All Forum Posts by: Bill Florence

Since there is no magic template for every property and your detailed analysis violated about 6 of my business model 'must haves' - my strategy is (drum roll ##### plz) to walk away and make money somewhere else. That is success.

I have those topics addressed in the lease to explain who is responsible for what. We include just about everything (permissible nail hole size, paint colors, etc) in a pre and post rental walk-through with checklist and photos.  Most of the time we can get the renter to correct any issues to a reasonable level. Also consider using a easy cleanup paints with a little more sheen than matte/flat like a satin or higher. We can usually get them clean instead of repainting. 

Seeking a licensed realtor to assist with finding and negotiating investment properties in the areas west of St. Louis, MO.  I am looking to make some investments in the area.

If you really know and have significant experience in the St. Louis area, please drop me a note so we can discuss.

Not sure if this applies here but many parks will not allow pre-1976 (pre HUD) certified homes to be moved in or if already on a lot, transferred to new ownership unless removed. And some professional MH movers will not transfer older homes. Just FYI

I will also add,  from my experience , never pay a contractor % of project in advance. Pay for materials when delivered (on your property not theirs) and labor only when satisfied. If anything goes wrong, like wrong materials delivered, damaged materials, missing items or no materials, contractor tries to increase costs or just disappears with your deposit - getting your money back can be very tough,  time consuming and expensive.

Glad to hear your area supports being able to buy like that. Wish it did here. Doesn't work in all markets and all municipalities. In my locale we have a 3 year tax lien redemption and rare occurrence of deed transfer. Plus everything gets bid up to infinity and beyond so the premiums squash any decent interest on the cert.

Some things to consider, check with BBB, web search for complaints and reputation (google), see and verify business insurance, employees bonded and insured, do they sub out the work or do they hire employees ? check with county/city verify they have appropriate licensing. Be careful of the work being sub'd out, you might not know who is on your property or if they are insured. Ask for references, pictures of previous work. I am sure there is more someone else can add.

I firmly believe you are taking the correct approach by educating yourself before you start investing. Absolutely the right thing to do.

However, I self educated (and still do) by joining REI clubs, reading everything I can get my hands on, building a business plan, meeting lots of other pros in the industry. Did not cost me more than a few books, club fees and lots of cups of coffee. But I did spend my first 6 months only educating and learning - I made it a point to not put my money at risk until I was so prepared the first investment did not even make me nervous. I knew more about the property, market, and contract than the buyers agent and I had 4 exits for profit on the deal.

On buying with no money down strategies, in my opinion there is always a cost and no money up front means possibly more from you on the back end which has more risk. But I think you can learn about those strategies at little to no cost.

Hilarious !

Cool idea. I see ads out here for private garage city parking around a couple hundred a month. There is actually a sub-market for this kind of thing I think. Good luck and let us know how it worked out.