REI Nation Vs Ohio Cash - honest review from someone who has both

[Zachary Schimenz]

I currently have 2 properties, one from REI Nation (used to be called Memphis Invest) and the other from Ohio Cash Flow. I'm super busy, so I was looking for a Turnkey property, something where I could passively invest to diversify my investments. I've had them over a year now, here's my experience:

REI Nation:
So far so good!! The property manager calls me every month, even if there's not an issue (which there hasn't been so far). Usually I don't end up picking up and they leave me a voicemail.

Tenants have always paid rent, no repairs needed so far, and they always get back to me on time. Their estimates on the costs were pretty close, and even though I'm making a modest profit (I was expecting that from a turnkey) they've been nothing but up front with me about everything.

Ohio Cash Flow:
Man, where do I start with these guys... it's been a nightmare.

On paper, the house looked like it was going to make WAY more money than the REI one. But they were obviously hugely inflating the numbers.

First off, you have to pay cash. I didn't realize why they wouldn't accept loans at first, but I do now - it's because the house you get is going to appraise WAY lower that the actual amount. I found this out when I tried to refinance. 

Of course, to some extent this is my fault for being a newbie and not knowing the numbers well enough, but they were definitely intentionally trying to rip me off.

Then, the property management has been awful. It took about 3 months to get the second tennant moved in. I've had a ton of repairs needed (even though *supposedly* this was a turnkey property with everything updated - at least that's what they told me). I've gotten charged for things that would've slipped by if I didn't check my statement every month. 

Almost every month I find some kind of extra charge, or missed rent payment on my statement and have to email them. Sometimes they respond, sometimes they don't and 4 days later I have to send the "did you get this?" email. I feel like they are hoping I just won't notice or will forget about it.

Bottom Line
Hands down go with REI Nation. Ohio Cash Flow will bait-and-switch you into a money drain