All Forum Posts by: Ryan Mertz

Ok, I am getting calls and getting forms submitted through my site and now I need to know some basic things to say and how to negotiate with the seller.
How do I present the option agreement to the seller so that they dont become confused,offended or not interested.
Clearly the I BUY HOUSES people cant really buy all the homes that people are offering to sell to them. OR CAN THEY?
So what do you actually do when you find a house that you really have no interest in because the seller is asking to much and there is no way you could work with the numbers?

Well i think the easiest way to remove and remedy mold that is visible. (clearly it can naturally be found in the air at high levels)
you will 1st have to find out where the moisture is coming from that is causeing the mold to feed. You say mold in a room. If the mold is inside the walls you should gut the room.Could be leaking in from the gutter going through the attic in between the walls. This is common especially in commercial building or in cities that have a lot of snow and melting going on.Its called ice dams and bucking water.
Mold can be killed by alot of stuff. Find out where and why there is mold. Then you can do the clean up.
I suggest remove and replace materials.

This sounds fun... and my 1st one just happened within the past week. All this is new so maybe my "game" isnt up to par at the moment yet.
I got a call from this lady who wanted to sell.She said she owned the house free and clear,warranty deeed and was ready to go.$47,000 (moving out of state for a job). This all sounded good and so I google mapped the house. Look decent so I drove by to look. I figured the house was empty so I looked inside and went around to all the windows and checked the back yard out. Neighbor even was in his back yard and was real cool and asked me if I bought the house. And I was polite and actually offered to help him shovel some snow he was working on ( he was a older gentleman).

From what I could see she was asking to much ,so I called and tried negotiating with her ( rookie) and kind of came soft and said something like " Your asking price is high for a house in that neighborhood, could we work on your price?
She asked what I would be willing to pay ( I am thinking cash and profits the whole time) so I said $25,000 (which was fair ) she called me racist,a scam ,and some other stuff before I went co-co pist off on her and like Michael said she actually calmed down by me talking junk back.
She said well maybe Ill call you in a day or 2 and we can talk about it.
I am still a rookie so I didnt really know how to offer the option agreement in the conversation because she got so pist before I could even attempt.
I was just on BP looking for what to say and not to say at the 1st initial call.
I was actually making my wife nervous because she thinks that if I go inspect a property and the owner gets pissed while im negotiating I might get into a fight.
Started to make me wonder what to exactly do.
Also 7 out of 10 murders go unsolved in Detroit and just imagine all the other crime that never makes it to the books.
SCARY

What do you mean by firesold?

I think alot of people who purchased properties a few years ago are wishing they didnt. But dont feel bad I bought ford stock when it was $44.
Learn to live with losses and your gains will be more than you ever wanted!!!

Dont loose your soul to gain the world

Not sure if the bank will let you do this.
I think its more of a question towards the bank than people here at biggerpockets. We dont know what your agreement with the bank is.
I mean I might be wrong but if say my mother got a loan for a home and did a QCD of the home to me I am sure the bank will not allow this to happen.
Maybe its different considering a sole LLC actually will be on the person who owns it but all his outside personal assets would be separate from his business assets. Jon or Michael will know for sure , if you dont call the bank before they answer

Also as he inspects the roof and is giving you his opinion.Tell him you are going to a "local bar" for a burger if him and his buddy would like to come. BURGERS ON YOU of course!

Last time i checked your looking at about almost $50 a square foot for installation. But I am just guessing without looking at anything and assuming alot.

Now tear is going to cost you the extra big buckers

I wrote a big response but decided to keep it short for now.
The roofer is probably right. If there is alot of water damage to a rubber roof and the boards are wet then yeah you have to replace them. this is what will happen if you leave moisture underneathe with rubber.
The water will want to come out towards the sun and the roof will bubble.Even if you cut the bubbles out and let that areas air dry it and patch it could still re-bubble.

The roofer shouldnt be stating he is going to have to tear off roof and then tell you how much it will cost.
This sounds very wrong but probably common.
Me being honest I would
take test cuts . Maybe 10-20 cuts if I have to so that I can give a fair estimate and a proper roof inspection.
I would come at it more from a inspectors point of view and then use roofing knowledge to repair or replace.

I need pictures because you sound like your going to have a huge problem on your hands!!

If not done correctly you could have a mold problem that could cause some problems. but that shouldnt be the case.

