It gave us the opportunity to practice analyzing the numbers on an actual property.  2.

For a lot of owners, the decision isn’t ideological — it’s practical.

that not mentioning in the contract/anywhere else, at all, that they charge something for coordinating vendors - while, in fact, take ANY undisclosed compensation (and, incidentally, do not provide invoices as a matter of policy) - is compliant with TREC.It gets better: I recently had a local RE attorney, who allegedly deals with many major local PMs, claim to me that, even if there is no prior disclosure by the PM that the PM charges anything for dealing with vendors, as long as the PM tells the principal the total cost, and the principal agrees to it - before the vendor does the job - this is compliant with “annotated” (the lawyer’s stipulation) 62-12-312(b)(17).If you missed it: A local TN- and MS-licensed RE lawyer claims that no disclosure of the PM taking any cut is necessary - as long as the principal is told the job’s total ahead of time, and agrees.I have no idea where this lawyer happened to find any annotation like that for 62-12-312 - I did not, at least not in Westlaw at my law library.And this “industry standard” (attorney’s words) appears to be in serious conflict with the actual law, as far as my non-lawyer reading of it goes:“(b) The commission shall have the power to refuse a license for cause or to suspend or revoke a license where it has been obtained by false representation or by fraudulent act or conduct, or where a licensee, in performing or attempting to perform any of the acts mentioned herein, is found guilty of:(17) Paying or accepting, giving or charging any undisclosed commission, rebate, compensation or profit or expenditures for a principal or in violation of this chapter;…”Literally right there: “… accepting or charging any UNDISCLOSED commission, rebate, compensation or profit or expenditures for a principal.”But it may not end there:If you add to the above circumstances that the principal began to suspect this (undisclosed) practice and asked the PM whether it engages in up-charging/marking up vendor invoices - and the PM denied it - and they continued to do business as before after that denial… until the principal obtained evidence, which only then forced the PM to admit the practice, somewhere in there a “mere” TREC violation seemingly becomes: “An intentional deception or misrepresentation made by a person with the knowledge that the deception could result in some unauthorized benefit to himself or some other person…” Commonly known as fraud, a crime.But I am not a lawyer.

It’s affordable and super practical, and the people there are really open to helping newcomers get started. 

I was trying to use Baselane but they only allow tenants to pay their exact rent due, not more or less, which is not practical because sometimes my tenants are short by $100 but I would rather collect something than nothing.

That’s not how most first deals actually operate, especially SubTo where the margin is in control + time, not instant yield.You’re double-counting downside.CapEx + repairs at full tilt simultaneously is rare on a 2006 brick house unless you know something the comps don’t.

I’ll try to keep this practical rather than theoretical.Grand Rapids vs Columbus vs Kansas City tends to come down to a few trade-offs I’ve seen in real deals:Grand Rapids, MIGenerally lower entry pricing relative to rent than Columbus/KCStrong blue-collar + healthcare + manufacturing employment baseTaxes are higher than some Midwest markets, but insurance and maintenance tend to be more predictableI’ve seen solid Class B/B+ duplexes and small multis where cash flow holds up even with conservative leverageLess institutional competition than Columbus, which helps buyers not get bid up as aggressivelyColumbus, OHStrong population and job growth, but that’s widely known nowPricing has compressed faster, so you often need either more leverage or tighter underwriting to hit the same cash flow targetsStill a great market, just harder to find deals that truly improve return on equity without stretchingKansas CityGood balance of scale and liquidityMore investor-friendly taxes, but heavier competition in the better submarketsI tend to see better results here for investors comfortable with larger multifamily rather than small 2–4 unit propertiesFor a ~$600k exchange where the goal is preserve cash flow + improve ROE, I’ve found West Michigan works well when:you stay disciplined on submarket (working-class, low-crime pockets),underwrite expenses realistically,and have local management in place from day one.Happy to share more specific deal examples if helpful — a lot of it comes down to where in each metro you’re buying, not just the city name.

The rest of the expenses aren't terrible all things considered, but they could be better.Cook County just balanced the commercial property shortfall (empty downtown high-rises) on the backs of homeowners and multi-family by doubling their property taxes in many neighborhoods, which is what I consider to be the longer term risk of investing in this area.Again, not looking to acquire this one, just ran the numbers as practice and want to make sure I'm running the numbers right. 

I should try that on my self as practice.

That's why I was hoping I could start, establish a client base and not violate any laws regarding licensing before taking the next step.Can you tell me more how that would work in practice?