All Forum Posts by: Martin Zawarski

You think LOL . I been involved in real estate my whole life. The lessons learned and the money lost. It would make your hair stand up. I am 58 and still learning. But the rewards for the good deals more than make up for the ventures lost. I have been in a building family in the past building 150 homes a year. Our land positions really hurt this time around.

I would like to hear success stories from you, where you renegotiated the purchase after you had a firm agreement of sale. In this environment the deal isn't always the final deal and the negotiations are not finished until after the papers are signed, the money exchanged and the keys delivered . And sometimes even after the sale there is some negotiating going on.

I would like to hear some great stories and the circumstance.

Jessica. I am using a granite company that is next to Unclaimed Freight off of 22 that charge $33/sf. They do a nice job. I put granite in all my homes at any price range if a new kitchen is going in. I am doing a 850 sf single that is getting granite.

I have built mostly two bedroom units going back a long time ago. I have more vacancies than I like currently, but back in November I was fully rented.

With the homes I bought in the last year, I like three bedroom homes the best followed by four bedrooms. It seems that the four bedroom people have flexibility to use one as another use, office den study.

I have downloaded all of Bigger Pockets as well as Real Estate Investing Mastery and enjoy them thoroughly. Now I have a couple more choices. Great,! Thank you!

it must be in writing and you should give a good faith deposit. I have had verbal agreements in the past --- had----had. Get the point, get it in writing.

the cost depends on the area. But here in Pennsylvania I pay 10/sf. You have to ask why aren't concrete driveways put in?... I am a builder and I have always done macadam asphalt driveways. Concrete will crack, spawl, wear and deteriorate and it can't be fixed whereas you can easily recoat a macadam driveway for about$150.

I could be wrong but it depends. Different states may have different rules. If it is your neighbors tree, at times you must send him a letter asking him to remove overhanging branches. If they don't remove the branches then you have the right to remove them for them. This may also apply to damage as well. If the neighbor refuses to remove branches then he may be responsible for damage whereas if you didn't give him notice it may be on your nickel. Also did you buy the property that this was already done and did you buy the property as is? You should have had some dialogue with the previous owner.

Whatever the situation is the only thing to do now is contact your insurance agent. On a house I just bought the insurance agent told me that there are tree branches touching the house. You have thirty days to remove it or your rates will go up.

I would definitely go, no matter what the agenda is. As long as it deals with real estate go. You will learn something for sure. I have spent hundreds of dollars on tickler seminars that lead to the 25,000 to $42,000 seminars which I would never ever take and I learned a ton of information from these .

I have been involved in building new home most of my life. We were a large local builder doing about 150 homes a year. Our business gas been selling land positions during this unprecedented downturn, leaving me with no income so now I am buying properties to fix and hold or sell-----anyway.

Land is very speculative and you really need a good working knowledge about the whole process . A home is typically easy to repair, fix, you can hire subs for this. But developing land is a whole different animal.

You have to comply with many variables such as municipal as well as state issues. The rules for a NPDES permit are always a fun one. These guys will make your life miserable. (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems ) this permit last five years from when it was issued, so if you are past that! guess what, Start over and reapply.

Bonding of improvements with the municipality is something to consider. Sometimes you must post CASH for the full amount plus 20% for all pertinent improvements. Are the improvements that are in done as per plan with no issues. Improvements are typically watched over by the engineer representing the municipality. Well I had a 2000 foot long 24" storm water pipe running thru the back of homes that collected water and discharged it into the retention pond. On final inspection the camera detected a three inch belly in the pipe. Guess what --- rip out and take out the belly. Angry me, angry homeowners and the contractor that did the work is nowhere to be found, so it cost me a ton.

You will be liable for maintenance of the roads while the subdivision is being built out. Plowing of snow is expensive and now you hit a manhole or take a portion of the curb out with the plow. Now pay to repair these. I can go on but I am sure you get my point. There is money to be made, but you have to know your business thoroughly.