All Forum Posts by: Tim Czarkowski

Yea I kind of figured there wasn't much that could be done from the seller's side but you never know, there are some creative people out there, lol. I had no desire to dictate who the use other than they not use that guy. That leaves at least a couple hundred for them to pick from. 

That is how we usually handle home inspections. If there is something of real concern it'll be taken care of but the picky stuff is left out. I find that most buyers agents understand this. This however is a WDO and it's pretty common to require a clear report. It's not usually a big deal except that I got hit by this guy twice in a row. It was the first time I had someone actually cause damage. The worst I dealt with before this was just a combo of the inspector and agent working up their client over some petty stuff. Not sure why the agent was so keen to kill her own deal but we worked it out anyways.

I've recently had the luck of having two of my listings inspected by a WDO inspector that I, along with others I've spoken to, believe is a bit overzealous. Anyone have some advice on how to avoid this? 

I remember a few years back one of the owners of my brokerage saying there was a home inspector in their area known for this. He said that they required their buyers use anyone else but him. That was of course when they were on the buyers side. Is there anyway to accomplish something similar on the sellers side?

He actually pried all the trim on the exterior walls off in the one home. He knocked most of it back in but it all had to be touched up again after that. I've never seen someone do that before.

I live in a home built in 1914 with 3 apartments added on in the 1970's, it's a very solid home and we got a great deal on it. It however had been well maintained over the past 100 years. I also own and manage a number of historic homes and have rehabbed a number of homes in the area.

Definitely check if it's in a historic district, and if it is, how they are to deal with. Most of the old buildings I've dealt with are in a historic district but they are fairly easy to work with. However this varies wildly with the area. Also if your not familiar with old homes, make sure your inspector is and preferably your contractor also.

The biggest thing that concerns me is the numbers, make sure you have a nice spread. Around here you can pick up plenty of old homes but at that price they'll be in the "wrong" neighborhood. People do buy rentals in that area but are generally just hoping for gentrification. I prefer not to hope and don't like renting in "war zones". This of course varies by area and what your particular strategy is. A lot of people made big money buying in the neighborhood I now live in before gentrification. They also dealt with prostitutes and crack houses for a number of years.

I get a bit of extra satisfaction on bringing old homes back to their former glory, not to mention making money while increasing the value of my home by continuing to revitalize the neighborhood. I believe Jacksonville has the largest number of craftsman style homes in Florida. I'm a big fan of them. Anyways just do your due diligence, as on anything else and you should be fine.

Yes the police removed the body. His parents arrived and had the key, so they're in there cleaning the place out. It has been very unsettling, I didn't get much sleep last night and I felt pretty awkward around his parents. Not at all what I thought when I answered the phone last night.

This cannot be that common, I seem to get all the excitement.

Anyone in Florida deal with this before? He paid his rent this month and I'm not sure how to handle the deposit, rent, and cleaning, etc. I suppose I should call my attorney but I'd like to hear from anyone who's dealt with something like this before.

I had a call from the police late last night to let them do a wellness check and long story short, the person was not well. I am expecting a call from the family members today, they are apparently headed into town right now. I am hoping for a bit of advice on how it should be handled. For example who can I allow into his apartment at this point? Who will be allowed to take his items? When should they be expected to do that? I'm sure there are plenty more I need to ask but these are just the first that popped into mind. 

The door had to be knocked in so I have called my handyman to come fix the door. Also even though he had be last seen only a day or two ago the smell was pretty over-powering.

Good luck! Just make sure you properly qualify your tenants and you'll avoid a lot of problems. Deal with late payers or problem tenants quickly, it doesn't get better usually.

I use John Gilmore for all of my roofing jobs you can reach them at [REMOVED], let them know I sent you if you give them a call.

@Brandon Biggs That's a good question and I'm not sure. I have used them for other counties besides Duval(Jacksonville) but they were all in North Florida. If you call Laura she can let you know, she runs the place now and it's been her families for decades.

I second All Florida Title. I use them regularly and highly recommend them. Tell Laura I said hello.

Laura Riebsame

All Florida Title Services, Inc.

4417 Beach Blvd. Suite 105

Jacksonville, FL 32207

904-399-2121

904-399-2636 - fax

www.allflatitle.com

I think Jacksonville is a great area to get started investing. It's competitive but not over competitive and home prices are extremely affordable. Lately there has been a real lack of multifamily properties in my favored area which is a real bummer now that I'm out looking. However I have still been able to come up with some rehab projects and looking around town I'm certainly not the only one. I do put a lot of time and effort in when looking to buy but I imagine that's no different then most areas.

Spend some time learning on here, it's the best place I've found and also be sure to use it to network. When and if you do move down here you should check out JaxREIA. It's a pretty good real estate club and although I don't attend regularly it certainly seems worthwhile.