All Forum Posts by: Todd Brittingham

My rule is you never stop marketing and always have leads coming in. If you cannot place those leads in your own properties, you probably have other investor friends looking for good tenants...

Andreas,

It seems like you have a well developed portfolio, but you certainly need to speak with an accountant both on the US side and the Australian side.

I am not an accountant, but I typically see my investors set up a holding LLC with sub LLC's that hold individual properties. In this form you only need to submit 1 tax return no matter how many properties you have. Now, it looks like your structure is similar, but instead of a holding LLC, you have a corporation. Is this an S-corporation or a C-corporation? Either way, I believe there are tax disadvantages to be setup this way.

You definitely need to speak with an accountant to find out what your options are. If you want a recommendation, I can provide you with an excellent accountant. Just shoot me an email.

Peter,

I agree with all the comments about about condos/townhomes. The biggest problem I see is the HOA fees that just kill your cash flow. Another thing to consider is that even if you are purchasing cash, you don't want to buy in a complex that doesn't have a high occupancy rate because if the units are vacant the HOA fees aren't being paid. This means 1 of 2 things will happen...services will be cut or your HOA fees will be raised. Needless to say there many complicating factors with condos and as such, single family homes are a much better option.

With your budget, you may want to consider the Michigan market. We are putting together properties in Pontiac and Detroit Michigan that are ranging between $30,000 - $50,000 fully rehabbed and rented.. Rents are in the $600 - $900 range and we're seeing returns between 16% - 20% when you consider taxes, insurance and property management. We are putting together section 8 tenants, land contract deals, along with everyday renters. If you're interested in talking more please email me.

Thanks,
Todd

Yes, HSBC has a program where you can setup an account from Austrailia for a fee of 200 AUD. Normally this is very difficult to get done, but we've been able to help a number of Australian investors get their US bank account setup through HSBC.

If you need a contact at HSBC, please email me and I can put you in touch with them and give you an overview on the process.

All I can say is that I love my property managers. They deal with all the stuff I don't want to deal with on a daily basis. With that said, I'm realistic about the service they provide. You may not be managing your properties, but you certainly need to manage your property manager. I look at the relationship as more of a partnership, and as such I communicate with my property manager at least once per week. I always know exactly what is going on with my properties, and if there are issues obviously you need to stay closer to the situation.

You have to be realistic. If you own property, maintenance issues are going to come up. I am happy to pay my property manager to handle these items because I do not have the time to do so...that's what I pay him for. If he tacks on a 15% fee to the top of the bill that is more than fair. I do cap it at $150, but let's be honest...in those times he is saving me a great deal of time and energy from finding and dealing with contractors, setting up appointments, dealing with tenants and inspecting work.

Another thing I do is I try to send as much business to my property managers as possible. I understand that that they're in it to make money like I am, and if they're successful, there's a good chance that I'm going to be successful. So I refer all kinds of people to them. When I setup turnkey properties they get the business because they're good managers and they represent my business well.

Tyler,

There are a number of different websites out there that foreign investors may be using. We have had luck however, using the social media scene. Things like posting on bigger pockets, but also blog traffic, facebook, twitter, etc. have been instrumental in building our network. This takes quite a bit of time to setup and maintain, but I for one can tell you that the time investment has been well worth the payout.

Curt, I agree 100% about your comments about putting together a system for your buyers. This definitely lends credibility when you're working with them, and also provides them with a reason to keep working with you.

What does the addendum say exactly? What if you setup an LLC and quite claim the property into the LLC after closing. Then you can just sell the LLC...

Jack, you mentioned Traffic Geyser. How is this different and better than Tubemogul for video distribution?

It's good that you're planning your exit strategies up front. We have multiple exit strategies on a property when we get into it. We focus on putting together turnkey rental properties for our investors. Below are our exit strategies

1. Sell the property before it is rehabbed and act as the project manager for the end buyer to assist in the rehab, tenanting and installation of the property management company.
2. Rehab the property, add a tenant, install a property management company and sell as a turnkey rental.
3. Rehab the property add a tenant, install a property management company and hold the property.

The beauty of this setup is that if a property does not sell, it is not the end of the world like a flip because the asset is performing. We are buying the properties right to ensure there will be positive cashflow, so whether the propety sells in 1 month or 8 months we do not get hurt. In fact, we will make more on the property if it sells after 8 months because of the positive cashflow that is generated.

Hi Analou, yes that would be great if you can send me the contact you have at HSBC. Please send it to the email address in my signature...

Thank you very much!