All Forum Posts by: Lucas Amuchastegui

Thank you guys for the replies. My understanding is that mail requiring signed receipt can be problematic because the tenant can just pretend not to be home and then it gets returned and is invalidated. Is that true?

I didn’t post a letter on the door, but will be doing that with important notices in the future. My own llc is managing the property. We’re a small business with 11 units. In Oregon, statutes say that first class mail alone is an acceptable method of notification. I’m curious how high the burden of proof is.  Maybe it just depends on the individual judge and circumstances. 

Hi there,

I'm in Oregon and I sent my tenant a 72 hour notice 5 days ago via first class priority mail with tracking. In Oregon, you have to allow 3 extra days for mailed notices. Tenant now says she hasn't received the notice in the mail. I did send her a photograph of the signed notice with time and date of mailing and the address to which it was sent. USPS shows that the letter was delivered. USPS tracking doesn't list the delivery address online, but says it was delivered and lists the correct town and zip code. She has until 5 PM tomorrow to pay or the lease is terminated, according to the notice. Is the evidence that I have sufficient to show in eviction court that she did receive the notice and is either lying or threw it out or something? 

Thanks so much. This is my first eviction process and I'm hoping to have all my ducks in a row.

Thank you all so much! 

Hey BP, These will likely be silly questions but I'm a noobie having a little trouble finding answers online. we plan on hiring a CPA, but I'd love to understand some of the basics. My brother and I are 50-50 owners in an LLC that buys and holds real estate (currently at 2 properties). We are both married and all 4 of us have regular w2 jobs. For 2018 taxes, I understand that the LLC will need to file it's own return. 1) if the LLC shows net earnings, would we just split that amount 50-50 as a distribution and add it to our personal taxable incomes? Do we have any option of leaving money in the LLC and not taking any distribution, and would that affect how we pay taxes? 2) If the LLC sustains a loss over the year, would we each be able to write off half that loss from our taxable income? if so, would we only be able to do that if we itemize? 3) we both would not have enough deductions in our personal lives to surpass the 24k standard deduction. The LLC still itemizes all its expenses and finds a net profit/loss anyway, and then that passes through to the owners, right? if we had plans to make charitable contributions to our church, would we do well to do that through the LLC so that we could write it off, and then still take the standard deduction? again, probably very silly questions, but if you can't ask the BP family, who can you ask?! would love any side tips anyone would care to give thanks for all the help. I could never have even gotten started without you all! Luke

Hey BP,

I'm starting a new construction project with my brother, and have a couple questions about our tax strategy. I know that we'll need a CPA to get official advice, but I'd like to have a general idea of how it goes before going into that meeting.

1) There are a lot of expenses not relating directly to the construction of the home, such as permits, construction of utility lines, tree clearing, surveying, etc.. Can I write these off my personal income this year, or do I have to treat them some other way? We're also having a spec builder build the house from foundation to finish. How do we handle that bill at tax time? I'm assuming a cost segregation depreciation if our builder can give us that sort of breakdown...

2) My brother and I are doing this as 50/50 partners. Is it legitimate to simply split expenses and earnings on our taxes 50/50?

3) Our parents are funding the deal (don't worry, we have all the necessary legal documentation in place). I'm assuming that it's no problem to still write off that interest as if it had been paid to a bank. Is that correct?

Thanks so much!

Luke

 It sounds like it's legally a little murky but it's best to just have some internal records reflecting very strict criteria. 

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts. Love this place!

Hi All,

I'm currently working on a new construction and my parents are wanting to fund the deal. We're hoping to have some sort of legal contract in place, but would rather not pay for a lawyer to draft something, when I'm sure that it's the type of contract that is pretty easily stereotyped. Does anyone happen to have a contract template for a basic loan from a private lender? 

Thanks!

Luke

Hi All,

I'm working on a new construction, which will be my first rental property. I'm starting to think ahead about the advertising and screening process and had a few questions. Obviously, you can't discriminate against protected classes, but how would a tenant claim that you denied them based on, say, familial status rather than the fact that you just didn't like them, or they seemed messy, or whatever?

I'm in Southern Oregon, and I have a friend in Portland, who says that up there, you have to accept the first applicant who meets your formal criteria. That means that they can't deny an applicant because he seems like a jerk as long as he meets the criteria that the landlord set out when he started the screening process (credit score, income, job stability, etc.). Does that sound right? Has anyone heard of a legal precedent like that? 

Thanks so much!

Luke

@Christopher Phillips

Thank you so much for taking the time to write a thorough reply. That is very helpful. 

As a final question, do I need to have my own real estate agent represent me at any point during the transaction, or can I represent myself (not licensed) for the whole thing? 

Thanks again,

Luke

Hey BP,

I've been through about a year of BP education and feel like it's getting to be high time I pull the trigger on a real property. I'm in an area where it can be tough to make a property cash flow if it's purchased at market price, so I've been looking at Hubzu and auction.com for better deals. I just want to make sure that I'm not making any major mistakes on my first deal, so I thought I'd ask the experts!

1. I understand that when the property is labeled as "bank-owned," it indicates that the title is usually cleared of liens. If I buy title insurance, do I do this through the title company of my or the seller's choice once I've won the bid? 

2. One of the properties I'm looking at is described as "As-is without warranties." I understand that my sellers will allow you an inspection period during which you can check out the property fully. Is this standard, or do I have to negotiate that once I've won the bid? If I've already won the bid, aren't I contracted to buy the house anyway, so I wouldn't have any leverage to negotiate things like that? 

3. If I find something wrong with the property that is a deal-breaker, do I lose my earnest money and buyer's premium if I back out? Can I even back out?  

I know that these are pretty basic questions. I'd love any further advice that you could offer to help me avoid financial ruin on my first deal. So thankful for the education that this community has provided already!

Cheers,

Luke