google search produced for California and the reason MOST title companies will not allow you to be on the HUD without having a broker's license (agent's get paid through brokers).

Source:   http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=bpc&group=10001-11000&file=10130-10149

10130. It is unlawful for any person to engage in the business of, act in the capacity of, advertise as, or assume to act as a real estate broker or a real estate salesperson within this state without first obtaining a real estate license from the department, or to engage in the business of, act in the capacity of, advertise as, or assume to act as a mortgage loan originator within this state without having obtained a license endorsement.

10131. A real estate broker within the meaning of this part is a person who, for a compensation or in expectation of a compensation, regardless of the form or time of payment, does or negotiates to do one or more of the following acts for another or others: (a) Sells or offers to sell, buys or offers to buy, solicits prospective sellers or puchasers of, solicits or obtains listings of, or negotiates the purchase, sale or exchange of real property or a business opportunity. (b) Leases or rents or offers to lease or rent, or places for rent, or solicits listings of places for rent, or solicits for prospective tenants, or negotiates the sale, purchase or exchanges of leases on real property, or on a business opportunity, or collects rents from real property, or improvements thereon, or from business opportunities. (c) Assists or offers to assist in filing an application for the purchase or lease of, or in locating or entering upon, lands owned by the state or federal government. (d) Solicits borrowers or lenders for or negotiates loans or collects payments or performs services for borrowers or lenders or note owners in connection with loans secured directly or collaterally by liens on real property or on a business opportunity. (e) Sells or offers to sell, buys or offers to buy, or exchanges or offers to exchange a real property sales contract, or a promissory note secured directly or collaterally by a lien on real property or on a business opportunity, and performs services for the holders thereof.