Hello all, I'm Ken DiPietro, looking at Youngstown Ohio and beyond.

[Ken DiPietro]

Hello all,

First off, I would like to say thank you to everyone who has given so freely of their time and experience. The wealth of knowledge you have provided here is certainly a generous gift.

Years ago I studied for the real estate broker's exam but decided against going into the field - not that the knowledge hasn't served me well over that time.

During the last 30 years I have been deeply involved in high tech, primarily the PC industry, including a couple of decades running my own business selling and servicing computers, ran an ISP and have worked my way up to industry spokesperson in that field.

Now I am looking to widen my horizons, even though I am not kidding myself into thinking this is "easy money" or that I will jump into this full time right away.

Specifically, I am interested in applying my high tech skills to this field, finding both traditional and innovative ways to leverage my abilities to market properties, starting out on the lower end of the spectrum and working up from there.

I look forward to exploring any opportunities that I may be offered, working with as many people as I can effectively service, learning everything I can, and teaching if I am fortunate enough to be able to.

Again, thank you for providing this opportunity,

Ken

[Ken DiPietro]

Tom,

I'm not sure why you assumed that I'm interested in selling "vacant trashed out houses" to "illegal immigrants and people already of the government dole" as nothing could be further from the truth. It is my understanding that people "on the government dole" can't own houses.

Let's talk specifics.

In Youngstown right now there are now roughly 4,500 vacant houses of which over 1,000 are in good to excellent condition. An additional 1,700 or so require relatively minor rehab to become livable and there are funds to do so. This information can be confirmed here.
http://www.mvorganizing.org/downloads/MVOC_Strategic_Demolition_Policy_Brief.pdf

The people I am talking to have the money to buy the better homes on that list for cash and/or enough for a downpayment and qualify for a FHA Streamline 203K loan which would allow them to fix the homes which need it.

These people are small business owners, who will bring their businesses wherever they choose to live and are smart enough to understand that a house that costs $25K is better than any house in DC that costs $250K - which is what they would be looking at in the seedier neighborhoods of Washington DC.

I would also like to point out that this would be a step forward for Youngstown, would contribute to stabilizing the city, and increasing the value of any properties you might own in Youngstown.

Here is exactly the kind of listing I am referring to.
http://valleyrealestate.ohio.remax.com/Listings/ListingDetail_r4.aspx?LID=58594303

You will note that the seller is asking $25K and has already offered to pay closing costs. This home is in excellent condition and needs very little. Based on a full priced offer with a 10% downpayment, 6% for 30 years, this would make the P & I $134.90. Add in taxes and insurance and we are looking at somewhere in the low $200s/month. In other words, this is less expensive that buying a new Buick - and a lot of the people I am talking to see that as value.

Now, one more piece of information I would like to bring to your attention. The City of Youngstown is going to take action to ensure that many of the homes that have been foreclosed on are not left abandoned to decay - for obvious reasons.

As we all know, there are a lot of these low value homes in Ohio that most investors are looking to do something with - I am looking to service that end of the business. It has been my experience that Real Estate brokers are not too motivated to sell a house that will generate three to six percent of $25K. Maybe you are having better luck or using Ebay to dump these properties. I would love to hear how you are dealing with this and if you are satisfied with your results.

Maybe we hit things off on the wrong foot. I'd like to think that we can remedy that because I'm not looking to make anyone angry here or argue the relative benefits of selling homes to people you may not approve of in an area you described as a "hellhole." So, instead, how about if I change the direction of this discussion and ask if you have any properties in Youngstown you would like to sell? If you do, I'm anxious to prove what I can do, given the opportunity.