All Forum Posts by: Lisa Hoover

Hi I've helped out of the country investors setup entire portfolios of residential properties here in the US.. in growing booming Charlotte NC to be exact. They don't even have social security numbers so even turning on utilities for fix up and prep to show to tenant prospects is a challenge. It sounds like you are a US Citizen so for you, it's a snap : ) My clients start out by buying the first properties with cash. Then once a tenant is placed the investor puts an 80% LTV mortgage on the property and then we go find another property. I interview property mgmt firms to manage on-going, coordinate homeowners insurance, allow my clients to use my home address for their mail to receive all documents, bills etc It feels like I'm an International Concierge (Consultant )at this point. These clients tell me exactly what they want and i just make it happen. So, focus on whatever affordable part of the country you want to own properties in and start looking on zillow for a mature experienced-in -investing broker or consultant and build a relationship one property at a time. It's wonderful if you happen to have even one friend in the town that can ride-by potential properties in the beginning to confirm it's what you want! That person should have an established network of closing attorneys, pm co, ins, repair & prep co's, everything! It's so easy to quickly transfer money internationally ( my clients found a BankofAmerica branch in the U.K. to open an acct and they transfer small sums of money to cover expenses as they come up) all done online from their acct to mine. Also we skype or email daily : ) Very enjoyable taking care of them. a

You are in an expensive land area! So don't underestimate how hard your job is. One way that's helped me know about land availability BEFORE it ever gets listed is to BOND with survey companies! and independent surveyors ( and appraisers to a degree). When someone is going to sell.. the first thing they do is a survey and sometimes an appraisal. You could also meet with city 'officials' to inquire about areas they want to REHAB and often give financial incentives. Are there any closed businesses? A friend of mine bought a closed Applebee's Restaurant to bulldoze it and put up a hotel. Everyone drove right past the shuttered restaurant for a year. He saw the LAND not the doomed location of a restaurant. He could have flipped that land a week after closing for over $1mm profit. When i like an area.. i get on polaris (google earth) for tax maps and flyover aerial views to spot any undeveloped land parcels that maybe can be carved off of a larger parcel. Are there any pre-foreclosures or short sales ? You can get to know any large lenders , ( and even foreclosure attorneys, )and help them quietly/low key clear the books quickly of unwanted assets and replace with your co new construction, Last, I've gotten leads from again surveyors that are out searching for places to locate cellphone towers... they check out lots of sites and most aren't suitable... so that's knowledge they would be glad to share (sell ) you cheaply! Hope that helps!

There is a new brokerage nationwide funded by Lowes! It's called GoldenKey.com They work with all real estate brokers and so you get the same service, with 1/3 of the cost. The current residential commission model ( from the 1950s) used in today's markets just isn't financially feasible for clients : a $42,000 commission to buy/sell a $700,000 home. I could get full service representation including MLS alerts, showings etc all the way thru closing and save $22000 on commissions. Brokers align themselves with GoldenKey ( and keep working at their same REMAX, ColdwellBanker etc) because GoldenKey sends them volumes of quality buyers & sellers. I don't have any affiliation with GoldenKey.. i just wanted to share with you and your wonderful friend realtor that you both have other options ! And congratulations on deciding to start owning properties! Read, learn from others- so you don't repeat our mistakes ! Find the best support team of agents, handymen, hvac, electricians, cleaning crew, painter and a landlord tenant law advisor (you can even join your local Apartment Association for ~$30 a year.. they have a good lease and put on great weekly training 1 to 2 hour sessions on current topics. Your properties will be worth more to you than you can imagine in the next 10 years.

First, get a new pm co--- NEVER NEVER rent to roommates... one always leaves. My policy is when roommates apply, each has to qualify income-wise independently. I would just ignore her. It's done. You did way more than the 'right thing'. Let her sue. No one died in the home, so try to keep perspective. This tenant has no money for attorneys or filing. She's all talk...illogical offensive behavior to distract you in the hopes to milk a few more dollars out of the deal. Does your lease state: "mandatory mediation vs court?" If not, you need a new pm co. I had a tenant in a $300,000 house (in an upscale neighborhood in Charlotte) that saw a garden snake whisk thru the backyard in summer and decided he would use BUSHKILL to completely remove every blade of grass in the formerly lush backyard. When he moved, i was left with bare tree trunks and 1/3 acre of red mud . He demanded his sec dep returned. His $2200 sec dep no where near covered new landscaping. My handyman and i made 4 trips to the dump to haul off the bags of trash this family left ( they started packing about 10am on the last day of their lease). Yep they sued me. I went to court and listened to them ramble and when it was my turn to speak all i said was "Your honor, please review Item 12 on our executed lease as we agreed on mediation vs court for any disputes." ""Yes Mrs Hoover i see that, thank you, this case is dismissed." Know your lease. Insure your pm has a landlord friendly lease. IF your lady tenant ever scraped up the money to file a complaint in court, highly doubtful, have LARGE 10 x 12 photos of the damage.Stand your ground. Send the PM co to deal with their tenant choice. PM Cos carry insurance to protect them if they make mistakes (which happens to all of us). I still don't understand why you are involved or thinking about court if you hired a PM Co. I would review the screening package results from the pm co... this can't be the first time the problem child tenant has misbehaved. It doesn't sound like you are holding this PM Co accountable. If they have 400 properties , i find it interesting they've never "seen this before" in all their years of experience. Tenants are basically crazy at all rental price points... there are just way MORE crazy ones when rents are $1100 and less. PM as a business is a high liability endeavor. The pm co has to have an attorney on retainer at all times ( even if it's just a " "LEGAL SHIELD." membership ) to advise them along the way so these issues are stopped before they snowball into an annoying nightmare. RE Professionals also have free access to a team of attorneys at their State Real Estate Commission. I know this EX-Tenant is annoying, but don't let this fruitcake age you prematurely. We are all on a learning curve, but this is a PM CO PROBLEM, not yours.

