All Forum Posts by: Derek G.

I decided against it after a lengthy conversation with my PM. Too much risk. When one or two deals seem too good to be true, it might actually be a good deal. When EVERY SINGLE DEAL in the city looks too good to be true, it probably is. EG Detroit LOL
I wouldn't take the risk. Plenty of good deals in Harvest, Toney, Meridianville, Hazel Green and even the Huntsville area (stay away from rentals in NW Huntsville). 

Hi All,

I know several of you here have diversified your housing portfolio with the markets. Though most of my investments are tied up in the housing market, I have about a quarter of it in the stock market. I use both fundamentals and technical analysis to determine my trades. I rely heavily on momentum trading. I use BofA's Merrill Edge as I get all trades free. I typically pull about 20-25% conservatively and am happy with the outcome so far. I just don't feel like risking more than a quarter of my investment funds because the stock market is a bit more volatile than the real estate market.  The P/E ratios are so enormous that I may consider inverse funds or commodities soon. 
I'm curious though. Who here invests in the stock market? What platform do you use? Any trading strategies (rules) you adhere to? 

Hi All !!

I currently own and rent a few SFR. Lets say I want to secure a commercial loan for a small apartment complex (Lets also say the selling price is around $900K and I put 50% down). Doesn't really matter. I should qualify for all the major inquiries the bank would have except one. I don't have the experience running an apartment complex. I use property managers for this. Would the PM's experience be enough to move the hypothetical loan forward? Thanks in advance!

@Greg Scott
Thanks for taking the time to post. I will certainly consider all my asset protection options once I dip my finger in the multi-family pond. 

Thanks for the response @Greg Scott. I'm going to jump into the multi-family pond in less than a year. I'm curious why you would use LLCs on your multi-family. Is it because they are typically more expensive than single family? Perhaps multi-families have a higher chance of a lawsuit because there are more people living under one roof in multiple units. 

Hello fellow investors!

I only own 4 properties (all in Alabama ~ROLL TIDE~). I have a $2 million umbrella policy on top of my landlord policies. All of my properties are under a property management company. I do not have an LLC or trust (perhaps when I surpass over $800K in assets I will, but I don't now).
I have layers of protection under landlord & umbrella policies AND having a third party property management company to insulate me further. 
Right now, I'm sitting okay with not having an LLC or trust for the time being, but I was curious. All this talk about asset protection and I have yet to hear about someone here being sued. I know it happens, but a quick Google search doesn't bring up millions of dollars. Usually they are small claims issues for a couple grand. I've seen a couple for $100K-$300K for wrongful death. 
Right now I'm protected, but will probably get an extra layer once I have significant assets of $800K or more. 
So.... anyone here been sued (small claims or larger civil suits?). Thanks for your answers.   

Hi All,

I peruse these forums often and have taken away some very helpful resources from users. I thought I'd add an experience I had back in 2014 and maybe it'll help someone else down the road. 
April 2014 a tornado had its way with one of my properties. All said, $65,000 would bring my house back to a livable/rentable state. The battle with the insurance company was crazy, but they eventually caved. 
First thing that had to be done was water mitigation and protection from elements before any work was to be done. I called a well known mitigation franchise, for the purposes of COMPLETE anonymity, I'll call them "MervCrow water mitigation". They gave me the estimate (Just shy of $15,000) to run their machines and mitigate the issue. 
I came back a week later and the entire inside of the property was stripped down to the studs. All appliances, furniture, fixtures and even the toilets were all gone. They even tried to bill me for over $50,000. Calling them proved to be futile as I was met with "You agreed to this", "You never said anything about keeping the contents", "The price is fair".
Well, I contemplated getting an attorney when it dawned on me... My tax dollars already pay for the consumer division of my state's attorney general's office. I went online. I filed my complaint for theft & fraud of a locally owned franchise and waited. Within a week I got a request through the Attorney General's office that "MervCrow" wanted to negotiate and settle the issue. After communicating with the company, I walked away without owing a dime and got it in writing from AG office. I probably could have taken them to court and gotten some money for it, but this saved me a ton of stress in an already stressful time. It was worth it.  
I've used the AG's office a couple other times for other lesser property related issues, and in ALL cases came out ahead without the need for official litigation. Obviously the AG offices aren't the end all be all, but in many cases, your State's AG consumer affairs division will be willing to assist you with shady companies. 
Hopefully someone finds this thread one day and it helps. 

Derek  

Hi All!

I love to travel. Europe, Middle-East, Asia, tropics you name it. I fly quite frequently either for work or for leisure. I traveled for many years and didn't utilize the advantages of miles and points programs. I do now and have done so for a couple years now. There are many strategies out there. Today I'll share my strategy. If any of you have some other ideas, please let me know. 
Here is what I do every trip I book.
1. Book travel packages (Flight + Hotel) on Expedia *Expedia Points
2. Enter FF miles numbers for corresponding airlines *FF Miles
3. Enter my SPG number for hotels. *SPG Points
4. Utilize my travel credit card to complete booking. *Travel Points with bank (Disclaimer: I do not pay interest on this since I pay it off instantly. Otherwise it defeats the purpose.)
I have done what many call "Quadruple dipping". I am earning points and miles on 4 different platforms for one single trip. 
Over the past 2 years, I have gotten enough points on all platforms to redeem a trip worth $75,000+ (Yeah, I like to save and horde).
You would have to be mad not to sign up for points when you travel. 
I know people who don't travel often, but still manage to take free trips once a year just utilizing their travel credit card. Use it to pay for everything. House, car, food, utilities etc. The points rack up. The only stipulation here is that you pay that sucker off. You have to be VERY disciplined with money management. 
Also, I prefer the card with points that don't expire and no foreign transaction fees. 
I know some people like "Travel Hacking" and I'm willing to bet there are fellow travel lovers on here who do this regularly. I'm curious how you go about points & miles. Perhaps there is a better strategy I could be doing. 
Thanks in advance! 

UPDATE: I little background. I'm a US citizen. I currently work overseas for a European company. The company doesn't report to the IRS because they don't have to. I file my own taxes based on my income. I also have a few properties in the States being rented out. I own this particular house free & clear. I'm trying to get a cash-out refi. My father is handling everything since he is my PoA. He cannot sign at closing, but I'll fly back stateside for it. 
TODAY: He (my father) went to a local credit union I've done business with before. The branch manager said me not having W2 income is not a problem so long as I have tax transcripts with IRS. They handle all underwriting themselves and would be the ones loaning the money (not another bank they are selling it to). However, my father will arrive tomorrow and speak with the mortgage department with application in hand. All questions should be answered more accurately then. We shall soon see. I will update this post when I find out more and hopefully it will help someone else down the road. 

Thanks for the replies! 
I don't have a 1099 because the company I work for is European. They are not obligated to utilize US tax forms or report any income to the IRS. 

Yes, you would think all they require are tax transcripts from the IRS. That would make life easier for everyone involved. 
It was suggested I try a local bank or better yet a credit union. I'll try that and see what comes of it. 
I'll post here with the outcome. Hopefully it will help someone down the road.