All Forum Posts by: Jack B.

It does not provide me an address history. Also it doesn't show me their SSN's so I can send them to collections later if needed. On top of that it does not include the required disclosures WA state requires for applicants.

Last but not least, almost every applicant you get, 10 out of 10 for me so far on Zillow has BAD credit of around 550 with a sob story. The reason these people apply via Zillow is because they apply once to get checked then use that profile over and over again with multiple landlords hoping they find one that will accept degenerates. The applicants on there don't even contact me first, they just apply. And in EVERY single case thus far they do not meet the fairly low bar of 650 credit score or income 3x the rent. It's like Kindergarten or something...

Oh, and I've selected and saved the "hide my property address on listing" option multiple times. Yet it still shows it. If they can't get that right I don't have faith in their background and credit check process. As a former programmer this is a very simple line of logic. The other stuff is way more complex but they can't even get the basics right.

3 Votes

Are moving back into the house or selling it. FYSA...

Funny, because I frequently move into my rentals when I sell a primary residence and have lived in many of them since many were bought as primary residences.

https://www.king5.com/article/...

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Joe Villeneuve:

Originally posted by @Ben Zimmerman:

Originally posted by @Joe Villeneuve:

Equity pay down on your own home doesn't count because that's just a wash. You're buying that equity, and along with it...you're paying interest which goes against your gains.

You're also forgetting all of the other expenses that a tenant would traditionally pay on a hold property...like the utilities, taxes, insurance, lawn cutting, snow removal, etc... On a rental unit, your tenant supplies the money for that. When it's your own home, those expenses come out of your pocket.

What difference does it make if you rent or buy your living quarters? Choosing to buy instead of rent doesn't has no bearing on this discussion. So what if you own your home instead of renting out someone else's. That doesn't add any value to owning.

Equity paydown should certainly count. Yes you are buying that equity paydown, but so what? Whether you rent or buy, you are ultimately spending money in return for a place to live. So either way that money is being spent, but at least when you buy you are getting something in return for that money that you spent in the form of equity paydown and appreciation.

As for the second part about utilities, the same concept applies. Who cares that you have to mow the lawn for a house that you live in and own. If you didn't own the home you would instead be renting a home then you would be mowing that yard instead. So one way or another you are mowing a yard its just a matter of which yard are you mowing. The same concept applies to all of the other utilities that you listed, one way or another you are going to pay a water/sewage bill for whatever home you are living in whether you are renting that home or if you own it. Either way you are paying it.

When it comes to housing, ultimately you only have a few choices...

1. Be homeless

2. Live with mom and dad forever

3. Go to jail

4. Rent

5. Buy

I think we can all agree that 1-3 aren't very good options. With option 4 you spend money on rent and receive no economic benefits in return. If you buy, you instead spend money on a mortgage and repairs. Either way in option 4 or 5 you are spending money to obtain a place to live, but at least with option 5 you get some economic benefits in return.

If you buy a house for 200k at 0% down and 3.5% interest rate, then over the course of the loan you will likely spend somewhere in the neighborhood of 395k in total payments. If you assume that over that time you spend 100k in random remodeling and repairs, that brings your total expense to 495k. In order to break even, you only need a 3.06% appreciation rate such that your 200k home is worth 495k in 30 years such that when you sell it, you end up breaking completely even.

If you break even, then ultimately you have recouped all of the money that you had spent over the years, such that you have essentially lived for free for the last 30 years since you have now gotten back 100% of the money that you had spent. This is in sharp contrast to if you had instead rented that 200k home for 30 years at a rental price of 1500/month and a 3% annual rent increase, then you would have spent 856k over the same 30 years in rent.

Since I need to spend money for a place for myself to live, I can either break even if I get a 3% appreciation rate on the home that I buy, or I can throw away 856k in rent over the same timeframe. It's not exactly a difficult decision.

Even if I break even on the home I bought, I'm still going to call that home an asset since it essentially saved me 856k in rental fees which was the only other viable option since one way or another you need a place to live. Owning the home provided me 856k in economic benefits relative to any other viable option.

The comparison isn't between buying or renting the home you live in. The comparison is between buying a home to live in vs buying a home to rent to someone else.

Unbelievable...just wow....

Owning provides net benefits. Renting does not.

