All Forum Posts by: Nate T.

Good question... I was just reading a great summary of DF by @Brian Gibbons which you can see here.  I didn't see anything about step-rate loans but maybe Brian would like to comment?

 Hi Bill,

Did you get the cliff notes of Dodd Frank written up?

 Hi Loren, it seems like electricians charge an awful lot for replacing a panel. Am I wrong, or is it over $2,000 in labor for a few hours of work? Is there any way to get this done cheaper?

I am in discussions with a seller to put in an offer on an office building (in Tempe AZ). I have done hundreds of residential transactions, but never any commercial, so I don't know what I don't know. Any suggestions from commercial investing veterans?

For example:

Should I have an attorney create the contract? Or just see what we have available from the local Realtor association?

What should I request from the seller, besides the income/expense numbers and rent rolls?

What kind of earnest deposit is typical?

What kind of inspections should be done?

Can I get access to the rented offices?

Should I get a survey? An environmental study? (In AZ we don't usually get surveys on residential  properties. And these reports wouldn't be required by the lender because I would be using seller financing. But I don't know how important it is to get them anyway for myself.)

Thanks!

Mistakes on a tax return can be corrected. But you might have to refile all the previous returns....

In Arizona it costs around $1,000 for all the various fees including MLS. But as a full time investor it is absolutely worth it, and I would even say necessary.

The commission is paid by the seller to the listing agent, so it is not something you can negotiate directly. However, you can try to use the fact that they don't have to pay your agent to negotiate the price down. But the listing agent would have to agree to take a lower commission (e.g. 3% instead of 6%) for the seller to be affected by your lack of representation. The listing agent is under no obligation to do so.

I have been to a couple of John Burley events and enjoyed them. He shares a lot of good info. His training is focused on buying single family houses with joint venture partners and then selling the houses on lease options. If you are interested in that niche then his stuff will be worthwhile. However just like all gurus he will try to upsell you to his coaching program, which costs 30k. To me that seems pretty exorbitant.

 Were you happy with the results from Diamond?

I just got a property back from a tenant, in the Phoenix area.  The tenant volunteered to me that he had been smoking meth in the house.  Otherwise I wouldn't have had any idea.  There is no noticeable smell or anything to indicate that he was cooking meth.  

I have never dealt with meth before.  I assume I need to get some sort of meth test or inspection done....

Any advice?

Does anyone have a company that you would recommend that does meth testing in the Phoenix area?