All Forum Posts by: Richard Warren

Hi Jason.

Welcome to BiggerPockets!

It’s always nice to have more people from Las Vegas. We’re finally starting to warm up, daytime high is expected to hit 109 degrees today!

8)

Check with the probate court. These are public records and they should be able to let you know when wills are submitted for probate. There is also a docket of cases that you should be able to follow as things come up before the court. Making friends with someone in the probate court can be a tremendous asset.

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Your idea has a lot of merit. I usually buy for cash. It allows me to compete against higher offers that involve financing because I can close quickly. If I need cash I will refi a property to pull cash back out. I used to buy using a HELOC and then refinance later. However my HELOC has been cut by $100k, so that isn't as easy as it used to be. Leverage is great but it is a double-edged sword. If you are highly leveraged and property values fall you can find yourself upside down in a hurry.

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Thank you! I'm glad you liked it.

Taxes can be challenged in order to have them reduced. If you can show that the property is worth less than others that have lower taxes it is almost a slam dunk. I have done it successfully in New York several times.

8)

The crackdown continues. It seems that the FBI has arrested 400 people since March for mortgage fraud. I'm sure this will have many others shaking in their boots. However this is a case of shutting the barn door after the horses have escaped, once again it's too little, too late.

Foreclosure rescue scams are also being targeted.

See Article:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080619/ap_on_bi_ge/mortgage_fraud

8)

Good question Rita.

For me it began out of necessity. I needed a place to live but didn’t want to continue renting. So I bought a “fixer’ and put in my own sweat equity. Not only was it a great experience, it turned into a profitable one. I also found that I enjoyed rehabbing. I had also been working as a financial planner and dealt with quite a few wealthy people. I found that most of them obtained their wealth in one of three ways:

1- They inherited it – not an option for me.
2- They started a successful business and grew their wealth over many
years – also not what I was looking to do.
3- Created wealth through some form of real estate investing – Bingo!

Real estate is one of several things that I am involved in, but I’ve been out of the rat race for many years.

8)

From an AP news report June11th:

Light, sweet crude rose $5.07 to settle at $136.38 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after earlier trading as high as $138.30. Oil shot up more than $16 over the course of last Thursday and Friday, reaching a trading record of $139.12 before pulling back this week.

OUCH!

8)

Having cash flow allows you to wait for appreciation. Without a doubt, long-term wealth is achieved through appreciation. But having cash flow and the paying down of mortgage debt are all pieces of the puzzle.

I made an obsevation on Growth vs Value investing in a past blog post:

http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2007/10/23/growth-vs-value-investing/

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