All Forum Posts by: William Robison

Hello @Trevor Dorroh

Grandview and the KC area covers a large swath of space. Depending upon your defined neighborhood, you could have values from $20k-$200k in this area, even for the 1950s houses.

My immediate thought was that you were thinking of the space between Grandview and Kansas City, which has a large space of 1950s houses called Ruskin.

Many do and many shouldnt is my quick answer. But, tell us more about what price point, or specific neighborhood is that you are considering.

Assuming that you are considering a buy and hold strategy, these areas can work well.

Feel free to post on the forum, or send me a PM and give me more specifics of where you are considering and I would be happy to share my experiences.

Born and raised in Kansas City, except my 4 year stint in the 70s living in Plano, going to Sigler Elementary. All the best to Plano!

Hello @Account Closed

Im not a real estate atty, but I am a real estate broker in Missouri.

Earnest money is not required, but in court, in order to be an enforcable contract (depends on the state), it needs to have a bi-lateral agreement. A contract with no earnest "consideration" is considered a unilateral contract, and while potentially enforcable, carries less muster.

Consideration is the buyers "good faith". It can be a low as a dollar (even a penny potentially), and as high as full price (Ive done this before).

If you want to get to the point of being able to enforce a contract in court, it is more helpful to have a bi-lateral contract with consideration.

All the best....and I agree, dont make a big deal out of it in the beginning, and it is usually ignored.

Hello @Ian Fisher

Often, you can find non-recourse lending that relies specifically on the assets of the property and not on the "file" of the investor. These work the same as a leveraged account for an IRA. NASB bank located in KC does lots of these, which may be a contact to try.

Let me know if there are things in KC that I can help you with in the establishment of your strategy.

All the best.

yet another hearty welcome from Kansas City @Daniel Brueske

If you have read about Bigger Pockets Meetups, we are actually putting one together for Kansas City in a couple of weeks. You can find the info and follow it by using the search tag: Kansas City Meetup....

We are currently at 20+ members. No education, no pressure, just networking and idea exchanging.

Again, all the best...let us know how we can help you out.

Aloha @Jack Richards

I thought I would give me feedback for Kansas City. Having worked with investors from all over the USA including an investor from the great state of Hawaii, Ive had the pleasure to work with many investors reach their goals of out of state investing. Ditto the above comments that finding the right team is critical. I also advise steering clear of the "turnkey" sellers unless you have had experience with them in the past or personal recommendations. There are several that provide less than a quality product, and ongoing maintanence can get very costly.

Doing your own self searching in terms of investment criteria will also help steer you in the direction of the right investment choices. Namely the difference between the high cash flow, lower grade properties versus the high quality properties with appreciation potential and lower cash flow. Each investor has a specific goal in mind and understanding these goals help put you closer in touch with your needs.

All the best from the midwest. Let us know what other questions that you may have.

I completely agree with you. However, many investors, including those fantastic geeks that run this forum (Brandon), like to buy using multipliers, such as the 2% rule. In order to hit these numbers, even in "cheap" markets like my own, Kansas City, it requires that you take C- grade properties.

I mostly work with out of state investors, whom for the most part are willing to compromise for some appreciation in the long term with a smaller cap rate up front, typically a 1.5% rule. Bread and butter house is $60k with $900 rent. What that doesnt get you is a 3 bed two bath 2 car garage house in a B area.

Yes, there is money to be made at all levels from A to D- properties. Its all about management and the level of involvement. I will not manage below a C property. Too much risk at the chance of upsetting the investor in the long run.

C-, and D properties should be managed by the investor, locally and with much experience and risk awareness.

A & B properties are good alternatives that ultimately, as Ive argued in a BP Blog Post before that long term ROI after factoring all expenses are less risk and ultimately a better reward, even at the lower up-front yield.

Meetup details and RSVP can be found at:

Bigger Pockets Kansas City Meetup

Meetup details

Good to hear from you @Steven Glaze

I hope all is well.

hello @Wayne Harvey

Ron LeGrand has been around a long time and talked about just as long. Using the search feature in the upper right corner area is a great tool and will get you more answers quicker....

I ran the search and came up with the following results...more than enough to make a solid educated answer to your question.

http://www.biggerpockets.com/search?utf8=%E2%9C%93&term=ron+legrand

All the best with your investments.

Welcome Kansas City BPers....

We have developed a Meetup for the Kansas City market area....all are invited. This will be an informal gathering...no "education" but rather an opportunity to connect and network. You may find your next deal here. Details are at: