All Forum Posts by: Jenifer Levini

Hi Tyler,

There are a lot of people thinking like you, about how great it would be to use tiny homes as VRs instead of hotel rooms. You might guess that the hotel lobby is making this difficult. They have also been fighting for rules that limit AirBnBs.  Some of the people who pretend to be angry neighbors, against VRs turn out to be related to hotel industry. 

One area near you that has been more welcoming to tiny homes is Ojai. They were allowing them as Accessory Dwelling Units, behind a residence. And, I think, they were allowing an ADU to be rented out.

There are many types of zoning with little loop holes that could potentially be used for tiny hotels. Every jurisdiction (city or county) has its own rules and regulations. And housing is also subject to all the State laws. 

If youre serious about doing this, you'll want to find a local land use attorney who will help you find the correct zoning. For example, in some parts of the State of CA there are zoning for multi-family, group housing for agriculture purposes, recreation-related housing, visitor accommodation, RV parks, mobile home parks, and other zoning that could be used very creatively.

Good luck!!

Hi @Patrick Senas,

Sigh. I just read through this thread. It is always a little disturbing when people seek legal advice from random people who are willing to answer. And even more disturbing reading the legal advice non-lawyers give. Most, if not all of this information is wrong.

First, no one can give advice without reading the agreement. There are a lot of terms in any real estate transaction. And they can be interpreted in different ways. This is especially true if there were multiple addenda written.

Second, the advice to delay is most likely dead wrong. Damages could be building against you every day. Damages are not simply related to whether or not the property sells and at what price the property sells. For example, if the sellers planned to use the money from the sale for another purpose, and your actions are frustrating that other purpose, like paying off a loan. And that delay is costing them money, those are their damages against you. If your not allowing the transaction to move forward cost them to lose another deal on which they could have made a million dollars, what do you think their damages are?

There are a whole lot of unknowns here. No one should give you advice without reading and interpreting everything, talking to all parties involved, and having a law degree. If the sellers already have a lawyer involved, chances are the amount they will sue you for is north of $50K. You could end up paying a lawyer more than $15k to defend that $10k decision, and you'll lose the 10K, too.

For those who are wondering what the right way to handle a problem like this is...

If an outside vendor (not a party to the interaction) gives you wrong information, and you rely on that information to make a decision. Then, that decision costs you money, you have the right to seek reimbursement for your loss caused by the misinformation. Those would be your damages. You dont have the right to further damage someone else because you received wrong information and acted on it.

That's my two cents, in reading the little bits of information provided here. This does not constitute legal advice. 

Good luck!!

Yes, @J. Martin there is room on my couch for you two, or I have an empty basement, if you bring camping gear (sleeping bags and pads or mattresses). We'll figure it out. it's Santa Cruz, after all.

@Metra Ulloa

Here's the info about our Santa Cruz meetup. It's this Thursday

https://www.meetup.com/preview/Santa-Cruz-Real-Est...

We're hoping the famous 

@J. Martin  will make a guest appearance to tell everyone about this Summit.

@Ash Hussain, I agree, $20/day X 5 days/week seems like a lot of money for transportation. Although it really depends on how much your time and peace of mind is worth. People who get work done on the train, versus fighting traffic, seem pretty happy. If someone has a job they can do over the internet, like me for example, I could be earning much more than the cost during that time. 

Young people are struggling to find jobs where they dont exist? There are numerous lists of where the economy is growing, and where employers are moving. Employers moved away from Sonoma County in mass in the 1990s.  Jobs are in Atlanta, Denver, and numerous places where the government subsidizes, instead of taxes and harasses employers.

Just because some place is scenic doesn't mean that its a good place to live. If the housing is expensive, and the jobs are few and far between, then isnt it pretty obvious? The only way prices will go down is when people leave, because its not easy to increase supply.

It's Thursday. Sorry about the typo.

@Michelle C. I agree with you that there arent good paying jobs in Santa Rosa. The problem is that there are great jobs in San Francisco, Marin County & Napa area. People work in those areas and buy houses in Santa Rosa, which seems like a bargain in comparison. I expect, now that the train is running, making the commute easier because fewer cars are on the road, the prices will go up another 20-30% over the next 2 years. And even then, they'll still be a lot cheaper than the next door neighbor Marin County. If you wait 2 years you'll be kicking yourself, wishing you bought this year. The realtors in Santa Rosa are advertising their houses to people in San Francisco who are used to paying over $1.5M for a 2-br flat.

Looking in San Pedro & Long Beach area of Los Angeles.

Join us in Santa Cruz for the monthly real estate social meetup! Meet lots of people, come enjoy the warm weather and share a cold brew and delicious snacks.

Last month the group unanimously voted that they want to meet monthly on the last Thursday night of the month.

The location (Discretion Brewing) was kinda noisy, so let's find a new place that has food and beverages, and a group area(s). Please scout your local breweries, coffee houses, casual snacky places. Let me know if you find anything. If nothing else comes up it will still be Discretion.

Bring coats so we can sit on the patio, even if the fog rolls in.

We talk about some of the local and out-of-area deals that people have been doing. At the last event conversations tapped into out-of-state investing opportunities, tiny homes, cannabis property, partnering on deals, buying bulk REOs, finding realtors and property mangers in out-of-state areas, valuations in other areas of California like Modesto & Mendocino County, and getting permits in Santa Cruz county. Bring your deals and let's negotiate.

If you have never come, this is a SOCIAL event. No lectures, no formal pitching, no products, packages, gurus or anything besides avid investors telling stories and getting advice on our adventures.

When: Friday, September 28th, 2017, 6:30pm

Where: TBD

Please support the local business we mob by spending some money and tipping for the great service we receive! They will have both food and nice drinks. Remember, evening traffic can get a touch thick so give yourself some time. I'll hang there till it ends (about 9:30pm depending on how conversation flows). Parking at the Safeway across the street is a good idea if the tiny parking lot is full.

Can't wait to see you all.

- Jen Levini, Esq. & Shane Pearlman

People typically come from: Santa Cruz, Felton, Boulder Creek, Ben Lomond, Brookdale, Bonny Doon, Lompico, Scotts Valley, Live Oak, Capitola, Soquel, Aptos, Watsonville, Freedom, Corallitos, Pajaro, Seaside, Castroville, Moss Landing, Salinas, Gilroy, Morgan Hill, Marina, Aromas, Monterey, Carmel, Los Gatos, Campbell, Saratoga, San Jose, San Mateo, Davenport, & Half Moon Bay.

RSVP at https://www.meetup.com/Santa-Cruz-Real-Estate-Investor-Meetup/events/242934767/

@Account Closed you might want to check out the class action lawsuits that Rocketlawyer (and legalzoom) have lost because their agreements dont hold up in court. 

There is a pretty good summary here:

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/dont-buy-legal-do...

If you google their class action law suits you'll never use their services again. Thousands of people end up losing in court and then suing the contract writing company. The company tries to hide behind some fine print that they arent responsible for bad contracts.