All Forum Posts by: Mark Mathews

Why not just call the owner of record? There are lots of reasons it may be abandoned, and the owner (even if it's an estate) may be happy to give it to you for a small price. Just call. :)

@Marvin S. I'm curious, Marvin. How did you come across these 54 properties in Ohio?

Hi Kiley,

Please send me information about this property, including your HML analysis using 212 Loans.

[email protected]

Remember to get at least three quotes from contractors, and check their referrals. Actually go see the work they did and talk to the homeowners about their experience with the contractor.

Thank you @Sean Walton and @Dominic Bouchard. I think it's great advice to use an attorney. I think if I can save the seller some commission by buying direct, he may be more willing to provide some concessions on price, or maybe a new furnace or something.

I know a person who wants to sell his house, and I want to buy it. What is the best way to buy his house without an agent and still be sure that all the important legal stuff is taken care of?

If you want to develop massive condominiums as an employee of a big company, sure, get your degree and apply for your dream job.

If you want to develop massive condominiums as an entrepreneur, your path will be different. Get an education in real estate investing. There are several ways to do this. You can read books and spend time watching vlog posts here on BP as a start. As you put more and more mental energy into learning from other investors, your frame of mind will begin to shift away from the "employee" thinking toward "business" thinking. You should change from being a consumer toward being an entrepreneur.

You may even consider at some point paying for some mentoring or other training program. (I'm not selling anything, just sharing my thoughts.) I look at that type of program as an investment the same way others consider University an investment. The difference is that your purpose in this case is to go into business for yourself, whereas most who go to university intend to work for someone else.

Hope that helps.

Sounds like a math problem. Start with $4,000 monthly income, subtract your expenses and about $400 monthly positive cash flow. The result is what you can afford to pay in Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance. Probably will have to have 25 to 30% of your own funds in the project to get a construction loan. The rest of the equation is figuring out if you can get the job done with the funds you can afford.

Good luck!

@Brandon Rodriguez I agree with J Scott, as far as doing the development. However, another suggestion is to find wholesalers who may be willing to do a co-wholesale. There's usually more than one way to structure a deal.

For a quick and dirty comp, you can use zillow or redfin. Select nearby recent sales of similar size lots, square feet of the home, number of bedrooms/baths, etc. Average 3 to 5.

I don't think you need to be too concerned about the 20 year difference in age of the house. The older houses usually appreciate in value with the market just like the newer ones. A local realtor could be helpful too.