All Forum Posts by: Jerel Ehlert

In the alternative, you and your spouse could sign an agreement that the investmentproperty you are buying in your name only is designated separate property and not community property.  But that doesn't apply here.

Tell the "agent" to stop practicing law.

http://www.txuplc.org/Home

For an LLC buying, pretty much what other said. For personal guaranty, they can ask for whoever they want. If you buy in your personal name only, it is common to get the spouse to sign the deed of trust to completely perfect the lien against that spouses community interest in the collateral.

But here, not necessary and he should stop playing lawyer.

Overall, some solid advice.  A few points that I'm not sure where they got it from.

• Insurance is your 1st line of defense, then entity.
• Entities will not protect from gross negligence and require care/feeding (respecting the formalities).
• Entities are state creatures, tax structures are federal creatures. Each state has its own laws.
• Mostly determined by your tolerance for risk (10 small rentals v. a single 150-unit).
• Segregate character of income (rental income from dealer income, etc).
• Segregate by character of risk (landlord premise liability v. construction personal injury).
• Segregate by participants (spouses v. unrelated 3rd party).

There are a lot of ways to get "marketable title" which is what people mean by "clear title".  Title can transfer outside a title company, regardless of the state of marketability.  

Trespass to Try Title (TTT) is what Texas calls "quiet title" action. One of the heirs, or you if you get title outside a title company, can file suit to clear title issues by court order.  Underwriters will take that as holy writ after the suit is put to bed.

Adverse Possession (AP).  A variation on TTT and relatively disfavored in Texas, but will likely work here.  You or the seller will likely be able to add (tack) the required time to the Father's time in the property.

Affidavits of Heirship (AH). You can go the long rout and get enough AH's from enough heirs to choke Death's pale horse.  Hopefully everyone cooperates.

Tax lien loans.  If a suit has already been filed, you can make a tax lien loan to the seller if you have that lying around.  When the seller defaults on the loan, resume the tax suit in your own name.  You risk not getting the property, but if another buys it at auction you get a statutory 25% return on top of fees and expenses.  Plus, it wipes almost every kind of title defect.

That's just off the top of my head given the facts presented.  PM if you want to.

Not looking to any statute or rule, but closets are a relatively recent convention.  You can check with architectural historians, but probably started post-WW2 building when subdivisions were popularized.  Before then, people had wardrobes and armoires.  So, I agree, closet is not determinative element in answering "what is a bedroom".

You could get new title insurance, but not necessary.  A title policy is more for shifting risk of unknown defects.  You are, or a principal in, the owner in both cases, so...

Deed from your name to that of the LLC does the trick. Jessica is right, that most deeds of trust have a "due on sale" clause, and if you do this it will breach the loan agreements. However, depending on the facts, most lenders don't care who holds title so long as the payments are made regularly, and in full. If the lender does call the loan due for this violation, most times the cure is to deed it back into your name.

Alternatively, you could sign a pledge of title to the LLC and sign a resolution stating that even though title is held in your name, it is LLC's. 6 of one, half-dozen of the other.

Read the lease.  What does it say.  If silent, most times it is a periodic tenancy based on how often rent is paid.  Suggest addressing directly with landlord so they can start marketing for a replacement.

Also consider, you had 3 years of continuous rental => no vacancy loss between years 1 & 2, and 2 & 3. And no agent commission for those years either.

Normal wear and tear.  Not deductable.  Even the minor chips from corner sheetrock.  That's what you get paid rent for.  Blinds ought to have a standard charge (something like $50-75 per window).  Should be straight pass-through cost.