All Forum Posts by: Gerald K.

@Joseph Canini

It depends on what you're trying to do. If you're talking about putting your rentals in an LLC, the LLC can be still be sued but hopfully nothing outside of the LLC, such as other personal assets. So, do you have a lot of assets someone could go after?

First thing you should do is make sure you have plenty of liability insurance. Also check umbrella and personally liability insurance. Setting up LLCs can get be expensive and create a lot of paperwork - each LLC files it's own taxes, etc.

If you can't find what you're looking for here on BP, Nolo has a book "Every Lanlord's Legal Guide" that would be a good start. A whole book could be written on setting up legal entities. There are some gurus out there that will tell you it's required, but it's not. Liability insurance may be all you need.

Not a lawyer - No legal advice.

Hey @Ryan Bateman

Welcome to BP. You found a good place to connect with local real estate investors. Check the "Learn" tab up top and dig in. Tons of great info.

See you around the forums.

One thing that wasn't mentioned is having more than one exit strategy. Do check out the 50% rule to figure out your true cashflow after all expenses. But also think of the case where you get in trouble and need to sell to get cash. If you buy at market and have to sell, it will cost you.

@Dean Suzuki If you like and trust the tenant and want to accomodate, you could ask if the cat is litter trained. You could ask if they have experience with cats. You could ask if the the cat could be kept in the garage. As for fees - non-refundable pet fee - such as $300 - yes. Extra security deposit - 50% to 100% more - whatever it would cost to replace the carpet maybe and still be secure. You could add an addendum to have the carpets professionally cleaned - pick professionals you trust so they don't go cheap. You could make provisions to check the property occasionally to check things - be specific - and a process for correcting problems you find. The worst thing you could do is not really want the cat and just say yes with no stipulations.

HOAs can be a pain with rules and HOA dues but they can also help out maintaining the exterior, the grounds, and the rules could be a good thing if it keeps things attractive - it all depends on the situation. As far as small complexes compared to large ones - from what I've seen, the small complexes usually charge higher HOA dues compared to the larger ones probably due to economies of scale.

@Tonya F.

Your lease should list all the residents for the property. Any person over 18 years old should be screened - background check. BP has a good guide on screening tenants.

9 people sounds like quite a bit. You might check city ordinances to see if they have any rules, such as maximum 2 people per bedroom.

If this is a family, breaking them up could result in losing the tenant. There may be a way to work it out if that's what you want, but the first step is to address the issue with the tenant and point out the violation. Does your lease say anything about guests?

If you do end up posting a lawful notice of violation of the lease, there are usually strict rules that must be followed. Check with local landlord tenant law, property managers or landlord associations in your area for help.

Good luck.

Hey Ryan,

Welcome to BP. I'm also from the other Washington. You should probably start your own post in the "New Member Introductions" area. There might be some local interest with investing retirement funds into real estate.

The news media is mostly entertainment. By the time you read this it's too late and very likely going the opposite direction.

@Joshua Gordon , Didn't mean to hijack your forum post. Getting back to your original question on the seminars, I posted a link earlier on this forum that basically exposes the truth about them with RK basically admitting he's licensed the Rich Dad name to Whitney and that problems exist. I think you shouldn't waste your time with it. You'd be better off going to a local REIA to connect with people there. And, since you haven't read his book, I also put a link to the free audio version as well. Good luck and see you around the forums.

His definition is "an asset feeds you and a liability eats you." The alligator you describe is the liability he warned about. He advocates buy and hold cashflow type investing. Getting out of the rat race. Not speculation. Not flipping. However, it's not a how-to book. Have you even read it?

I agree, BP is a great site.

His book is on BPs list of Best Real Estate Books:

http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2013/04/14/best-real-estate-books/

If you listen to the BP podcasts, the book Rich Dad Poor Dad was one book most often mentioned that influenced a lot of people. It got them thinking a different way about assets, liabilities, and getting out of he rat race. Saying RK has never done any of it may not be entirely true. You may be right that he mostly talks. But the information is coming from people actually doing it. BP had a Podcast recently with Ken McElroy. He is one of RK's advisors.

http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2014/01/09/bp-podcast-052-raising-millions-ken-mcelroy-rich-dad/

RK's ideas are simple, perhaps an oversimplification, but what you're describing is completely different. He doesn't advocate speculation. Even if you bought at the wrong time and were underwater, as long as the rent keeps coming in to cover expenses, you could ride it out. That doesn't lead to the financial ruin, as you described.

The bottom line is, it doesn't really matter what anyone's opinion is about him or his book - whether it's a true story or not. I put the link to Rich Dad Poor Dad's audio book on an earlier post above. We don't need to praise or bash him, people can come to their own conclusion.