All Forum Posts by: Richie Martin

@Richie Martin Meet with them in person if possible. If not set up a call and be completely honest with them. Give them specific examples of why they are not performing as they said they would or what was agreed upon. Then request to terminate immediately any agreements you have in place with them. Agents and clients don't always gel together. So better to sever the relationship ASAP. But giving them feedback as to why will only help them learn and grow. I have been here many times and always want feedback from my clients when they want to discontinue the relationship. It happens. But constructive criticism any true professional will listen and grow from it. If not they will soon leave the industry. Hope this helps.

@Richie Martin I'm a little confused by the question, but general commission fee structures are very market, asset, and price level as well as service level dependent.

the structure you'd get buying a $2.5M commercial asset is likely different than a $250K duplex.

On the buy side of deals I have a minimum fee.  So the buyer knows up front we will try and negotiate the seller to pay a % but ultimately they will make up any delta between that and the minimum. 

Great question, Richie. One way to determine when enough is enough is to start with your end goal: Are you flipping or holding long term? For flips, you want to ensure your rehab budget aligns with your target after repair value and leaves room for profit after all costs. For rentals, determine whether the rehab will increase rent, reduce maintenance, or boost long term value.

A good rule of thumb is if a repair doesn't increase value, rentability, or efficiency, it might not be worth it. It’s easy to over-improve a property beyond what the local market supports, especially if emotions creep in. Always weigh cost vs. return. Have a clear exit strategy to guide your decisions.

How are you planning to use the property?

Determine ahead of time what rehab you plan on doing for every property.  My list is:  Floors, painting, kitchen,...and nothing else.  That means if the property needs more than that, I don't buy it.  The list of "do's" is based primarily on costs I can control, and rehab I will get returns on.  Most everything else, is not controllable, and that means the cost is also not controllable.

Hello Richie,

I hope you're doing great. There is a lot of different perspectives and strategies in deciding how much you plan on putting into a property to renovate and rehab it compared to how much you expect to earn to cover costs for the rehab, closing fees, and gain a profit. It may ultimately depend on how much value and profit you expect to gain from those rehabs. As an example, renovating costs may be $10,000 to increase the property value by $20,000, with $5,000 in closing and other costs, could justify the time and cost if your goal is to make $5,000 profit if that is what you are aiming for. Compared to $40,000 to add $100,000 of value could give you a larger windfall. It may all depend on hard costs and projected profit to see if it is worth it or not. Either way, we definitely recommend doing renovations in some kind of entity structure, such as an LLC or Corporation for asset protection and tax mitigation.

Note: This information is for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, financial, or investment advice. No attorney-client, fiduciary, or professional relationship is established through this communication.