YOU have a great eye for spotting a diamond in the rough!

i think you did just the right amount of rehab (it's always tempting to do a little more here and there and lose profits unnecessarily-- perfect rehab and excellent decision to sell to cash AS IS.  Hate waiting on mortgage deals

Hi Are you thinking about this because you want to use the property too?? for vacations, later retirement?

or are you looking to build equity in an asset?

If you aren't thereto personally oversee maids, repairs etc. it can be very expensive

i know ocean props require a lot of maintenance upkeep just due to the salt in the air (my aunt had a 2nd home and talked about how the salty enviro eats thru everything sooner or later. 

I have a close friend that partnered with friends for a nice rental at a NC ski area.

AND the expenses and vacancy killed that investment.

It's different if you want a 2nd home to be partly paid for by seasonal renters, like VRBO.com... but work smart and if your own backyard is as affordable as Charlotte (vs Boston or San Diego we look dirt cheap)

then INVEST in your own backyard.

i'm more hands on (controlling!) and conservative with my capital.

If their $150k home is their only asset?? i surely wouldn't take out $100k equity.

Are any of you located HERE in the Charlotte area? 

There are easier ways to make money in this market without risking the equity in your primary residence.

Hi

The best person i've found is Derek Atwell

in Monroe...WORTH THE DRIVE

he's the personal CPA for many developers, GCs, commercial re brokers and of course

residential re brokers  if you google him his office number will pop up.. very reasonable affordable too.  Very prompt on questions too... i've burned thru 5 CPA firms and a derek wins.

Hi Aaron

I can tell you're a great writer from your introduction!  Maybe i'll hire you to write my. introduction ; )   or better yet

i'll train you to be an investor and we write a book --A to Z.  I bought my first property at 24-- my first job out of grad school was as a chemist for Miller Brewing Co in NC.  They offered me a position in Los Angeles.. and I initially turned it down. When they asked WHY? all i could think of was the difference in 'cost of living' between Greensboro & LA.

(i was actually just chicken to move by myself across the country )

15 minutes later the Plant Mgr called me and said "we will buy you a house."

My poor Mom, that offer was on a Wednesday and i was on a one-way flight to LA by Saturday.  I remember thinking, "wow why would anyone STAY in grad school to get a painful PHD in Chemistry when companies are so awesome to their employees?"

That was in 1981--- how things have changed just during my working career.

I'm 60 now, retired, and for the first time looking at starting to sell my properties as FSBO to owner-occupiers starting in 2017.

The props are now  too high priced to be investor rental props.

So i was investing 'with other people's money' long before Robert Kiyosaki's book in 1997-- but that book confirmed what i was already experiencing andFOCUSED my mind to lead me to a NEW career --in investing and helping other people invest.

I'm so glad i got my real estate license back in the 90s because i quickly figured out that --wow when I buy a house I GET TO PAY MYSELF at closing (as my own buyers agent) a truly negotiable commission-- ( free market) financed into the loan.  Rule of thumb:  every 10,000 in loan amount adds about $50 a month to the monthly payment.  hmmmm

Real Example: In 2002,we bought (owner occupied zero down payment) a $240,000 'list  price' -foreclosure (near Ballantyne-- 2800 sqft 4 BR. 3 BA on the golf course) from a local credit union and they had done A LOT of rehab.. new int/ext paint, new carpet,replaced inground pool equip and liner, new windows, refinished hw floors.. but during the inspection we found both HVAC systems were the original 1983.

So i got quotes ($12,000) and financed that into the loan , funds escrowed and work started on the day of closing.

Remember-- that only added $50 a month to my PITI.

Then, usual buyer agent commissions run about 3% of the loan amount

which at 100 % financing 240 + 12 is 252... so instead of 3% i wrote the offer to say 5% so instead of ~~7500 i paid myself $10,000+( which added another $50 a month to my payment. I got $22,000 basically at closing and a really nice golf course community home on 1/2 acre.

The house appraised because it was a foreclosure and that $10k paid for our move and several months of mortgage payments.

i still have that house--now rented at $2400a month ( my PITI and HOA is $1380) and zillow says value today is $415,000. i've endured a couple of bad tenants since it bacame a rental in 2004--( like during the crash) but most have been a dream.

So i see lots of opportunity for you-- you can buy HUD or Bank foreclosures as owner occupied. You can rent one of the NCSECUs fixed up foreclosures (if you are eligible to become a member) and they will help you buy it --as owner occupied.. then in 6 mos or so, you can rent it out to only a PERFECT tenant and go buy another property-- if you are a realtor-- there's another payday.

Credit  Unions are the next best entity after Miller Brewing Co : )

When i train investors:

1. Make money the day you buy.

2. Keep your money in your pocket.

3. i actually have 10 rules but this post is already WAY too long : )

send me a colleague request and i'm happy to share with you off line.

Learn all you can from BP.  Learn about Property Mgmt and a few things about landlord/tenant law in NC. 

Think about getting a broker license-- your buyers will teach YOU so much!!

Go to the website www.ncrec. and you can read example standard NCAR RENTAL lease , offer to purchase contracts-- now insanely long, etc.

And ask questions. So many people helped me along the way. 

Happy &  Successful Investing!

Work while you are young and Save up some cash--every property will need some unexpected repair and you are the landlord -- build and protect your credit score ( you'll never regret that effort)

Hi Elizabeth

glad to

i'll read your profile to see what kinds of properties you look for.

Best Regards

Lisa