All Forum Posts by: James Galla

@Nick Mess

I've considered buying a truck. It would be a beater for a couple thousand, max. The only reason I considered was because my friend is a dealer and he had one in stock that I liked.

I ended up saying no because it would be pointless. I don't haul materials on a daily or weekly basis. I'm not in construction. And, although I self manage, that responsibility doesn't require a truck. And, there would be literally no other use for it when I already have an SUV that can carry stuff.

Ultimately, I could get things shipped to the house or get a rental for cheaper since repairs and the like are not so frequent to require a truck.

If you're going to get a truck, you ought to just drive that as your main vehicle. That way you're not sitting there with an unused truck in your yard.

Hope that helps. Good luck.

@Cat Rothrock

Lenders are unlikely to make out any loans to a freshly created LLC. So, they often just make you personally guarantee the loan to the LLC.

As your LLC builds cash flow and demonstrates good financial health and management, lenders will consider lending to it without a personal guarantee.

I'd consult an attorney in creating the LLC, reviewing loan documents, etc.

Good luck.

@Idan Narotzki,

Number of contacts turns on how populated your area is. So, you might not be able to see whether that is a good number or not because we don't know your local market. Fortunately, Zillow Rent Manager, the website allows you to see how your rental is doing in the market as compared to similar listings.

Other than Zillow, I would try listing it on the Facebook marketplace. The number one feature is the photos. Not just any photos, honest photos. So, you want good lighting and all that so people can actually see the quality of the property.

@Montez Greer

Getting the money from a hard money lender depends on their lending requirements. So, you ought to ask your lender what you need to do before you can move forward.

Also, if I were you, as a matter of due diligence, I would consult an attorney for each step of the process.

@Antonio Wade

You generally want to look at their financial statements. Then it comes down to a question of how that business performs and the valuation of the business. You also want to know whether you are just buying the land itself and leasing it to the business or both the business and the land.

If it's for sale, they may have an executive summary available for you describing the property and may have financial statements available on request. Ask the broker for information.

@Montez Greer

If the cash isn't in your bank account, it's not an all cash deal. Draw the funds first then you can claim "all cash." The pre-approval letter doesn't mean much other than on preliminary investigation by your lender, you possibly qualify for the loan. From their standpoint, they don't know what conditions those funds will be released to you on. After the pre-approval, you normally get a "loan commitment."

Hope that helps and good luck.

@Glenn Willeford

Sounds like confidentiality issue against USPAP. Appraiser could be subject to discipline.

It's totally possible. I've seen a couple low-value flips in lower-tier areas. Say a couple hundred dollars to a few thousand for the house then rehab and sell it for a small to modest profit. Those flips push the slow and natural appreciation upward, but it's certainly not significant.

@Natalie H.

Make sure to list the property on the local Facebook marketplace as well. If you're not getting legitimate bites, you should consider lowering the rent again. This assumes the property is clean, has good photos, and is on par with other market standards.

10 weeks or so of vacancy shows the listing is stale and folks just aren't interested in what you're offering at that price point. Keeping it vacant results in more of a loss of money than lowering the rent does - think about it: you've got costs like taxes and perhaps financing as well as silent costs such as capital expenditures. All those costs continue to accrue while there is no gross rental income to offset them.

Good luck.

@Jerrell Alexander Germain

I love their (or their associates) cardboard signs with permanent marker claiming you can make $20k/month as an intern. That's definitely the sign of a legit company.