All Forum Posts by: Kristina Anderson

@Peter Walther Thank you. The title agent basically sent me to title insurance, didn't even say "I'm sorry you have to deal with this" even though it was her very clear mistake. She also missed out on arrears to tax abatement office, as well, which we coughed up last fall.

I will pester the title insurance company again Monday first thing. The woman I spoke to today didn't seem that experienced. What a headache! 

Hi All! Happy New Year -

We just discovered a property we purchased last spring (2022) had a tax lien on it that had been sold in late 2021. Notices had been going to the seller. The lien was put into foreclosure about a month ago. Again, with notices to the seller using the older address on file. Big error on the title agent's part, we know. The reason I'm here is that they advised us to file a claim against our title insurance, which we did yesterday. The auditor in Cincinnati sent us a tax lien certificate with an amount good through 1/15/23. I just talked to title insurance at Westcor and they expect an adjustor to be assigned Monday or Tuesday. My question: is the normal order of things that we file the claim and wait until they pay off the taxes OR that we pay off the taxes/cure the debt and then file the claim showing the payment?  I asked title insurance and the front desk suggested I wait until an adjustor is assigned.  What do you all think?

Thank you in advance! 

@V.G Jason

We have seen in our market that buyers elevate offer prices well over ask to get the deal accepted, then use the inspection to reduce the sale price. This is particularly true the last few years because properties have been way overpriced - again in our market (Columbus).

@Kesha Ferguson we prefer fully occupied with payment history as part of due diligence. We like cash flow from day 1.

We invest in Columbus. There are two ways we estimate taxes. First is to simply look up current taxes owed (go to Franklin County auditor website), divide by the last sale price, which gives you a %. Now apply that percent to your purchase price. It's not 100% accurate but gives you a good indication. The other way is to use the tax estimator on the auditors site: https://apps.franklincountyaud... We also sometimes just look at how much the purchase price differs from last sale price. If the seller bought the property for 100k, and you are going into contract at 200k, you can assume taxes will double. 

I hope this helps! Taxes in Columbus are pretty high in most areas and really cut into cash flow.

Tina
 

Yes that was our experience. 

At this point in time, it’s hard unless you can buy with cash. My husband and I have some cash left from a refi and we realized that the stock market is tanking, so our opportunity to invest there and pause on properties. We are at the top of the real estate market. This will change but we will take a pause until then.

 I mean- that’s our strategy. My husband and mine. We don’t consider properties that require us to evict in order to make the numbers work. We know others do that. We don’t. 

Am I the only one who continues to be upset that purchase price of the business doesn’t reflect that the business isn’t viable at that price? Value add to me is adding a 3rd bedroom, updating the kitchen, not doubling the rent x2. If you bought a restaurant and were told “it works! Just cut salaries in half” you’d say “uh, then it doesn’t work”. Our strategy is to buy based on current rents. Yes, raising 50 a month or so, fine. But when we see properties that sit at the .25% “rule” we don’t even put an offer in. We investors are part of the reason we are seeing so much inflation. And let’s get honest. Most of us don’t own in fancy communities where a family might have resources to pay more. No. We are doing this in C and D areas. We think “well we have to to make it work!” But what if we simply didn’t buy an underperforming property in the first place? I’ll say keep the grandma if you buy. Increase her 50 or so. Be a kind landlord. If that means you can’t afford to eat, then maybe this property isn’t for you.

@Tony Kim I have found that most agents just want to get the sale done. Once they have a bite its “come on, it’s just a few extra thousands!” They don’t want to start over. They want to maximize return for effort. I’ve been known to say “if it’s such a little amount, then let’s ask the other party to carry it”. I’ve seen this as a buyer and a seller. I don’t think the dual agency is the problem - her responsibility is technically to you - but more that she wants to close. To her, commission on the difference in the offer and your counter is so small. We’ve had to simply tell our agent “here is what we can do”. They don’t always like it but it is what it is. Know though that if you stand firm and lose the client she won’t be happy but again it’s your property. You should also speak with her about any other offers. Sounds like you had one - in this market I’m surprised. But definitely expect the “just do it!” Mentality from agents going forward. Again, they want to close and move on.