All Forum Posts by: Brandon Parkes

Hey BP crew. 
Brandon from Toronto here. I have a couple of properties in Canada and last year, opened an LLC and purchased a duplex in Detroit. For obvious reasons, I employed the use of a management company and have had problem after problem WITH THEM ever since.

It started with chasing payment, because they weren't transferring funds as per the schedule on their contract. Then there were incidents with expenses that seemed abnormally frequent, some of which I have still been chasing for documentation. It has now escalated and I have not received the deposit for Nov or Dec and am having a very tough time with this altogether.

Can you please share some feedback here. How can I pursue this in the US legally. Should I be switching property management companies ASAP? If I switch, how can I go after the money owed? Should I be seeking legal to come after them.? Should I be threatening legal action to get them to get caught up on their deposits?

We have a 2 year old boy and infant twins. We need to get this sorted ASAP and I need some help.
Thank you in advance.
Brandon

Good afternoon fellow BP members.

Can anyone please recommend a trusted and reasonable insurance company for a duplex in Detroit?

Thanks.
Any contact info would be welcomed.

Thank you,
Brandon

You too @Lexi Teifke. Thank you for the professionalism and support. All the very best in continued success at your end as well. Keep in touch!

Thanks a lot @Lexi Teifke . Definitely does. I live in the Toronto area and have a couple of properties here that are self-managed. First time experience of handing over the reins has been stressful to say the least. Very different rules, laws, rental demand, every bit of paperwork, everything. I'll look back on this and be thankful for taking the leap across the border, but man, I sure did reset the learning curve.

Thank you!
B

Hey fellow BP investors!

Is anyone working with, or has anyone ever worked with either BRIAN GOODMAN at Michigan Property Managers, OR SHERRI PICKETT at RCH Brokerage Legacy Inc.??? 

I am a Canadian resident and I am working on tenanting a duplex in Detroit. So far it's been (let's just say) different from what I expected.

I want to see if I can find some feedback (GOOD, BAD, ANYTHING) on the two candidates above. Please be respectful in your comments, or if you really have something to share, message me personally.

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT AND ADVICE!!!
Brandon

Hey Chad.

Thanks very much for the information and feedback. I'm fine with the LLC structure for what we have on the go at the moment.

I closed the transaction in the summer of 2018. They had all kinds of issues getting tenants out, cash for keys, one eviction etc. Then the rehab, then being told stuff about one housing program, then another. Not the most confident at the moment, but trying to find the best in everyone.

House was 95% done when I saw it a month ago. A few faceplates etc, but nothing significant. I have emails and texts from the prop manager along the lines of "if not next week, definitely by March 1st"... Blah blah blah and something came up. April 1st for sure! That's where I'm at.

Any feedback and support would be welcomed on this. Definitely feel like my training wheels got put back on, crossing the border.

PS - Western eh? Great school. Are you down south for good now or just getting away from GTA winters?

@Christina Wasley is right. Lots of deals @Sam Hanaa. Just need to actively look. Grow your network too. Get out to meetups, chamber meetings etc and talk to lots of people. You'd be surprised at how many people actually have an interest in real estate or know someone who knows someone.

I'm changing tenants on a 3 bdrm, 2bth Semi in an up and coming area in Hamilton right now. I would entertain a chat about selling it Sam. We've got twins on the way, and I have recently purchased a big upsize home for our family. I have a great positive cashflow on the house, just put a new roof on it, but the lump of equity may be better suited being directed at my family right now. 

If you want to chat, drop me a line anytime.

I've been a real estate investor in Canada (Toronto, Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton) for about 6 years now. Due to inflated housing prices, and newer strict borrowing rules, I decided to set up an LLC and purchase through a friend of a friend who has a turnkey company in Brandon Turner's favorite city, Detroit. I bought a 4000sq ft Duplex (4 bdrm, 2 bth x 2), 8 minutes from Greektown and 10 min from the border.

This was back in May of 2018, and since then I have read many of the BP books and listened to roughly 100 podcasts. If I knew then, what I know now, I probably would have looked for a different avenue and likely a different location as well.

From being new to the US market, I'm a virgin to the processes and expectations there. For example. I throw one of my houses for rent on Craigslist up here and have 100's of applicants the first day.

The property manager that is trying to tenant the home in Detroit is taking a lot longer than I was informed. I've been told that housing directors came by and walked the property, so it's moving forward, but then there were a few more things to be done by the turnkey company. Then I saw it pop up on Zillow for rent, so I assume there's progress, but again, I feel like this whole process is dragging. Bigtime. I fell like it's almost done, but still, not.

Anyone with experience in Detroit, with tenanting, with property managers, experience with expected timelines, etc etc. I want to make sure my money is going to a good, competent person. I was hoping to have purchased #2 by now and #3 by May. This experience has tainted me quite a bit and I am really hoping it gets straightened out asap.

Any comments, feedback, support would be welcomed. Thanks!!

Brandon Parkes

See, now I'm going to have to listen to show #127 :)

Thanks James.
Are you familiar with a way to look that up or easiest to just request it from them directly?
 
Brandon

Thanks Kyle.
Amazing how different every detail, rule and process is down here, versus what I am used to. I reset the learning curve for sure.
I'll have to look into the ACH idea with both my bank and the property management company I think.

Thanks again!