All Forum Posts by: Brian Cooke

@Sean Cole If someone is a wholesaler I've worked with before and can trust their due diligence then I can see your point, in the value in them presenting a deal off the MLS so i don't have to dig through all the listings myself. The problem is there are many new wholesalers out there that think they know what to look for and the cost of rehab, but don't really. So even if they say they've done the due diligence, I have to do it again myself. Many times I find that they are underestimating the rehab cost, or overmarketing the ARV, and what they say is a good deal really isn't. 

I agree, too many are just putting REO houses under contract and then wholesaling them. However, there are some out there that still do marketing for distressed houses and motivated sellers. Come to a reia meeting and during the buy/sell/trade portion of the meeting give out your contact information as a buyer. Wholesalers will write it down and add you to their list. Some will be the kind you (we) don't like, but there will be good ones too.

I'm buying a house that is bank owned, and tenant occupied. The bank and listing agent do not have a key to the house, so we have to rely on the tenant to let us in. They were great for the initial showing, but when I put it under contract and went back with an inspector they left so that they weren't home to let us in (despite telling the agent that they would be there and that time worked great).

My initial plan was to continue letting the tenant live there (his lease is currently month to month), and flip the house when he decided to move, but this has made me lose any confidence in him being a reliable tenant. I suspect they are living there rent free right now and are trying to drag it out as long as possible. I was told by the listing agent that after I buy the house I will have to negotiate with the tenant to get a key to the place, which I figure is going to be interesting. I'd rather get the tenant out of there, replace the locks, and get on with getting it retail ready.

If this were you, after you bought the house how would you go about the process of telling the tenant they need to move? In a way that would minimize the chance of needing to go to eviction court. 

Thanks for the input @John Babcock

When you have a house under contract that is an occupied rental you want to wholesale to landlords, how do you deal with showing them the property? I imagine tenants don't like people walking through all the time, and I don't like telling the owner I'm trying to sell his property before he has even sold it to me so can he please let me in again and again? (I would eventually tell the seller that I have sold my contract for such and such reason, not to worry they still will get the same deal and yada yada)

I did look up the owner address in County records. It seems like it has the street address but no number. I could try mailing and hope it gets to him. If that doesn't work, and Facebook doesn't help, what would be a good backup plan? 

I'd like to buy vacant land that is next to the house I am buying so I can add additional rooms to the house. The owner of the land is someone in India, who is way behind on taxes. I cannot contact them to offer to buy the land. What are my options to get the land? Do I have to just play the waiting game and wait for the county to repossess it and put it up for tax sale? Is there another way to get first dibs on the land if they every do decide to put a tax lien on it?

I found a house I want to buy for my first deal. Goal is fix and flip. I looked at the house and came up with an estimate for repairs. It is on the MLS, so I had to convince my realtor that the offer I want to put in is not an unreasonable low ball. Eventually he told me to let him know when I have everything together and he'll put in the offer. I called a hml and got a preliminary approval. They won't comp the home and approve the loan until after I have a contract.

I was going to tell my realtor to send the offer, but now nervousness is setting in. I don't have contractors in place, or official repair estimates. Or insurance. Or... You get the idea. I don't know what are legitimate things needed to have in place before an offer, and what is just me freaking out because I'm going to borrow a bunch of money to do something I've never done before. 

For my own house, I bought from http://www.alpinehomeair.com/ and installed it myself.

For a rental or flip I would definitely have a licensed contractor install though, for liability purposes.

I'm just getting started as an investor, and hopefully going to get past the analysis paralysis. I have a mailing list prepared, a phone they can call, and llc paperwork in process. But what is stopping me from sending the letters/ posting ads, is I have no clue what I would do if I give someone an offer and they accept. How do I close the deal? Do I need title companies, what paperwork do I need, etc. That kind of thing.

Where would I be able to find resources for this information? or can you provide it?