Rents go up, mortgage payments are fixed for the life of the loan.

Rents are thrown away forever, mortgages are paid off.

Mortgages are inflation advantaged, rents are not when you are renting.

Mortgages have tax benefits, rents do not.

Mortgages provide you equity via principal and value increases, rents do not when you rent.

People who own have a net worth 37 times higher than those who rent. NO idea why I'm wasting my time explaining math 101 and basic common sense here. This is literally elementary level stuff. I have better things to do, ok, go rent. You're right...

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Joe Villeneuve:

Originally posted by @Jack B.:

Originally posted by @Joe Villeneuve:

Originally posted by @Trevor Aydelott:

I personally think your home can definitely be an ASSET

No it isn't. Next to taxes, it's your most expensive expense. It's not an investment.

Strange, I sold mine for 248K profit after 2 years. Hmmmm...

OK. Now add up all of the items you paid for out o pocket on your house over those 2 years, including (but not restricted to):

* Down payment
* Mortgage (P and I)
* Taxes
* Insurance
* Utilities
* repairs
* maintenance
* rehab
* entertainment (specific to house)...such as cable, internet, etc...
* upgrades
* furniture
* ...etc...
Basically everything that the tenant would pay for if this was a rental property (investment) you owned.

Now, subtract that from the difference between what you paid for the property and what you sold the property for...menus closing costs, commissions, etc...from the sale of the property.

What number do you get? Is it positive (profit was made), or negative?

Again, 248K profit....because I don't have a GED bud. I have an MBA and am a multi millionaire. I already did the math bud. Your argument and posts are "unfruitful".

You really added the cost of furniture, lol? Because you don't need furniture when renting a place. What a joke...

What maintenance would I do on a brand new house in 2 years of ownership? Do you not comprehend what you read?

Upgrades? Again, see above...

Mortgage P and I? Are you bad at math or do you not understand what P is? That's money I'm paying myself. If I rented I throw that money away. Interest is tax deductible based on your income tax rate.

AGAIN...248K in profit after ALL fees and taxes paid. ALL expenses paid. It cost me less to live in a 4K square foot house in a ritzy neighborhood than to rent a 1 bedroom apartment 40 miles south of Seattle. I got my DP back and 248K profit ON TOP OF THAT after ALL expenses. Including money paid to finance the deal buying it. What a JOKE....EVERY single post I see you post is a sound bite to sound good but has zero substance at all.

Let's say I rented for those 2 years...I'd still have payments to make, the landlord passes expense such as maintenance onto the renter via rents. Except I get no principal, no tax benefits and I'm throwing money away. Whereas as an owner my property value goes up and after 30 years I own it. Not to mention my payments are fixed, unlike rents.

I'd still need furniture too. I'm honestly astonished by your posts...

1 Vote

Originally posted by @Matthew Olszak:

Originally posted by @Jack B.:

More and more tenants and tenant applicants are quick to perk up and claim "I have a pitbull, it's an emotional support animal" as if they have found some fool proof loophole. Some applicants have as many as 3 pitbulls. They say it with a smirk on their face. They claim they have a letter. There is a place online that will give you an ESA letter for $22 instantly...

The girl today claimed I have to accept it. I told her my insurance company doesn't allow it and the mortgage company requires me to have insurance. I've had a policy cancelled before because a tenant got a pitbull unbeknownst to me, discovered during an insurance auditors drive by.

I'm honestly shocked that the laws are so ridiculous. Seems like property owners have zero rights other than to pay taxes to fund the Gestapo Government. She claimed I have to accept it, that she has had trouble finding a place that accepts the pitbull. I asked her if landlords have to accept it, why do you have such a hard time finding one that does?

Too much discussion. If they mention a clearly fraudulent ESA, simply tell them they can submit the paperwork with their application. Then decline the application. Unless your state/municipality requires you to explain further, if they accuse you of discrimination or inquire as to why they were declined, simply state that the information they submitted in the application did not meet the stringent requirements for this unit. No need to battle it out over the phone or in person as to whether their animal is an ESA or service animal or pet and what you are or are not required to do. Unless you have a HUGE number of units where a pattern can be established nothing will happen to you.

