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All Forum Posts by: Tim Czarkowski

Tim Czarkowski has started 15 posts and replied 209 times.

Post: New member from England

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

Richard Bhanap welcome to bigger pockets. Sounds like you running at full speed. I second and third what the others said when I say I'd like to hear how you were able to set all this up in so many areas from such a distance and what challenges you have found.

I am and agent/investor here I Jacksonville and work exclusively with investors. I handle rehab projects and rentals both my own and others including property management. If there is ever anything I can do to help please feel free to contact me, even if it's just to talk about the local market conditions. I love to talk about real estate.

Post: Title Company Recommendations???

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

Dennis Follain I'm glad to see I'm not the only one highly recommending Laura. She's been very helpful and understands the business I handle.

Post: Looking to begin a new career in Jacksonville!

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

Hey Scott Bartlet,

Welcome to bigger pockets. I am a real estate agent and investor here in Jacksonville. I manage some properties including a few of my own and also flip properties here regularly. If you have any questions specific to the area feel free to give me a call or send me an e-mail.

I agree with Jason Varney that it's probably not tougher here just different. It is a large town and huge land wise. There are a lot of different areas and types of investing that you can be involved in here. The market is getting more competitive here, inventory has dropped in half from 8 months to 4 months in the past year and a half or so. Even so there is still opportunities around if you willing to look. Being able to move quickly is important.

Post: Getting started in Florida (northeast)

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

David Beard Thanks for the mention.

Shannon Moore Hi Shannon, I'm a real estate agent here and in Jacksonville, Fl and I work with investors pretty much exclusively. I also do a lot of personal investing including flipping homes and holding rentals.

The auction route is a tough one for someone who can't devote to it full time. It is extremely competitive and to really have a decent chance of getting anything you have to be bidding basically everyday on multiple properties. When I am working on purchasing I probably spend 20 or 30 hours a week sifting thorough the auction properties, driving them, comping them, and then preparing the bids. If I was trying to buy constantly I could probably get two to three properties a month like that. The main problem for the nearly the past year has been hedge funds snapping up a bunch of properties at the auctions AT FULL RETAIL PRICE.

Decent rentals can be found in the MLS still here. It helps to be able to move quickly and pay cash but isn't completely necessary. It's very important to decide what exactly you want and then jump on it when you see it. Also bidding over list is common on something that's a good deal, which is no problem as long as you bid what meets your criteria. The banks are often pricing their properties to get multiple bids quickly and drive up the price. Last year we bought a property for 30,000 over list, we may have been able to get it a couple grand less but then again we may not have. It was still a great deal at our price and it met our criteria and it has done very well as a rental.

Good luck!

Post: Q1 2013 in the books - Share your progress!

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

I've got four rehabs going right now which is more than I did all of last year. I'd really like to continue to ramp up, I had a goal to do 12 this year which I think I can hit fairly easily. I'd really like to get to twenty. I'm certainly putting in the time to find them. That alone is almost a full time job. I' hoping once we get a couple more in the pipeline I can take on an assistant. I find that the little rather unimportant stuff I hate doing is starting to pile up because of the expansion. It would be nice to pass it on to someone else, lol. That's what I always did as a restaurant manger. I'm willing to do anything put like to push off onto others more suited to the things I don't.

Post: New Investor from Jacksonville, Florida!

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

Hey Joshua, just wanted to say hello and introduce myself. I am also an investor here in Jacksonville. Let me know if there is anything I can help you with. I am an agent, a flipper, a property manager, and a landlord. So I dabble in a little bit of everything but it pays the bills with no boss and I make my own schedule. Real estate is a great business and now is a great time to be involved in it. As Joseph M says there is actually the ability to get decent cashflow here as opposed to some other areas with much higher price to rent ratios.

Post: Title Company Recommendations???

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

I use All Florida Title here in Jacksonville. It a local business that has been running for 50 years or so I believe. Give Laura a call at 904-399-2121. She runs the place and does a great job. Tell her I sent you.

Post: need help flipping homes in the Jacksonville market!

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

I flip homes here basically full-time, along with owning some rentals and working with some investors as a realtor. I can tell you that the market has significantly tightened here and is continuing to tighten. Inventory has been dropping steadily for a year now. We're technically in a sellers market at about 4 months inventory. The competition is pushing some rehabbers out of the market and prices have actually been rising for the first time in years now. That said deals can still be found if your willing to put in the time and effort.

Post: Is it wise?

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

Auctions here is a tough way to get started. I spend countless hours going through the list of properties, comping the ones that might actually sell, driving all those properties, and then preparing our bids. I think to do it properly you need to be doing it full time. Just on auctions alone I spend at least 20 hours a week preparing our bids and this year I have only been averaging a property a month. There are several hedge funds buying here so anything that fits their criteria is an instapass for me. They pay 100% to 105% of ARV AT THE COUNTY AUCTION, lol.

I am actually considering starting a direct mail campaign. I think that may be an easier way for someone just starting out than the foreclosure auctions. The county auctions are very competitive, you can't get in the properties, the title is not guaranteed, and you have to pay all cash the same day as winning bid. None of that is likely involved in a straight off market purchase from a desperate seller.

Anyways I think you should have a few different ways of finding properties and there are plenty to choose from.

I work full time as an investor here in Jacksonville and also work with a few investors as a real estate agent. If you ever have any questions or just want to talk about real estate feel free to give me a call. I love talking real estate.

Post: New investor in Jacksonville

Tim CzarkowskiPosted
  • Involved In Real Estate
  • Jacksonville, FL
  • Posts 216
  • Votes 42

Hey Vitaly, I am a full time investor here in Jacksonville and also work with investors as a realtor. There are deals to be had here but you'll have to work for it, like most places. There are hedge funds buying here but if you stay out of their niche you can still find stuff. Anything decent in the MLS will get bid up, so that's not the best place to look for deals these days. Most realtors don't understand investing and honestly most of them don't really care for investors.

Wholesaling can be a tough racket but you can add me to your buyer's list. We make cash offers the same day with 10 day closes, so if you come across something that looks good certainly let me know.

Mountaineering sounds like a dream job, forget real estate, lol. Where do you work as a mountaineer? If you have any questions or just want to chat about real estate give me a call. I love talking about real estate.