I would suggest depending on the size is to get a new roof.
But unless you know how to roof this is going to cost you your weight in gold. And last time I checked gold prices are up super high (sorry for the depressing paragraph)

Me personally as a owner I would get some caulk and a caulking gun. some knowledge http://www.flatroofsolutions.com/
and some patches (remember all rubber roof cuts are made round ) (for example no L corners U corners on all cuts made on the patches.

There is a word call pig ears when doing corners in rubber roofing also.
Get back to me with pictures and some more details.
Find out how much materials costs from your local supplier.
Not home depot. The supplier that supplys contractors.
Get there catalog. Here in Michigan we use a place called Wimsatt.
Find out the price of materials,measure your roof area to be fixed and take 10% off and thats about what the roofer is paying for materials.If not cheaper(he will have left overs from other jobs he over estimates)

That way you know how to negotiate with the roofer.You dont want to get ripped off but you dont want them to feel like you are trying to work them over and have them take your job and have to cut corners to make a profit off you.
Which they will!
If your job is small try this!
Find a local roofing company and drive over to there Shop and ask to speak to the supervisor. The man will be busy but very cool !
Thats why he is the supervisor he is a cool guy who works hard! Remember that and you and him will get along. Ask him if he has any extra rubber rolls laying around that he might want to get rid off ( rolls come in long lengths 10,15 feet)
and you want atleast a few feet.
He might ask what do you need it for.
Tell him you have some buildings you own and that you keep getting leaks and you are planning on having a buddy of yours SON<--this works everytime.
come replace some areas that are kind "FXCK UP" please use this word because then the guy will actually like you.And tell him you are on your way over there now if he wants to stop over and take a look.
He might just jump in his truck with a buddy and come check you out.
Then he might want to take the cash job himself and send some of his side job workers over and since everything is off the books you get a discount.

I am giving you a hustle not a formula.
This will apply to most construction people.
I always say the coolest peoples are ******** and bitches. You just got to join us and then we wont feel like you got deep pockets to run.




where are you located?

I suggest the pressure test. Because you are looking for a leak through the whole house not just at the furnance,water heater,oven,or dryer. These you should always check for leaks regardless if you lived in your home and you dont smell gas. You should always smell around your appliances for the smell of gas. Sometimes (in my case) I smell gas because I want to not really because there is a leak .I guess I am just smelling the metal on the pipes lol.

Dont use dish soap!! Go to the store and buy gas leak test kit.Dish soap can weaken the teflon paste used and actually start to deteriorate the threads to allow the seal to become weaker. I wouldnt ever use dish soap just for the simple fact its to strong. If you do use dish soap use a nice size cup of water and a little dab of dish soap just enough to make the water soapy.

Did josh just call a squirell a tree rat lol

Steal wool , and foam does work.
I used foam to sell a shady job someone did on a air condition unti inlet line and they left a gap at the bottom into the basment at the corner of the house and for a summer little house mice got in.Until it rained so bad that the water actually got in the house until it was figured out where there was a gap.I know Ive been leaving alot of post lately and I dont want to come off like I know what Im saying is full proof. But every body is different and we all can learn from talking to each other.

1. moth balls. the ones that smell so bad you want to puke.
put them all around the house.

also do you have a porch that i a deck type porch?
if so this is what I did when I ha d deck and had problems.
I would lure street cats around my house!

I aint in to poison because I dont believe you should poison a rat and then that rat get ate by some thing else. Like a dog or a cat.
Not cool in my book. Sorry you guys just not my style.

Also there is these things that we used to use back when I was little to drive moles out of the ground and trap them.Like mole hunting !

You find where they moving around at / in your case where there coming in at and then you put this thing in the ground that emits a signal that scares rodents away.
They are like 20 bucks each maybe less and they work.
The electric ones you plug into the wall also work and are based on the same thing using frequencies to scare them off.

Try moth balls, try drowning them,if they are in the house that because your tenant are dirty. Why the hell would a rodent want to live in someones house?
Do you see deers and bears moving in too?
I used to have a dream that cat would sneak into my house and try and kill me...
lol but seriously

I think if you guys are having rodent problems try the eliminate the wood that exposed.
Check your weep holes and your crawlspaces.
If any of you need any help identifying your rodent entry problem contact me with your property information and 4 pictures of the front back and sides.