All Forum Posts by: Ramsey Blankenship

The VA is extremely hard to deal with for sellers who want to sale a property "as is". I have bought two homes using the VA and I was glad they were on my side. They made the seller put on a new roof, paint a carport, update electrical panels, fix windows ect. All that was great but if at any point the seller refused to make the repairs, it could have got in the way of me buying a home I really enjoy. Unless a seller has a property in great condition, they may not want to deal with how picky a VA is. Doubt it had to do with 100% financing unless they had multiple offers come in and someone else was pre approved with proof of down payment. Dont beat yourself up. Keep looking

Thank you all. We are now under contract. Your input has helped me make this deal happen

Hello BP,

I am preparing to sign a contract for an off market, 6 unit apartment building in Louisiana. The commercial contract is 3 pages, super simple, and we are trying to make this sale as simple as possible. After reviewing the contract, I noticed that the seller checked a box that says mineral rights are excluded from the purchase. The land is in Louisiana however, its less than a 1/4 acre, and is in the city. I have never dealt with this before but it seems as if the mineral rights should be ours if we purchase the property so I am wondering if this is something worth bringing up. 

We have negotiated the price down and have gone back and forth a bit. The sellers aren't extremely motivated however we are getting the property for a great price. I don't think the mineral rights would break the deal for us, as we are buying the property for the income from the building, however I have heard of people buying paid from oil companies for drilling beneath their land. 

Any help?

i am in an area in which I receive a lot of applications for my units. I handle things on a case by case basis on the credit check mostly looking for delinquent payments. I have never had an issue finding a renter with a decent score however like i said in my post, it helps screen out tenants who do not fit my units and would waist both of our time. If i lived in an area where I had very few applications, it would likely change things. The point is simply to create a filter for yourself theough the adds. It helps

@Lauren Van Riper,  I have inherited tenants in the past who were similar in how they handled things.  Unfortunately it has made me grow cold when speaking with tenants. The best help I can offer is on the front end of your screening process. Every add I post for an available unit I include the following:  

First and Last months rent plus security deposit required before occupancy.

Criminal background check and credit report will be conducted. Must have 600+ Credit score. Felonies, hard drug charges, or evictions need not apply. Must have an income of three times the monthly rent. No Cats, No Smoking.

This helps me screen out the crazies and those not serious about renting. 

When I meet the tenant to sign the lease, I am nice and friendly however very serious once discussing late fees and tenant rules. I explain on the front end, and always use the following analogies phrases well before any issues arise: 

"Everyone has problems, please do not allow your problems to become my problems." 

I have had a tenant text me and say, "I am not trying to make my problems become yours, however I just want to let you know I will be late this month however rent will be paid by X with all late fees included." - I know it sounds cold, however saying it on the front end seems to help them understand that their life's challenges should not effect yours. 

I also like to use the analogy that they wouldn't call the bank and ask them to waive the late fees on a late car payment, so please do not ask me. We have mortgages to cover and late payments are unacceptable.

As far as your current situation, continue what you are doing with getting rid of that tenant. It is hard to give someone the cold shoulder, but the next tenant who pays rent on time and does not give you trouble will warm it back up again. For those telling you not to property manage, these experiences are how we learn how to handle issues. 

Hope this Helps!

@Korie Apgar Thank you for that information!

Claiming profits shows income. If you want banks to lend to you, you need to prove to them you have income to cover your debts. Every time you apply for a mortgage, banks will look at your tax return and calculate your debt to income ratio. If you always claim a loss, your income will put a strain on how much they will lend to you. Real estate is mainly an attractive investment because it can be leveraged. Keep claiming profits and after two years the bank will consider it when calculating your debt to income. Now you can barrow more money and buy more income producing assets which show more profits on your taxes. The process continues and wealth is built Claim losses and banks stop lending to you. Buying "buy and hold" properties all cash ends quickly. Ramsey

My opinion is its not worth it. Your looking at 20 years to get your down payment back which does not allow you to repeat the process. Thats based on the $775 in expenses subtracted from $900 per month in rent equals $125 in monthly cashflow (before vacancies). So at 25% down on a $120K your out of pocket is $30K and thats 240 months (20 years) until your capital is returned. That does not consider your AC, appliances, hot water heater, and maybe roof will all need replaced within that time frame. This is only my opinion however as always, you have to go with what is best for your situation. You could get the same returns in a Mutual Fund (which I do not recommend) and do nothing. Are there any multi families in the area?

Thanks for the feedback @Cain McNeil. Feel free to send me any investment properties you come across. I am interested in multi family.

Just looked at the title of my post! Have no clue how that happened. This entire post about bank owned properties is something I posted in a differant forum about a month ago. I was actually trying to post about how I am looking to meet wholesalers in Shreveport La. Please disregard this post.