All Forum Posts by: Gus Muller

If you are a successful wholesaler, contractor, or investor we want to hear from you! Our company True Neighbor is committed to revitalizing homes in the twin cities. We do things the right way, with quality craftsmanship, permitted work, attention to original details, and improving of the neighborhoods we serve.

Specifically, we want to grow our off-market purchase opportunities. Do you have wholesaling experience? Can you generate leads and help sellers in distress? Would you like to be part of the revitalization process, with a percentage of the revitalization profits shared? If so, please reach out to me. Thank you.

Gus Muller

True Neighbor

www.trueneighbor.com

@John Woodrich great advice. I wanted to handle this one on my own to understand the process and get an idea of timeframe, cost, etc. I will certainly reach out on the next one and see what my options are!

Thank you @Tim Swierczek!!! We are really starting to ramp up our off market purchases and have big plans in the Twin Cities area. We are launching our new business Friday evening June 7th. 

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment.

Purchase price: $210,000
Cash invested: $15,000

Fix and Flip #11 purchased off market. First time using private investors. Investors purchased the property, I provided the deal and the light rehab. Profits will be split 3 ways.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Solid rambler that was really dirty. Furnace was one year old. Vintage mid century modern charm and untouched since 1950. A light rehab will go a long way, and it will be an affordable option when we list it for this area of Minneapolis.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Craigslist. Sellers agent was looking for a cash deal before listing it and we delivered.

How did you finance this deal?

Private investor cash.

How did you add value to the deal?

Major cleanup and donation of goods to charity. We will address all safety related issues with the home, new appliances, deep cleaning, landscaping, and required city of Minneapolis Truth In Housing inspection.

What was the outcome?

It should be good I will add comments when we list and sell.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

It takes a long time to go through someones personal property and deem what should go to donation and what should go in a dumpster. And boxing, transporting everything as well. This has really slowed down the project and I will look to outsource this in the future.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment.

Purchase price: $190,000
Cash invested: $70,000

Fix and Flip #10 off market deal. Almost completed will be on market in a few weeks.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Great location, solid rambler purchased off market from original owners.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Craigslist and negotiated it with sellers agent.

How did you finance this deal?

Cash from our HELOC.

How did you add value to the deal?

Full remodel.

What was the outcome?

We will wrap this one up shortly and should list for $360-$380K.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Buying property in the winter in MN has its challenges. We had so much snow there was no way to evaluate the concrete conditions. The stoops were shot in the back and also the walkways. $5,200 to have that repaired. Luckily, I always have a 15% overage calculated into my budgets for these types of scenarios.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment.

Purchase price: $147,000
Cash invested: $65,000

Fix and flip #9

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I was just getting back into fix and flips after a short break and rehabbing our own personal house. I had a set amount of cash to work with, so even though this was out of my typical investing area, the price seemed do-able.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Through the MLS negotiated directly with listing agent and auction site.

How did you finance this deal?

Cash drawn from a HELOC on our primary residence.

How did you add value to the deal?

Complete rehab

What was the outcome?

Decent. We did turn about a $25K profit, but it took a while to sell which was nerve wracking.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I learned that a one car garage outside of the city limits is a big deal for suburban buyers. They want a 2 car minimum. Also, this house sat for 17 months so once the snow melted I realized how bad of condition the yard was in. It hadn't been cleared of leaves for years. I also hired some new help, which screwed me out of $4,000. They did really shoddy work which had to be redone. Lesson learned is to stick with the people you trust, even if they are more expensive.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment in Minneapolis.

Purchase price: $145,000
Cash invested: $80,000
Sale price: $420,000

First off market purchase direct from seller. We rehabbed for one year before moving in, and then finished the basement adding a 3/4 bathroom, bedroom, and family room before selling. This house had excellent bones, and all of the original woodwork, fireplace, and double built-ins.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

The house needed a ton of work, but I could see the end result of a full rehab. It had everything to offer in old world charm meets modern upgrades.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Someone called our real estate brokerage. We presented all options to the seller including traditional MLS sale. They decided to go with our cash offer instead.

How did you finance this deal?

Cash

How did you add value to the deal?

Complete rehab including new kitchen, bathrooms, finished basement, drain tile, roof, exterior paint, electrical upgrades, whole house re-plumb with PEX, privacy fence, floating deck, etc.

What was the outcome?

The outcome was fantastic. The market picked up and we were able to make a substantial tax free profit since we lived there as our primary residence during the rehab.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

This one was super challenging to bring back to glory, and took a ton of sweat equity. I wouldn't even want to count the number of hours my wife and I had into this house. But in the end, it paid off!

@Laura Shinkle it wasn't too bad as we were all pretty young then and they were friend of mine that had recently had their lease not renewed in the middle of December. They needed a place and I had space. That was however the last time I had roommates!

Investment Info:

Office Space commercial investment investment.

Purchase price: $150,000
Cash invested: $20,000
Sale price: $255,000

First small commercial property purchase. Purchased with cash from my flips. I had no idea what to do with it, but decided to open my own real estate brokerage. After owning it for a few years, I decided to sell and take the profit for more operating capital for fix and flips.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Liked the location and the attached shop. Seller was in a tough situation, and the price was right.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Saw a sign go up in front of the building and negotiated it direct with seller and sellers agent.

How did you finance this deal?

Cash

How did you add value to the deal?

General cleanup of exterior, new roof, new flooring, paint, etc.

What was the outcome?

I ended up selling the building for a nice profit.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I learned that even though a commercial property is on a busy road, that doesn't necessarily mean you'll get business.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment.

Purchase price: $193,000
Cash invested: $35,000
Sale price: $272,000

This was my first purchase as a real estate agent, so I earned a sales commission and moved in. Basement was finished nicely already with a bedroom, living room, 3/4 bathroom, and laundry. I moved in a few roommates that each paid $500/month. It was a house hacking situation. I ended up remodeling the kitchen and main floor bathroom and lived in it. I was able to pull out a $35K HELOC loan against it which I used in multiple flips from 2010-2014.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I had researched the area. This was bank owned in a prime spot of NE Minneapolis. I had just gotten my real estate license, so the buy side commission helped a lot. The house was in great condition on the exterior, great mechanicals, and recently finished basement I could live in while I did the rest of the renovating.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Through the MLS and I negotiated with selling agent that represented the bank on the foreclosure.

How did you finance this deal?

5% down conventional loan.

How did you add value to the deal?

Refinished hardwood floors, paint, removed wall from kitchen to dining, new kitchen, new main floor bathroom, new carpeting upstairs.

What was the outcome?

I walked from the closing with about $40K tax free after living there for 7 years and leveraging the equity line of $35K on my all cash fix and flips.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I got pretty lucky with the area and general condition of the home. I learned a ton about construction with this one.