All Forum Posts by: Alex T.

If I'm selling a property For Sale By Owner, can I ask the buying agent to handle my side of the paperwork as part of their commission, or is the agent going to charge an additional fee for that? And is this a bad idea in general...i.e. do I need to hire someone like an attorney or another agent to look out for my best interests? FYI, the Agreement of Sale is already done, and I don't have a mortgage, so it should be a simple transaction on my end...

Thanks!

I'm currently going after my real estate license. My goal is to use the license to save money on the handful of buy/sell transactions I do a year on my rentals/developments. The split at Keller Williams is 70-30 (25k cap), but if I join a team, I can cut the cap significantly. I'd have some other fees to the "team," but they'd basically handle all the sales, marketing, and conveyancing.

I heard from someone that I could take 0% commission and thus wouldn't have to pay anything to KW...but I'd still have to pay for sales/marketing/conveyancing. Does anyone know if this is true? I can't imagine KW would let me hang their license with them if I'm just going to do 0% commission deals...I assume they have a minimum commission you're allowed to take (like 2%). Does anyone know how this works? Thanks.

@Steven K. That does sound high. I'm assuming the 40k is soup to nuts, dig out, new slab, framing, finishes, etc., and the extra bath? If it's 40k to just lower the slab, that's ridiculous and I'd find someone new. Do you have a GC, and if so, why is he not handling the basement? If you're doing a full reno, the basement dig should've been a line item, and then you should be getting economy of scale with framing, drywall, mechanicals, etc. So for me, my GC did the 350-400sqft basement dig and new slab for 6k, but he added to the pricing for all the other line items because he now had another 350-400sqft to finish just like the rest of the house. How much extra, I don't really know because the budget isn't broken out in that level of detail. If I just take the 350-400sqft as a percentage of the house, I estimate the entire basement job is 15-18k (and there's no bathroom).

So if 40k is for everything, including that extra bath, and you have a 400sqft+ basement, that doesn't sound super crazy, especially considering you're contracting the basement completely separate from the rest of the house. But yeah, if you were saying 40k just to dig and pour a new floor, I'd definitely find someone else.

@Steven K. What have the quotes been? Are you doing a full reno or just trying to convert the basement to rentable space? What's the current ceiling height?

@John Mocker Thanks for the input. I do have COIs from all contractors and my LLC is also added as an additional insured. But I'm not sure how helpful that'll be years later if the contractor in question switches insurance or is no longer in business.

I have a GC, and he's responsible for managing about 80% of each job. The other 20%, I usually outsource myself with other subs.

I'm curious what people do to protect themselves post-flip. I am mostly wondering about protection from issues that arise in a property years after someone purchases. I work with reputable contractors with lots of experience, I trust them, and they stand by their work (at least for the first year), but I do not have enough construction experience to know if something hasn't been done the right way.

I've been doing each property in its own LLC and then shutting each down after the sale. Do you find that that's enough protection? My insurance broker said that I could get a full GL policy that would cover me for ensuing damage due to property defects and injury claims that arise from issues post-sale. It's not super cheap - and it's somewhat limited given the ensuing damage clause ($2500-3500/year). Another option would be to do a 1-2-10 home warranty upon purchase. And I guess the last line of defense would be my contractor's GL policy (assuming he is still in business).

I just don't want to be in a vulnerable position years after selling a property, especially if the contractor is no longer around. And of course, I also want to make sure that the buyer is fully protected. What do people typically do for post-flip insurance? Thanks.

@Rick C. That sounds about right. I'm glad it seems like it will work out...let us know if for some reason it doesn't.

@William E. Brown I personally wouldn't waste your time putting together rudimentary financials for your investor clients. The only things I want my agent to do is present me with off-market deals, negotiate the buy and sale, and handle everything associated with the transfer of title.

I believe it's the investor's responsibility to know the market, know the MLS properties, run the numbers, etc. There are exceptions, but that's my general opinion.

Other than that, the big things to me with an agent would be timely service, shrewd negotiating...and low commissions don't hurt!

@Rick C. I'd head down to the OPA office at 601 Walnut St ASAP with your abatement application. I've definitely heard of people securing an abatement in a year following their permits. One contractor I know had the permits issued between Christmas and NYE - and he was out of town - so he never did the abatement until the new year. I believe it worked out for him. Stuff happens, but you really don't want to delay it further. Hopefully, you've since submitted the application. Regardless, you should show your face down at the OPA office and try to get someone to confirm to you that the application will be processed. Good luck - let us know what happens.

@Ryan Seib I appreciate your insight. I decided to go ahead and turn this over to my insurance. I heard from numerous people that many insurance carriers will not cover you if you do not report the incident within a reasonable timeframe. They claim it doesn't allow them to adequately defend themselves.

@Kevin Henderson

@Kevin Henderson Interesting, and thanks for pointing that out. Obviously, it works both ways. I'll appreciate the system if I ever feel like I've been wronged, but right now, it stinks.

@Jay Hinrichs

@Jay Hinrichs Crazy stories. If I was more seasoned and had better legal connections, I'd probably take a more aggressive route. For right now, handing it over to my GL carrier was really my only move.

Random update for anyone who is interested, my insurance company passed the claim off to the carrier. The carrier has called me probably half a dozen times and met with me at the jobsite. I still have very little information about what happened to the claimant, her injuries, etc. The carrier said they've called the lawyer numerous times but have been unable to make contact. I just hope the carrier fights it.