All Forum Posts by: Tchaka Owen

@Charlotte Sellam - a few quick comments:

1. Congratulations on the money, at your young age you have an advantage over many. 

2. You've come to the right place, lots of savvy people here to learn from. My STRONG suggestion is that you spend the next few months reading and listening to podcasts. It's better to have ideas of what interests you in RE and how to safely invest than it is to hurriedly throw your money out there and risk losing it. Real estate isn't going away, be patient.

3. You are unfortunately located in possibly the highest fraud area in the US as far as real estate transactions go. South Florida is the "Wild West of RE" (I should TM that term). After nearly 14 years in Miami-Dade and Broward, I just moved a few hours north. So watch your back. 

4. While there IS opportunity to make money where you are, as one poster mentioned above, you should consider less costly areas such as Jax. I will add Tampa and Orlando. I am in Brevard and there's opportunity here too.

5. @Joseph Back mentioned BRRRR. If you picked up a duplex using hard/private money, updating it and refinancing into traditional financing, that would be a great start and you'd have most of your money (if not all) in your pocket. Either way, learn learn learn.....then make your moves.

Good luck!

@Travis Moe - the seller and agent are required to disclose known defects. The seller likely isn't local and has no idea, hence the tail-covering disclosure. The agent doesn't get off that easily. Here in FL, unless otherwise indicated, agents are 'transaction brokers' meaning the allegiance is to the transaction (with limited representation to the client being represented). Other than not disclosing a defect that we believe s/he knew, the other problem is in not providing any assistance to get the deal done. Everything discussed aside, many in the US have just had a 4-day weekend with tomorrow being the 26th. The agent should step up to grant an extra 48 hours for you, you're not asking anything crazy and it's all towards helping the transaction. 

If I were you, I would sent the agent a signed cancellation and release form (first thing in the morning) and inform him/her that you need an extension (in writing) through the 28th. Otherwise s/he should have the seller sign the cancellation.  Move to the next deal. 

@Stephen Shelton - as the owner of 3 cats, I totally dig your response! :-)

@Dennis Tierney - FPE Stab-Lok has to go. And as everyone else has stated above, it's a negotiation, not a dealbreaker. Something else to keep in mind......those boxes are around 50 years old. So even if you're paying for half of the replacement, you're coming out ahead. We use way more devices today as opposed to 1970. Today we have multiple TVs, computers, cell phones, microwave, etc. Upgrading is a good thing.  

@Mark M. - if you're making that kind of money, then RE might be your ticket to retiring. Keep reading BP and listening to podcasts. Near 7-figure income makes it easier for you to skip over small units and go big. Go in on a 300+ and you can surf/climb 7 days a week. 

@Mandi Martinez - lots of good input from BP members! There are many shades of blue and to generalize is not good advice. A big thank you to members who posted pics. The key is to make sure the home looks good and it fits your area. What I mean by that is when comparing colors in South Florida (where I spent 14 years until recently) to colors in my home area (Wash DC), there's a significant difference. Does your blue fit your area or does it stick out like a sore thumb? If the former, you're good.

Keep in mind too that you can't satisfy everyone, we all have our preferences. For example, I'm not a fan of blue for houses. Yet, my first home (which I still own) is a grayish-blue and my fav color is blue. Go figure!

@Nerissa Marbury - go 1/2 and 1/2 with the tenant; that's fair. Yes, you're coming out of pocket, however it will be a new unit that will hopefully last a long time. If someone hits your car and it's not brand new, you're not going to get reimbursed for a new one. Alternatively, buy a used range and have her pay the full amount. 

@Jon Davison - While I do use LLCs and there's nothing wrong with them, the majority of my HMLs involved purchases using land trusts.

@Bill Crow - as a heads-up, in Florida all agents are assumed to be transaction brokers unless otherwise specified. So listing agents do not have a fiduciary duty to sellers. Agents have limited representation to either party. I verbalize to clients that I ultimately work for the transaction. 

@Marisa R. - remember that highest offer isn't necessarily the best offer. My most recent closing was not the highest, however I made it clear that it was the best. Note: that was me with my real estate agent hat on, not investor. My client did win. Sometimes you can get the best to also beat the highest, then you're rockin'!