All Forum Posts by: Mohammed Nasser

 Thanks so much @Henry Clark for your reply. I am hoping it wont reach that point but if my attorney suggests to go that route, I am willing to do it. Thanks again!

 Thank you so much for your reply @Joel Broyles. I reached out to a real estate attorney in Dallas and will be waiting for them to contact me to discuss my issue. That's what I thought and what is confusing to me... The at risk money is the earnest money which I already have signed for the escrow agent to release to the seller. I am okay with that being lost. I am confused why the title company still has not returned my 20% down payment. There is a specific performance clause in the contract but I also don't think it would be a wise option for the seller to go that route. As you said, it would be costly for them, and I firmly believe the court will consider the earnest money adequate to cover the damages of me backing out. After all, isn't that the whole point of the earnest money? I am sure the seller is doing this out of spite and to pressure me to go through the purchase. I am also upset that this is how my first REI deal is going but I guess that is what I get for not doing the complete due diligence. This has not deterred me at all from REI and I hope to continue on my journey once I get my down payment back. Thank you again for your very helpful reply!

@Zane Cress thank you so much for your reply. Yes, that is correct. I first put down between 1-2K as earnest money, and a few days before closing, I wired 20% to the title company for the down payment. Once I decided to terminate the contract, my agent sent me a form to sign in order to release the 1-2K earnest money to the seller which I immediately did (knowing it was completely on my end that the deal isn't happening). Once I signed the form, I asked the title company about the 20% down payment and they told me they cannot give it back to me unless the sellers also sign (which they are not doing, I believe to put pressure on me). 

As to negotiating down the price and renting it lower, I honestly would much rather not have anything to do with this property at all. I hope we are able to solve things amicably at this point. Thanks again for your reply!

Thanks for your reply! Yes, thats correct. I am not expecting to get my earnest money back and have already signed with the title company so they release the earnest money to the seller. However, the title company is saying they cannot give me my 20% downpayment back unless the seller signs for it. Currently the seller is not signing the release form to get my 20% back I believe, in order to pressure me to go through with the sale. I am okay with losing the earnest money but wanted some advice on what could be done so I can get my 20% down payment back. Thanks again for your reply! 

@Tim Herman Thanks for your reply! I am okay with paying the earnest money to the seller and have already signed the release of earnest money form so that the title company pays it to the seller. I am more concerned about the 20% down payment which is still tied up with the title company because they cant release it if the seller doesn't sign the form too. Which I believe they are not doing to force me to go through with the purchase. I completely agree that this is a miscalculation on my part and that is why I am okay with losing the earnest money. That being said, I am turning to the BP community to ask if they have any recommendations on what I can do in order to get my down payment back (minus the earnest money).

Thanks again for your reply!

Hi all, 

I am located in California and found my first out-of-state investment property in Dallas, Tx. I went into escrow on a condo and for the final walk through, which was one day before closing, I decided to fly out and do the walk through in person. Upon that walk through I saw that the complex that the condo is in is unsafe and very badly taken care of (compared to pictures posted online) and later learned that there are 8 individuals on the sexual offenders list living in the same complex. Overall, because of these factors, I decided I would not be able to rent out the property to my target tenant pool and decided to back out of the deal (again, this is one day before closing). I signed the release of the earnest money and sent it to the title company so they can release the funds to the seller, however the seller still has not signed the release of the earnest money (its been 48 hours) and so my 20% down payment is still with the title company. I believe the seller may be trying to delay/avoid signing the release to force me to go through on the note. I wanted to ask the BP community on their opinion on what to do and possible options in this case? This is not how I imagined my first REI deal to go.

Thanks so much to the BP community!

@Conner Olsen

Thanks so much for your reply Conner! My agent thinks the terms we can get are 10% down with 7% interest and a 5 year balloon payment on a 30 year amortization schedule. I will want to start negotiations at a lower interest rate (maybe 5% as suggested above). Yes, I always account for vacancy, capex, and maintenance. I will also be paying 8% in property management too.

Thanks again!

@Charles Carillo

Hi Charles, 

Thanks so much for your input! I think that is great advice. I think the seller would be open to a 7 year term and we can suggest a 5% interest and negotiate on that. I really like the idea of interest only payments. As for the rent, according to Rentometer, there are currently identical apartments (same bed and bath count and square footage) in the same complex being rented out for $1,650 a month, so I think $1,500 is a bit below market price. That being said, the condo I am interested in is in good condition and move-in ready, but could use some TLC. So I think making some minor cosmetic renovations, I can improve the quality of the condo and increase rents. It is also in a good area surrounded by multiple hospitals and a university so I believe rents in that area will go up significantly from year to year. I think depending on the interest rate agreed on, I can determine if I want to use seller financing or suggest a conventional loan. Thanks again! 

Hello everyone!

I was wondering if I can get the BP community's advice on purchasing my first investment property! I am really interested in a condo that is located in Tx. The list price is $126,500. The seller is open to seller financing. Looking at comps in the same apartment complex, I believe the condo can easily get $1,500 in rent every month. My agent told me that I can get it for $125K purchase price with 10% down and a 5 year term (seller is open alternative terms if those don't work). I believe that at the 5 year mark the condo would be renting for about $2K a month.  This is my first investment property and I have never done or considered doing seller financing.  Do you guys think those are favorable terms and what would be some things you recommend I negotiate with? My main goal is I want to make sure that the $1500 income in rent is breaking even and that I am not losing money. Would you recommend I negotiate longer terms? What would be an acceptable interest rate/amortization that you think I should negotiate. Would you recommend I go through conventional loan instead of seller financing?

Thank you all so much for your continued help in my investing journey! I am really excited to get my first deal in the books and start my REI career!

Thank you for your reply @Ryan Kelly! I like your recommendation of the smaller bedroom counts!