All Forum Posts by: Omar Rivera

I'm planning on selling a holding company that owns several real properties. No mortgages or debt liens of any kind, the company owns them outright. Do I have to transact each property individually or can I sell the company in its entirety and not have to worry about conveying each property to a new owner? This company and the properties are in various locations in Texas.  

Don't mix emotion and business decisions and try any harder to get that deal than you would have anyhow. If he beats you by paying more, then he lost by paying more than you were willing to! I believe that success in real estate favors the patient and humble.

Oh, and if your Realtor ignored you to talk to a stranger, I suggest you get a new Realtor.

Like others have suggested, I wouldn't show properties while they're occupied. I typically post on craigslist and advertise an availability date and the soonest date I can have an open house (the very next day after move-out, if possible) at which point I make 15 minute appointments with each prospective tennant. I make it clear that competition is high and that I cannot hold a property for anyone without at least a deposit, and even then its contingent upon background/credit check clearing. I find this weeds out non-serious lookers and motivates people who've are really looking for a place. I've had a place rented out just 10 hours after the previous tenants moved out using this method.

What makes you think the website is not doing business now? It seems operational to me.

Have you tried calling their number listed on the website to ask them directly?

I'll try to attend! Thanks!

Jerred Morris - definitely agree with "guru" seminars. I've been to only 1, and that was 1 too many. :)

What type of risk are you referring? appreciation risk? rental vacancy risk? expenses? legal liability? Please tell me more.

Concerning process, procedure and plans, I agree that they can be very useful. Like J Scott mentions though, there are places where processes and formulas don't necessarily fit well - complex negotiations, subtleties in deals, etc. - where experience and skill fill the gap. What processes do you find useful? What have you found to be most difficult in your own investing?

Bill Gulley - I don't really believe in secrets. Business ideas, by themselves, are worthless. I think its the ability to execute that holds value. That said, I'm not refraining from mentioning what areas I plan on servicing; I just haven't decided that yet - and more importantly, I'm asking investors, as potential customers, to define that for me.

The accounting problem is interesting! Thank you for the information. My accounting is easy since I only manage 6 units, but I can see it becoming very complex with many deals and management of properties. What is your deal throughput, if you don't mind me asking? I know there are many accounting systems out there, but I don't know of any specifically designed for real estate. What accounting system or software do you use?

J Scott - totally agree that the hard part is quantifying the problem. This is the biggest reason that the vast majority of new businesses and product launches fail. However, without trying to quantify the problem, the chance of failure becomes imminent so try I must. Yes, I am an active full-time investor, a licensed agent and in 1 month will have an MBA from a top-tier school but I don't know what all investors think and since I don't want be the sole customer of my business I need others' input.

I am asking for participation in this survey to ask the broad questions and hopefully identify some "non-obvious" problems you mentioned. Although, sometimes the obvious problems can be profitable. HomeAway solved an obvious problem with a simple online clearinghouse solution for brokering leasehold estates. uship.com identifies and brokers LTL shipment opportunities. Salesforce.com created a cloud-based alternative to excel/homegrown CRM solutions. redfin.com's CEO announced a few month's ago their 2012 revenue was going to exceed $50M. These companies really didn't create any new earth-shattering technologies, but rather just combined some pieces of the puzzle for the markets they serve. That's all I hope to do :)

I know many people probably often ask this forum similar questions and it may be becoming a trite topic. I apologize for that but hope you understand that my interest is genuine and well intentioned.

Thanks,
Omar

J Scott and Bill Gulley Thanks for your replies. J Scott, I really like your website btw, really a great resource and I love reading through your chronicles of flipping houses. Thanks for providing such an excellent knowledge base on flipping.

I do agree with you that generally, life is hard and complex and cannot be solved with a single formula, but I think you're both trying to put me in a box because I never stated that was my intention. My survey asks broad questions of all investor types because I'm trying to identify trends and commonalities between investors. Based on that information, my team and I will assess the viability of developing a product or service on any particular identified needs. At this point, I don't know what information, tool, resource, or service would be valuable to most investors - which is why I'm asking. As a fellow investor, I know what I 'think' would be useful, but I also know better than to trust myself as a single point of data. :)

Surveys are a simple and easy way to gather a large sample of reposes and quantitatively identify trends... but I honestly would much rather have some 1 on 1 discussions if anyone were so inclined to share their experience and time.

However, if you're asserting that there are currently no specific aspects of investing (or anything in life, really) that can be solved or made easier with some new yet-to-be-developed technology or service, than I must respectfully but enthusiastically disagree with you. The fact this very blog exists with such success is testament to the fact that experienced and aspiring investors are in need of more information and help.

Thanks,
Omar

Hello everyone, I haven't received many responses and I really need your help!

Please spare a few minutes to complete this short survey - I would love to hear your feedback and thoughts on investing.
https://mccombs.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_4H3EI59DePrWdut

Thanks again for your help.

Omar

Hello Everyone, I am working with a team of programmers, engineers and financial consultants to create and submit a business plan to our MBA curriculum's final competition. I do plan on actually creating a technology/service company based on the results of our research.

I need your help with a survey we created to try to narrow down the needs and "pain points" of the RE investor community. I would GREATLY appreciate anyone who would take the time to complete this short survey.

If anyone at all has additional thoughts and would like to speak with me 1 on 1, I would love to arrange a meeting to learn more about your needs.

They survey is completely confidential. Below is the link:

https://mccombs.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_4H3EI59DePrWdut

Thanks in advance, and please feel free to contact me directly if you have any comments or questions.

Thanks,
Omar