I usually just tell them the insurance story and tell them I don't care and that their scam doesn't carry any weight so as to dissuade them from harassing other landlords., I can't rent to them as my insurance doesn't allow dangerous breeds and the mortgage company requires insurance. Having my property foreclosed on isn't a reasonable accommodation and the law doesn't pitbulls aren't a protected class. Unlike a service animal that is TRAINED to perform a task, the law doesn't require them to have THAT specific breed of dog for an emotional support animal. The level of sophistication of renters is really low....

4 Votes

Originally posted by @Steve K.:

@Jack B. Contrary to the belief of many prospective tenants who have been sold a fake "ESA certificate" by the many sites online selling them, an ESA is not the same as a Service Animal, and doesn't have the same protections under the Fair Housing Act. "No pets" policies don't apply to them (they're technically not pets), you can't charge extra pet rent for them, nor can you ask about the tenants disability. However, you don't have to accept her fake letter she bought online. You can request to have the local licensed mental health professional who diagnosed her condition and provided her with an ESA recommendation contact you directly to confirm this for you (directly being the operative word here, not by sending a note to her and then she sends it to you so she can edit it/fabricate it). Usually requesting this and mentioning that you plan to check the credentials of the person making the recommendation is enough to deter any fakers. A landlord can also choose not to rent to someone with an ESA if the animal causes harm to other residents, if the property is not covered by the FHA (is less than four units and the owner occupies one of the units, is a single family rental managed by the owner, or is owned by a club or religious group that only rents to its own members), if the animal (or animals in this case) is/are too large for the living space, if the animal causes physical harm to the property, of if the animal causes undo financial harm to the landlord (such as by causing your insurance company to drop you, resulting in your mortgage company calling your loan). I've gotten halfway through this explanation with people before and they usually say "nevermind" and hang up or leave before I have finished, which is A-OK with me. It's illegal to attempt to use a fake online form to avoid paying pet rent or to avoid a no-pets policy with an animal that is not an actual ESA, prescribed by an actual licensed mental health professional.

One of the RARE golden information posts on BP. Thank you.

7 Votes

5 Votes

Originally posted by @Alex Larcheveque:

@Jack B. Where's your compassion? I disagree with you 100%. Many of these individuals that are now unemployed are not "lazy" nor "dumb." Some, if not most, are extremely hardworking but have just gotten unlucky with COVID-19 affecting their business in an unprecedented way.

Reading comprehension is key...

I worked hard, MBA, 20 year tech career, so I could pay 100K a year in federal taxes for lazy and dumb people to get free housing, free health care and free food while they pop out more kids. Neighbor has 9 kids, lives in a section 8 property. The more kids she has the more she gets. What a great point you make....not.

Please explain the compassion the government is giving landlords who are expected to eat this loss so that it does not become a government problem of increased homelessness? How is that fair? Did they give us a break (do you even own property???) on mortgage payments and taxes? NOPE. Did they say you can go get gas and groceries for free, don't worry about paying? NOPE. A little bit of critical thinking will go a long way....

1 Vote

Originally posted by @Frank Procopio:

Where I am there is a moratorium on all evictions even if we want someone out for lease violations or because we are selling a duplex owner OCC and want to give notice to vacate. But in "normal times" I just give a notice to vacate or lease violations to evict. I have tenants that have not paid since January and there is nothing I can do right now and they know it. I even have tried going old school to pay them to leave

Damn that sucks....

0 Votes

Originally posted by @Joe Villeneuve:

Originally posted by @Trevor Aydelott:

I personally think your home can definitely be an ASSET

No it isn't. Next to taxes, it's your most expensive expense. It's not an investment.

Strange, I sold mine for 248K profit after 2 years. Hmmmm...

1 Vote

All Forum Posts by: Jack B.

Jack B. has started 419 posts and replied 1844 times.

Post: Has anyone used Zillow rental applications? Your experience?

Post: In WA you can evict despite moratorium IF you...

Post: Robert Kiyosaki The Lazy way to invest in real estate.

Post: Robert Kiyosaki The Lazy way to invest in real estate.

Post: Another pitbull as an "emotional support animal" applicant

Post: Another pitbull as an "emotional support animal" applicant

Post: Another pitbull as an "emotional support animal" applicant

Post: Are you receiving rents since lockdown?

Post: How WOULD you evict for reasons other than non-payment of rent?

Post: Robert Kiyosaki The Lazy way to invest in real estate.