All Forum Posts by: Rick Santasiere

Ben Clemence welcome! Glad you are taking steps to get better positioned to learn more about REI. Use the podcasts for car rides, forums when you are just killing time, and network, a lot. Good luck to you on your first steps. Feel free to reach out any time for any guidance.

@Aaron Lavigne awesome! Decent sized pond?  Any big bass in there? Would love to hear how it goes. Keep us posted and PM me any time!!

@Aaron Lavigne. Why would you want a piece of land classified as "wetlands?" Normally towns that have these maps and classifications stick to the data and most true wetland are next to worthless.  I am not sure the process of changing that (if it is even possible), or if building now (or in the future) is even possible.  What were your plans? What is your background? I would love to hear your ideas and thoughts.  

Patrick Sheridan . Get your inspection contingency for at least 7 days. I'm extremely concerned about the shared well. You will never be able to split these off of that well without doing by perc tests and digging 4 new wells. Have you called the health district to see if there is room for new fields, wells, and tanks? Start with the town, building department and tax assessor. "The owner says the taxes can be lowered..." Really? If they could, why didn't he do it? Why is he in such a hurry. Tread carefully my friend...you may be missing some major items. Get a knowledgeable agent/broker who understands what I referenced above. It might be the best $$ you ever spend (or get the seller to spend..) My $.02

@Nik Parks, I could easily spend 10 minutes describing how I feel wholesaling is unethical as well.  The reason I feel that wholesaling is NOT the best option for the consumer it that it does not grant the seller many options.  However, there is a time and a place for everything, but it would be silly for me (as a licensed real estate broker) to prefer "wholesaling" to what I can do, which is truly help the consumer first. Wholesaling is "shady" when newer people go out there and try to do it without understanding the process or how to convey the message to the seller. Do you know how many times I have read on BP (and had my phone blown up) do the statement "The seller won't pay me the fee we agreed to." There is a valid (and legal) reason for that.  Real estate law states (and yes, there is some grey areas in SOME states) in order to "collect a fee" for a real estate transaction, you must be a licensed real estate broker to collect fees. I like the wholesale idea, it can make sense.  But for me, solving the consumers problems (which in the end if what life is all about - helping people and protecting the consumer), should be the first priority in all of this. My $.02

@Mark Hayeswelcome to BP!! Awesome that your wife is a real estate agent and you have made some affiliations with others.  We are investors in the area, and manage a few properties in Bristol for some investors. Reach out any time if there is anything we can do to help you and/or your wife with your goals.  We have a great investor friendly brokerage that allows for some unique service!  Good luck and hopefully I will see you around at the meetups!

Augustin Philibert when looking for a mentor, you should start out with a statement about what yo can provide that mentor. Talk about your drive, and your willingness to help people. If you are seeking a mentor simply to "make $35k" deal, you will not get a response. I'm offering you some unsolicited advice (I know:), but I hope that this helps you in your search for one. I mentor some guys, and there is always a little give and take. Or, there has to be a compelling reason for me to provide my knowledge. Normally if someone doesn't identify $$ as their driving force, that helps:) find your "Why," and share it with others. My $.02

@George Paivagot it! I can't believe you had to experience that! I hope that this story is just that, a story for me, and not something I have to experience for my own portfolio, or any of the portfolios we manage for other people.  That is a lot of money, and the nerve of someone actually legally being told to leave and NOT leaving?  Seriously? Who does that? It's bad enough having a judge tell you that you need to leave as a matter of public record, but then having someone come out. Wow.

Zachary Sit success is being able to play hide and seek with my 5 and 10 year old and laugh with them. Success is having a wife who supports everything I do (even is she has to make sacrifices to her time). Success is waking up every day knowing that I will have food on my table. Success is knowing that every day I can help people solve problems without an expectation of anything in return. I have some really awesome stories that have happened in my life over the past several months that just don't seem to make sense. I will share just one (and try to keep it short, but that is always hard for me:) so that you can all see (and experience) why I love what I do and why helping people has become my primary purpose in life: I have a $2,000/month rental in Granby, CT. SFR, not owned by me. I get 6 inquiries, all strong leads, but one of them is a scenario where the potential tenant is only looking because they are being asked to leave heir home so their landlord can sell on April 1. They are frantic. 3 kids, a dog and school still in session on April 1, of course. They need a place asap. I show them my listing. It works, but she states that she wishes she could just stay where they are and buy the place, but their credit needs 4-6 months of repair in order to qualify. This is where I am like no other realtor (in my area at least). I ask some questions and come to find out, they would LOVE to purchase the home they are in, but the landlord is adamant about them "getting out"'so she can sell to get out from under the asset. Seller needs to sell, tenant needs a place to live. 🤔 So I ask tenant to have landlord contact me and I have a plan. I spend the last three days via email and a few phone chats discussing with the owner how a lease option works, and how a non refundable deposit secures her asset and the inevitable sale (what tenant would want to walk away from a $12,000 deposit that could be applied to the purchase of a new home) after some details and some exchanges, we have a solution that works for the buyer and the seller. The seller gets to sell without ever even listing the property (so she saves 4-6 months of carrying costs), she gets a predetermined price, so she will know exactly what she will be waking away with. Buyer, gets to sty in "her home." Never has to leave, and even gets her security deposit remaining to get dumped into the purchase price as well. Two desperate souls needing a solution That neither of them could have ever dreamed possible, and for almost no drama or stress. Here's the kicker: I did this without any expectation and never even signed a contract or listing agreement. All said and done I will be saving the seller well over $10,000 in the disposing of her asset, and I will be getting the buyer into a home (they already live in) for a price that makes sense for them, and slightly below market value. All that came first. Then, asking for my "fee," which (because I am dual broker) is significantly less than a typical "retail BIg Box realtor," was the easiest thing to agree to. In fact, the seller (who I haven't even met face to face yet), didn't even balk at my % requested, because she saw my value of bringing them together. I have a few of those stories where great things happened to my clients/customers, and the rewards I get from an emotional standpoint, are what true "success" is all about. Seeing two happy parties makes me far happier than the $$ that comes in. Don't get me wrong, when the $$ comes, it makes me happy as well, but it is not my priority. It will always come to you if you continue to do the right thing, help others before you help yourself, and solve a problem, or in my example, problems. That's success for me in a nutshell.

Carrie Angyal yes, but it was not my pockets:-) this was the only eviction I have had to do, and it was a property I started managing 4 years ago (eviction took place a few months later). George Paiva ? $1,000 for a Marshall?! We paid the attorney $1,000. It included 100% of the entire eviction: NTQ, Filing fees, court case, the works..