All Forum Posts by: Richard Douglass

I recently did a lot of research on home warranty companies because I may have some leftover closing costs that might cover one. The consensus on BP and other forums online seemed to be that dealing with these companies is typically a headache. I found two common scenarios: (1) the home warranty company would find reasons to refuse repair or replacement (e.g., the system was improperly cared for and thus the warranty on that item was voided) or (2) it would take weeks or months to (a) schedule a visit and (b) subsequently receive a repair or replacement. In the instances when a replacement was given, owners seemed to have little say in the quality of the replacement.

These concerns seemed to exist across dozens of threads and comments. Even if your warranty company agreed to replace a critical mechanical system there's no way you could wait weeks or even months for that to happen. Setting aside the yearly premium into a reserve fund seems like a good alternative as this can add up to $600-$800 a year on top of your regular monthly reserves. Also, I've been surprised with how many home projects can be tackled with a couple of hours on YouTube watching some tutorials. I hope this helps!

I'm not sure if you're only looking for in-person @Byron Broughten, but the BP real estate podcast recently has had a couple of tax people on with their own practices. I reached out to Natalie Kolodij and have a free consultation set-up in a couple of weeks. 

Hi @Jarod Blackowiak. I just became involved in this community a few weeks ago. I'm having difficulty creating the hyper link, but Alyssa Strom (realtor) and Tim Swierczek (lender) have been instrumental in helping me get going. Both of them responded to my emails within hours (often less than an hour) even while on vacation! If you post some specific goals you have (i.e., house hack, BRRR, etc.), I think this community will be able to give you some great advice.

@Chace Fraser thank you so much for the detailed response—all of that information is helpful! I’m excited to start meeting with agents and lenders this week. I’m sure I’ll be back to the forums with more questions. Thanks again.

@Chace Fraser this isn’t my thread but your comment on the timeline is reassuring to me! My lease is up end of July and I thought I was being premature by already trying to secure a lender and agent. It seems like I might actually be on the right track! When would you suggest I actually secure the pre-approval letter? I don’t know that I could afford to close much earlier than the end of my lease because rent plus mortgage would be a bit much (I’m waiting to hear back from my office on subleasing in case I find something sooner).

@Mike Jacovelli

I know most people advocate for sharing these goals, but from a psychological perspective there are some cases where it may be better to not share them. Here’s a brief talk about this:

https://www.ted.com/talks/derek_sivers_keep_your_goals_to_yourself?utm_campaign=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare

Writing them down is usually a good idea!

Thanks @Alyssa Strom! I messaged him a couple of days ago so hopefully I'll be able to meet up with him soon.

@Jeana Pillion Thanks for the advice regarding moving money around. That's really good to know. I'm hoping to get pre-approval ASAP.

Thank for your the lender info @Chace Fraser. I’ll be sure to DM you after my next meeting.

Thanks @Jordan Moorhead. That would be great; dumping 2k/mo into rent with no equity is a killer.

@Dmitriy Fomichenko thanks so much for sharing those links. I appreciate it. Jealous of your location; I was just in CA and loved it!