All Forum Posts by: Joseph Catalano

@Shawn Hughes if I had it all to do over again I would have housed hacked in law school or even college.  I agree the multi-family will be out of your range the area you are in,  I a few friends who live there and they tell me how expensive real estate is getting.  

I am a fan of the house hack.  I am trying to convice my younger brother to get into as soon as possible.

Good Luck.

HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE IDEA.  Did I mention a HORRIBLE IDEA!!  So in essence all you are getting is a half months rent for them to move in.  So when the destroy the apartment you have no financial recourse, sure you can send them a bill or add it on to the eviction but that will get you nothing but attorneys fees.  No security deposit means you are stuck paying for all the repairs.  

With all that being said if you do the proper screening of your tenants you may not have a problem but even good tenants go bad sometimes and it is nice to have that security deposit to recoup at least a little of the loss.

As a criminal defense attorney, I do agree that the majority of my clients, especially in drug cases, are African American or Hispanic but I do not agree with HUD. As Property Owners are we supppose to permit violent criminals into our properties and put the rest or our tenants at risk? We know we will get sued if someone does get hurt because we had prior knowledge that this person had a violent criminal history and we rented to them. So get fined by HUD or risk getting sued if somenting goes south. Not a good choice.

I could not agree with @Jay Dewberry more, you have to analyze everything.  You have to know your numbers inside and out. If you do not know your numbers than you are just hoping and guessing not investing.  

@Robert Spohn  you just have to protect yourself and your asset the right way and there are no shortcuts for that.  Good Luck.

@Armand P.  @Account Closed is spot on, a HELOC is a great way to get in the game. But you have to know your numbers. We have used our like a checking account. We essentially loan the money to our LLC to make the downpayments or property purchases. We pay down the HELOC just like we do with the mortgage on the property. Playing the game with other peoples money is a great way to do it.

@Anuj Khosla  Sounds like a great idea if you can afford to do it.  As far as how to approach the company the phrase, "free intern" goes a long way.  Additionally, explain to them without being sappy how much you can learn from them as they put you to work.  My law firm get request for "free interns" on a regular basis and the person who is passionate and sincerce about learning is the person we take on.

@Robert Spohn As an attorney I can safely say never you online boiler plate garbage. Find an attorney in your who specializes in Corporate set up, not a real estate attorney, tell them what you want to do and let them do if for you. I am a criminal defense attorney. I did not set up our LLC, I went to an attorney I know and trust who does Corporate set up and had his firm do it the right way. When your LLC is attack in court, Rocket and LegalZoom are not going to come to your defense but the firm who put your LLC together will.

Creating an LLC is not just filing some forms, there is also the operating agreement which must be prepared correctly and permits the LLC to go into debt, ie take out a loan, if that is not done propertly banks will not lend to your LLC. That is just one small issue that Rocket and LegalZoom do not tell you or help you deal with.

I heard a judge once ask a defendant who was representing himself in a burglary case, "Sir if you had a tumor in your brain, would you go buy a mirror and scalpel then cut it out yourself?  At which time the defendant said, "No, that would be stupid."  Then the judge asked, "Then why the hell are you in my courtroom without a lawyer?"

Hire an attorney.  Get it done right.  

@Will R.  if you have attended other networking events then there is not a great deal of difference.  As a young lawyer I attended a lot of networking events to get the lay of the land and I have found that the techniques are the same, just listen because more experienced people who go to those events love to teach.  As a young lawyer I learned about which lawyers who were great to work with and which were terrible.  The same is true in the real estate world.  You will learn who you can trust and who you cant.  Where the deals are and where the busts are. Just be introduce your self, be freindly, let them know what you are interested in and you will be amazed on how much information will be thrust upon you.

@Account Closed  Definatley a two year lease.  I would run your numbers at a few different amounts and see what you feel comfortable with and what the market in your area will handle.  You want to be a little cheaper but not too much.  you still have to make a profit.