All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Greene

@Benjamin Greene your loan should be able to go through as long as it was approved with the loan and it was fully disclosed. It doesn't make sense that they would try to bounce it now when you had it on there the whole time. I too would go over her head. Why turn in the vehicle if you don't have to? But on reading it more closely, it's not the property closing Monday so maybe it was during their due diligence that they bounced it. Still, you should not have gotten a loan approval upfront if the car loan would be an issue in underwriting. I can't tell the timeline, but there is a chance the loan officer did not make a mistake and that underwriting for this company is where the final say is made on outstanding loans like that. What did the loan officer have to say?

If you aren't going to live there, I think it'll be hard to find a downpayment of less than 20 percent. The best site, in my opinion, for checking rents without MLS access is Rentometer. Plug in the address and bed and bath and see what kinds of rents that would get.

Goals are set out in front of us as something to strive for, but oftentimes we just end up chasing our ambition the whole year. And when we can't catch up to it, we either give up or put our heads down and say we will do better next year. Instead of a "How Many Doors Do You Want to Buy in 2020" post, I thought picking just one thing to add to our REI business might benefit us all. So, what's the biggest addition you are going to make to your REI business in 2020?

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My smartest addition is going to be a streamlined and controlled offer sheet for the seller that is really just an enhanced LOI. This is what will be in the document:

1. Offer Summary page/Offer Options - this page will have the major deal points only. Offer price. Earnest money. Financing or POF explanation. Closing date. Inspection minimization clauses.

2. Offer explanation. Why my offer is "so low" to the seller and how I support it. This will include short comp analysis, block value, and renovation costs, as well as the ease of transaction discount I expect for bringing cash and closing ASAP with limited inspections.

3. Comp and full market analysis summary. This is a focused group on truly comparable properties that have sold within the last year, within one mile at most, and with only similar characteristics.

4. Personal transaction history. This is segmented into currently held properties and deals completed.

I prefer this type of document to sending a contract first because it is straightforward and much easier to read and process. It also shows them upfront that you have done your full research and are a neighborhood and investment expert and not just looking to lowball every house on your hit list.

I would send this out to sellers who I have previously made contact with on the phone and seen the property. It would be the first follow up after a property visit, but I can see it being used in advance of property visits as well.

What about you?

I've had many properties in Westchester over the past 20 years and still have some holds there and your standard two-family options are harder to come by than in other areas. I've done very well with single-family homes in Westchester. High-end townhomes work as well. You can find affordable single-family homes that will rent very well at lower price points, so it would be a different strategy. You could live in it for a year and then keep it as a rental, but house hacking multi-family homes in Westchester will top you out based on your numbers.

Great points by @Max T. and @Account Closed. I think that group showing windows are the best option because it also creates demand when others are looking. So if you have ten people interested, set them all in a one-hour block. And if you can pre-screen like Kris with a set of questions you will end up with a much smaller pool, but all people who are qualified and really interested.

That's your problem right there. Just posting on your own on Zillow and CL will get you all unqualified renters. Why would you set appointments with renters before knowing whether they can afford the place or whether they have past delinquencies? You need to set up a full process. In my market in NJ, there is no reason for an owner not to use an agent because the renter pays the fees. If you have an available unit in the LA area and only have two showings on a SAT, there are a lot of kinks to work out. The more info you get from tenants before you show it and the more you make clear the fees, the less internet options you may end up with, but better actual potential renters.

The partners don't want any interest on their money? I see that for family and things like that, but I would always structure a partnership as a win-win for both parties. If you tie up their 50k for x amount of time shouldn't they get more than the 50k back plus a little interest? Or are they taking that as interest in the home and if so, they should expect the same long-term gains and/or part of the profit from rent.

In re: to your plan. You are going to house hack? If not, the 5% down won't work. The rest of the numbers are irrelevant because there is no property. It assumes what you can rent it for and I assume, what you would pay, but it's not based on real properties in the area and I don't know your market. There are A LOT of things missing here. Single and multi-family homes have completely different calculated structures and things to account for. If you add more details, I am happy to try to give you better feedback.

You might want to have a look at this thread. It's very similar and full of mistake posts - https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/48/topics/786263-what-was-your-worst-rei-blunder-of-2019

When did she start leasing the vehicle? Many times it is not the loan officer's fault, but the client as you can not take out ANY loans while your home purchase is in process. If she leased the car after the initial loan docs, it is on you guys. If the lease was already pending, they should still be able to turn it back to you as it should have been disclosed. Most times the car has to be turned in if the lease was taken after the loan paperwork was generated.

You definitely need an agent on the ground in Cleveland who not only can run comps, but can explain the neighborhoods if you don't plan on going and doing the market research yourself. You have to be able to trust the comps because an agent can send you whatever comps he or she wants. So if they want you to think a price is right, they can send you higher comps and so forth. So build a relationship with a Cleveland investor-friendly agent, there are some on BP, and make sure you tell them you want to see ALL of the comps within .5 miles to 1 miles with similar BR, BA, house structure. Do not trust comp research on sites that have MLS streams because they are not always accurate on solds. Many of the sites hold active data well for listed properties, but once sold they need to be verified by the agent (on Zillow) to become a sold comp. The only reliable data is on the MLS and via a trusted agent.