All Forum Posts by: Ed O.

John, I wasn't trying to put you down. It's been my experience that accessing the MLS opens up a wealth of information that is easily sorted and can also be easily mined. DOM, lots of pictures, along with the other available information allow an investor a good idea on the market.

I have yet to see anything remotely close to what can be had on the MLS. Zillow has false sales comps. `Foreclosures in my neighborhood were showing up as open market sales on Zillow. Talk about a sad day when I was going to sell a rental based on the bogus hope they provided.

I'm sorry for assuming you may not have had access to the mls. There's a handful of people here with one rental that speak like they have a few hundred. We must not be looking for the same info. That's my best guess. But if the info wasn't so special, why guard it so aggressively?

This is making me think of the scene in the 40 year old virgin where Steve Carell is trying to brag about being with a woman when he never has. If you have never been on the MLS, it's easy to say it's not too big of a deal. Bottom line, the MLS is tons of RE info on steroids. It's the only reason realtors can charge 6%. It's critical to their existence to keep everyone out of it. I have had several accounts. They're brutally tough to get. I currently don't have access. From an investor standpoint, access gives you a tremendous edge.
The people using trulia and zillow, please pm me and I'll sell you everything based on their values at a good discount. LOL. Using the free resources, imo, is like playing with fire.

The best way to get in: find a burned out realtor that is making little to no $. Bring them some business and before you do, let them know your expectations. If they give you the "I could spend the next 10 years in jail for sharing my access" crap, tell them thanks and that you're afraid they won't be able to meet your needs. It's amazing how many broke realtors that are out there that guard their access so tightly.
There's got to be enough in it for the realtor to give you access. It's a challenging subject to approach. If you're not in a position to buy or sell a few, a realtor isn't just gonna hand it over to you.

It's this time of year, when cutting checks to my private lenders, that I send some sort of thank you or christmas card with a short hand written note. In the past, I have dropped off chocolates or included a gift card for a dinner. It's been received very well.
I hope this helps some fellow BP'ers.

I did try and search, but there were thousands of old and off topic threads on this. Can some people mention what they're paying and where they're coming from?
Thanks in advance!

Heard about it.. I think the cost was astronomical. If it sounds too good to be true..well....
Do you remember the "Auto Warranty" companies, offering extended warranties on cars with over 150,000 miles... that went down as one of the biggest shams.... the top company execs were all... and I know it may be tough to believe.... JAIL BIRDS....
your money is better spent screening more thoroughly and trying to get some real life, collectable moron to cosign for their friend...
Joe, those guys were just down highway 70 from you! LOL..

I'm smelling a rat here. That many PMs and they can't take the time to talk to you? If they're that way, and they're chasing new business down and they have 30+ full time property managers, I think there's a lie in there somewhere.
If not, I wonder about how responsive they are to repair requests... Something doesn't add up, imo.

Sharad, you get your transactions for 50 cents? Thought they were more than that on the site.
I have used quicken rental property manager. It's solid for expenses, but I have found the tenant info & rent collected side to be so painful that I use an excel. I have been looking at alternatives and need to move into something a little better.
If you want to grow, I'd recommend skipping the rental property manager and move on to something else, because you will outgrow it and need to learn a new software. There's lots of cloud based programs out there, ranging from $1-3/ unit with minimum fees / month around $25.

How credible do you consider these "mentors" to be? I would have another set of totally independent eyes look at the deal and see what they think. From what I have seen, a $25,000 assignment fee seems high, based on your numbers. 25k for 15 hours of anyone's time is a good deal. Have some other investors look at the deal and see what they say. Don't give them all of the numbers. ask them what they think of it. You stand to put a lot of money in the pot on the front end. People are ALWAYS at their nicest when you're wallet is out. I'd suggest acquiring a course from ebay from one of the gurus for a few hundred bucks and crashing through it, so you have a better understanding of what you're getting into, without making your partners privy to the idea that you're sort of fact-checking them.
I'd suggest asking them to see some proof of their success, "because my wife is being standoffish with me about investing this much money" or something like that. If the deal was so hot, why are they "giving it" to you? Lots of lease/options blow up and need to be resold. If they miss the balloon date, then what?

1. To some extent, a person can be certified and directly supervise employees doing the work. I don't think this can be done to the extent you describe tho. As if the rrp isn't enough, when you employ someone to do the work, they're supposed to (so we were told) get a physical done, get this.. to see if they're physically able to handle a respirator (for osha). Pretty sweet huh?
2. As far as I know anyone that wants to burn an 8 hour work day sitting in a class where they could learn everything in 60-90 minutes can be certified. Oh and the certification test is a joke. If you don't speak english very well, the instructors will help you correct your failing test so that you're certified when you leave the class.. at least that's what the instructors I had did.
3. If I was in your shoes, I would buy the cheapo lead tests and test and see if it was there. I'll share my testing procedure if you need it, just pm me. I'd hate to be doing something incorrectly and then post it here and get a visit with a bill. Another option would be to hire a firm to declare the unit lbp free. This can be done for around $300 from what I have heard... this could be a cheap avenue for you as well. Check with your local environmental companies.

I see where you're going now... The hacks from the environmental company teaching the class I took, the poor 2 guys raking in 4k for an 8 hour class, summed it up by saying anything under a scenario like this, a for-profit engagement, would be bound by the rules, of course consistent with the other nuances mentioned above.
I like what you're thinking and if you make headway, please message me so I know, but based on the misery of the training I went through, I think your option is unlikely.
If the work is going to be done no matter what, why not test yourself? The closer to '78, the less likely the home is to have lbp. Our wonderful government knew this was a problem for a long time before they put a stop to it, and now it's a cash cow to them...