All Forum Posts by: Brandon Foken

Thanks everyone for chiming in. I called today and spoke with the agent. Made an offer for $67,500 minus immediate repairs needed. I'll hear back later today or tomorrow to see what the seller says - Sorab and Michael, I'll keep you both posted on what the seller comes back with.

Thanks for the great response, Kyle J.. You are correct that I would be looking to wholesale this to another investor. I've gone to a few meetups (school is preventing me from doing more) in order to make connections and have meet some investors, but most of those are rehabbers. I see you're in Northern CA - where about? Do you attend any networking meetings in the Bay Area?

As for the 2% rule, from my limited experience I tend to agree. A $200k house in Oakland isn't going to come close to commanding $4,000 in rent. Sometimes, when beginning, it's nice to have an easy rule to follow that determines how much time you'll spend evaluating a potential property - that's why I defaulted to the 2% rule. I need to do a much better job of reaching out to other investors in the area to get their criteria. So, speaking of which...what's the criteria you have, Kyle? :)

I spoke with a motivated seller today looking to off-load their house in Oakland, CA on the 7500 block of Weld St - 2 beds, 1 bath. Currently there is a Section 8 tenant living there and has been for the last 12 or 13 years. Rent is $1,400. Comps seem to support a market value of around $85-90k. Exit strategy would be to assign the contract to a buy-and-hold investor.

So, according to the 2% rule, the purchase price would need to be at $70,000 - repairs - assignment fee. When I talked to the seller and asked about repairs, he said it's an old house so he wouldn't be surprised if there is a lot needed. So, my questions:

- If there is maintenance needed to get the house back into what I would call "move in ready" condition - how do you handle that with a tenant in place? Or would you just leave the house as is until the tenant moves out?

- How will buy-and-hold investors evaluate this? Will they just look at rents, expenses and deferred maintenance? Or will they be looking at a appreciation play since Oakland as a whole is seeing some price appreciation?

-If this was you buying this property for a buy-and-hold, what would be your max offer? And more importantly, why?

After listening to the podcast and reading Richard's review, I want to purchase this book now. I'd like to give back to BP in some small way - is there an affiliate link that someone can provide me to purchase Marty's book?

Yesterday I had a very good conversation with a lawyer/broker located in Berkeley, CA. I met him at an open house and exchanged some emails with him and he asked that I give him a call. We spoke for about 15 minutes and he wants to sit down with me once my school is over and before I take my licensing exam. He is interested in growing his business more (has 12 agents working for him) and especially wants people with an entrepreneurial drive. He echoed sentiments I've heard here on BP a lot - that most agents have no entrepreneurial spirit and he doesn't understand why that is at afoster a relationship.

Anyways, I'm writing for all other newbies. If you are nervous about contacting brokers/agents about working with investors - don't be. I've learned that successful people were once in my shoes and got to where they are today with the help of others. It's great to see those people wanting to pay-it-forward to a new generation of investors.

Michael Galloway, much appreciated. I work remotely for my day job so I have the flexibility to travel around during the day so long as I have a cell phone connection. I'd be more than happy to provide some Jamba Juice and take a look at some of your projects you are working on and talk shop. When would work best for you?

Also, thanks for reading the website. Sometimes I feel like it's a lot of effort for not much gain, but I'm trying to post good, relevant content in hopes that readers will follow. Thanks again!

Aaron Lambert: Always great to see more Bay Area people on BP. Are you living in Fairfield currently? Is that where most of your work is at? What areas are you looking to invest in?

I'm looking to invest mainly in Alameda County possibly going out to Contra Costa county if it makes sense. I'm trying to source my deals through a direct mail campaign and my website. One of my, and most beginners, weaknesses is the lack of experience in construction and estimating rehab repairs. I'd be interested in chatting for a bit to see how maybe we could help each other out. Let me know what you think. I'll be sending a colleague request out as well to you shortly.

I'm learning all about trusts in my real estate law class. Trusts are effective for the life of the trustor(s) - so these are a sign that someone is estate planning. The trustor is the creator of the trust and they maintain control of the trust during their lifetime. In a trust, you must name a beneficiary - the person(s) who receive the trusts' assets after the trustor's death. So trusts are not indicative of probate or divorce, but tell you these people are probably a little savvier than most.

There are many reasons why someone will create a trust. The main reasons are:

- No probate
- Significant Tax advantages - no estate taxes
- No public disclosure - my teacher said, "keeps from airing their dirty laundry"

This is coming from a class and book designed for real estate law in California so your mileage may vary, but that should give you a good gist of why people create trusts.

As the title says, I'm a new investor in the San Francisco Bay Area mainly focusing on Alameda County.

I have sent out one direct mail campaign with 954 recipients and have a growing website that is feeding me a couple of leads per week. I'm looking to work with experienced rehabbers in the area. I'm actively seeking out a mentor in the area and feel like I can add a lot of value to what you are currently doing. Namely, in exchange for mentorship, I would provide a house under contract without an assignment fee. Or, if you don't have the time to mentor someone I would be happy to add you to my buyer's list.

Please let me know if you have any interest in chatting more over some coffee.

-Brandon

Morning Bump. Would love to get others experiences evaluating rentals where the 2% rule doesn't work.