All Forum Posts by: Rob K.

I don't purchase condos, but I remember Carlton Sheets (I'm not a fan of his) saying he would never buy a two bedroom house or a one bedroom condo because they're too hard to rent out. I have several two bedroom houses and they are very difficult to rent out. Everyone has so many kids and step kids these days.

I guess if it was cheap enough and you could keep it rented, it would be a good investment. You need to find the right person to rent it to. Maybe a single elderly person or a recluse.

Corey Dutton A large polumbing company will take credit cards, but their prices will be higher due to their overhead - advertising, employees, credit card juice, etc. A small time plumber will be cheaper, but probably won't take credit cards. Although, my furnace guy is a one man show and he takes credit cards on his smart phone. So you might be able to find one.

Do banks still do personal loans? Other idea would be a cash advance on a credit card. The fees are high, but it sounds like there are few options.

I don't want to beat up on your friend here, but this is a prime example of why you need an emergency fund. $10,000 would be the minimum. Anytime I've had less than $20,000 in the bank, I didn't sleep very good. Problems like this will come up and as an investor, you need to have some cash on hand.

What are the laws in California as far as when a deposit needs to be returned? In Michigan, it's within 30 days after move out. Tenants always think they are going to move out, throw you the keys, and you hand them their deposit. They seem to think it will be in cash also. I always explain to them that I need to go through the house and make sure there is no damage. I also need to contact the city and make sure there are no outstanding fines for not mowing lawn, etc. I also need to make sure the water is paid, as it would become a lien on my property.

I agree that you need to lawyer up. These people are coming at you with their guns loaded.

That house in Flint that Jake Kucheck had is a prime example. I have seen houses in Detroit for a dollar also. There was a headline a few years ago that said: A double cheeseburger or a house? You pick.

I remember one time a guy offered me a house for $50 in Detroit. He said it was nice, but I told him I wasn't interested. It's not worth dealing with the vandalism or risk of being murdered.

Mark Yuschak How are you doing the land contracts right now? I've heard that it is a huge gray area with the SAFE Act. I talked to a guy who buys LC's and he's not buying any originated after July 2011 unless they are discounted even deeper. The lawyer at the title company didn;t have an answer. My lawyer said his opinion of the SAFE Act was that I could keep doing LC's.

Are you doing them the old way, or are you getting a mortgage broker involved?

J Scott It's been many years since I've read it. I thought houses were excempt, but maybe just used houses.

Either way, It's too radical of an idea to ever happen.

I had about the top six feet of a chimney rebuilt last year. I had a bid of $1,500 and another at $1,200. The $1,200 guy kept texting me to see if he got the job. (His English was how you say, not so good). I texted him back that there was about $200 in materials and it was less than a full day work. He agreed and did the job for $800. It came out nice. I had him fix a porch after that.

I have another chimney that I need done now. It's about four feet at the top that is bad. He wanted $1,200 for this one too, but just came down to $800.

If your entire chimney needs to be rebuilt, that will be expensive. If it's only the part that is in the weather, that sounds high. I would shop around and get several estimates.

J Scott I think you should read the book. There would be no tax on real estate. Other goods would be taxed at the final point of sale, not at every point. Used items would be tax free. The tax that they talk of would be 23%. Also, the tax would be built into the price like gasoline. What you see priced is what you would pay. Prices would be higher, but peoples paychecks would be a lot higher.

The way the book makes it sound is that we would become the leading power for manuafacturing (again) and banking.

It was a good read. For someone like me that spends way less than I make, it would be very beneficial.

You state that the tenants don't have a lease, but they want one. Couldn't you talk to the tenants and tell them that you fired that PM, sign a lease with them, and then change all the locks? That way, all future payments will go to you and you can deal with the PM afterward.

Have you talked to anyone at the office, or just gotten their message? The PM could be dead, in jail, rehab, etc.

I would want to secure everything with your property and tenants asap.