All Forum Posts by: Augusta Owens

Good morning all,

I'm crossing the finish line of my first flip and seeking references for an affordable and quality landscaping company and also cleaners. I'm building my team so vetted references you have worked with yourself is a must. Thank you in advanced. 

A contractor filed a mechanic’s lien against me but misspelled my name, so the lien doesn’t show under my legal name or the property in the Dallas county system. Only my counter-affidavit, filed under the correct name, shows up.

The lien is flawed:

• The work was unauthorized (he admitted this both in writing and over the phone).

• He agreed multiple times to be paid upon sale of the property (made in writing).

• He declined a good faith payment plan I offered multiple times on work he did by mistake, and even turned down the option to list the property for commission as he is also a realtor. At the time I wanted to salvage the relationship as I saw him as a potential mentor.

• He stated in writing there would be no additional fees, then added fees and demanded immediate full payment.

I documented all of this in my counter-affidavit visually with texts, emails, and a timeline.

Has anyone had a title company search a lien like this? Wondering if it would even flag, and how they'd treat something this sloppy. The house is edging towards completion and I want to offload it and move on to the deal as soon as possible.

Thanks in advance.

Looking for a GC or crew to take over a single-family rehab project in South Oak Cliff (Dallas 75232).

I need:

• Licensed & insured general contractor

• Experienced with full interior/exterior rehabs

• Available to walk the property this week

• Comfortable with draw schedule (HML funding)

• Reliable, communicates clearly, and delivers on scope

This is a full rehab including foundation, exterior/interior paint, bath conversion, flooring, kitchen, roof, etc.

If you're serious, message me:

• Your availability for a walkthrough this week

• Photos of similar past projects

• A ballpark estimate range based on scope (we’ll send details once we connect)

No wholesalers or middlemen—I'm the direct investor and decision maker.

Thank you for your consideration.

As of yesterday I'm under contract for my first fix and flip. It's located in south Dallas, just a little north of Desoto. The brokerage I acquired this property from has a GC that they use regularly and they walked the property with me. Because this GC works closely with the brokerage they are privy to information not otherwise known, such as knowing the lenders I've interviewed, and the forerunner I'm most likely going with currently, has approved my rehab budge of $50k. The fact the GC came back with a quote for that exact amount could be warranted, but my gut finds it a bit too convenient. So I'm looking for some referrals from any who have worked with GC in the Dallas area with good results. Like I said, I don't rule out the possibility that the quote was legitimate, but it seems prudent to get multiple opinions. I close on the property Thursday (it's a fast sell per owner's concession), and obviously time is of the essence.

Thank you in advance. 

I'm a 3 month real estate rookie, but I feel I have a fair amount of theoretical knowledge, and its time to take some actions. I have a duplex house hack on the horizon, but I know its not an avenue I can use in the short term to leverage growing my portfolio. So I have plan of using a construction loan on a distressed property and making it a rental as one of my learning opportunities in the game. I know its ideal to go with a local bank or credit union when looking for a construction loan, and I'll be looking specifically for a construction-to-permanent loan. My question is besides a competitive rates, what else should I be looking for or expect? 

Any and all input would be greatly appreciated. Like I said, I know I have ALOT to learn, but I'm positioning to scale as quickly as possible while still being mindful of my loan to debt, and not overleverage myself.

I have been devouring books by Brandon Turner to get a better grasp on a macro view of the theories of real estate investing . What I would like to are some reading recommendations for learning the meat and potatoes on the processes of completing rehabs, and the processes of working with contractors?

Thanks all. 

Beginning my house hacking journey and looking to connect with as many other investors in our area as possible. 

I'm currently working with a realtor who himself is a real estate investor. He's helping me to narrow down a potential multi-family property that I will be house hacking, (the deadline I have given myself to be in it is May). I'm a 100% disabled veteran and will be leveraging this status and the VA loan to obtain this property with no money down. This part is a foregone conclusion for me, but what I am still working out is next steps. I want to purchase my second property within 4-6 months of moving into my multifamily house hack, but looking for a guidance on the strategy to do so. My ultimate goal is not using my savings during this process, because I want to train myself from the onset to think creatively and not deplete my reserves instead of finding a better deal or more productive relationship. I'm sure I'm no different in some respects than many other newbies, I just want some ideas on the process of creative financing or maybe how to partner with someone else. I don't have a lot of experience, but I do have the ability to exchange my time, so that could be a form a currency that benefits them.

Any and all feedback is greatly appreciated.

Good morning all.

 I have a question that I'm sure I'm not the first to ask, even if I'm not sure how to ask it. I'm new to real estate investing, but have thrown myself into learning as much as I can by joining a Veteran based investment community, have been working with my realtor and looking daily for potential multi family properties in the Dallas area for house hacking, which I've set myself an deadline to be completed by May. I'm attending local meetups too when my work schedule permits, but I want to do even more. 
I teach Mon, Weds, and Fri mornings at 6:30 until about 8am at a Jiu Jitsu academy in The Colony, which I'm also an equity partner in. Given my schedule, I'm wanting to know what are some positions I could find in the Dallas area that I can transition into working at to accelerate learning all things real estate investing, but also have semi flexibly to still teach my morning classes and grow my gym? By trade I have been in occupational therapy for 10 years, but am willing to take a pay cut to really focus on what will make me the most successful investor I can be.
Very long winded, but again not exactly sure how to ask this question. Im not handy with tools, so I was thinking maybe assistant property manager or something logistical perhaps? Anyone in my area that may be able to shed some light I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you.

@Ryan Kelly this makes sense. I actually plan to put money down, but don't have a frame of reference yet of what a specific % looks like. I don't yet have an understanding of my market yet to know if I'm pursuing a 2 unit vs a 4 unit. I would prefer 4, but I have to make the numbers make sense for me and my current financial position.

I attended a webinar last night from a veteran who's been in real estate for years and understands use of the VA loan. So my understanding is it's still one of my best options for a loan.

I'm in the information gathering stage so any and all insight is greatly appreciated. Thank you sir!