All Forum Posts by: Dan Schwartz

@Spencer J. you have 5 properties or less.  Even if roommates are paying you separately, this is not a terrible amount of data entry. I bet you don’t even have to factor saws tax out of your rent like we do here in AZ. Don’t overcomplicate your system.  Zelle works great for us.  Completely free of charge for both parties, funds show up instantly, and there is nearly no recourse for tenants to claw back money (like ACH) or issue a chargeback (like CC). I also like to keep as few hands in the process as possible.  If I can’t use Zelle, I turn to Stripe for electronic payments.  ACHs aren’t free, but they are capped at $5 per transaction.  I haven’t explored the platforms mentioned above, but I’d guess that most are built atop Stripe or something similar. All of which adds to the time (and complexity) until the funds hit your account.  

I’m team Zelle until they realize they can charge businesses to accept it.  (Shhhhh….)

@Johnny McKeon you don't have to pay the Maricopa 5.6%.  Code 029 shouldn't be on your TPT-1.

This page has a lot of resources, but you've probably seen them.  https://azdor.gov/transaction-...

I recommend attending one of their Property Owner Workshops (link below).  They're all online now.  I had questions of procedure after the municipalities transferred management/collection to the state, and went to one of these workshops. It was in person and they literally sat with me on my laptop and showed me step-by-step what to do. They also made sure all forms were filled out correctly before submitting them. It was very helpful.  I hope they are still helpful over WebEx.. You may find that it's easier to manage all of the accounts under one login by registering as a PMC (Property Management Company). 

https://azdor.gov/taxpayer-edu...

@Jason Long way too high, in my opinion.

Step zero is to have adequate insurance, including liability insurance for your property.  Make sure, at a minimum, that you now have a landlord’s policy on your old house.  

Step one for you is to keep your rental income and expenses separate from your personal bank accounts.  Set up a business bank account and run everything through it.  

Step two is to track it on in excel or on Google Sheets.  Something super simple.  You shouldn’t have many expenses and sounds like there’s only one income (rent) check at this point. 

Step three is to download schedule E from the IRS site and familiarize yourself with how you reporting real estate. Dig into it best you can.  

Step four is to take what you've done for a few months and now ask better questions about what you need. You'll likely find that you need none of what Tom Wheelwright is selling at this stage. Maybe you want an LLC. Maybe you want a bookkeeper. Maybe not. Do it for a bit and then decide. You'll be worlds ahead - in knowledge and in money in your pocket - than outsourcing this to a firm upfront.

Good luck!

@David Dickerson we had a vacant property policy (obtained by a local broker) through Foremost.  FWIW.

@Jorel Williams can the lender change any requirements post-Closing Disclosure?  They probably also have recourse to back out of the loan, but aren't there regulations about changing requirements?  Just trying to arm Jowan with as much knowledge as he needs to escalate this.

Unless we find out that this is Rocket Mortgage, in which case......

@Jowan Chism if they are that baffled by it themselves, this could be something as simple as bad data entry.  Get all over them.  Remember they have a lot of time invested in this already and it's in their interest for you to close.  Your seller doesn't have to know you're threatening you lender with backing out of the loan.  Remember that parties only know what they're told.  Get all over your lender.

@Jowan Chism you always have a choice.  Never sign a mortgage because you think you have no other choice.  Take that from experience, which I won't go into.  BUT, life's going to be very difficult/hectic for a short while as you sort this out.

1) Get all over your lender.  Tell them that wasn't a condition of the loan and ask how else can it be solved.  Get their brightest minds involved.  See if any bright minds here will help privately (no need to spill all the beans in public).  They risk losing their fees if you walk away.  You are not obligated to take their money until you sign for it.

2) Get with the seller right away.  They are unlikely to be interested in blowing up the sale if you need an extra day or two to sort this out.  "Taking the earnest money" sounds sexy, but remember they also have plans to move, they'd need to resist the house in a buyers' market, carry it an extra month or two, etc etc.  The earnest money eases the pain and frustration of that, but it's likely that they'd still rather close with you.  Have your agent see what they need.  Don't assume they won't budge.

3) Paying off the car might be an OK thing to do.  Car loans aren't terribly hard to get, but rates may be higher than what you currently have.  When you've lived with this knowledge for 24 hours instead of 24 minutes (you get the point), does paying off the car shock/piss you off, or does it really harm you?  Get somewhere where you can rationally think about this, holistically.  You didn't intend to pay off the car, so this is a terrible addition to the equation. But is it?  If the lender can't get around it, can you.

Good luck!

I found it on Airbnb. I had to up the guest count to 11, which brought the universe of available properties down to only 2 pages.  

It was on page 2.

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/6...

I went back to 6 people and it was on page 5 of 9.  

Looking at the listing, I wonder if 6 beds in one room is working for or against you in the algorithm.  I'm rusty as I've been out of Airbnb for a while, and I certainly don't know the area. But that caught my eye for sure.  

Regardless, I'd be looking for new, local management asap.

Good luck!

The value of an attorney is how they would defend you if a suit arises.  A well-versed business attorney in the same jurisdiction as your property should know how local courts look at issues important to you.  You’ve tackled the loan issue, in large part through good advice in the thread that helped you know what questions to ask. Now talk to your attorney - or other attorneys - about the question @David M. poses: "what is the risk of a plaintiff piercing the corporate veil of my LLC because the debt secured by the property is in my personal name?" We have to assume that you'll follow all other formalities required by your jurisdiction, which could (but needn't) include annual meetings, annual filings, annual fees, company records, etc.

Good legal advice is about what goes on in the jurisdiction of concern, not what happens elsewhere.  You can be guided towards better questions based on what happens elsewhere, but an attorney from Texas isn’t going to defend you in Illinois. 

Good luck!

Ah, the days of wondering whether 3.5% was a "good enough" rate.  :-). Hope it all worked out for you @Michelle Garcia