All Forum Posts by: Bart Ford

So not exactly a new member, but it's been so long since I've used BP that I feel I've got to reintroduce myself.

Back in April a combination of not finding any great deals, not knowing how I would get the money if I found one and getting extremely busy at work knocked me on a course for a while.

In August, I'll be starting as a pre-doctoral fellow in the biology department of The University of Tulsa. I don't know how one gets their PhD and grows a real estate investment portfolio at the same time, but we'll see how it goes. Ideally, I could find a two story four-plex and move the family to the two upstairs units and rent out the bottom two. 

Anyway, I want to stay in touch on BP and Tulsa REIA, so that when the opportunity presents itself, I'm ready.

Bart

Hey @Account Closed I would strongly suggest finding multifamily unit that you can move into, as suggested by the others. I wish I had started that path when I was your age!

Let us know how it turns out.

@Jason Windholz 

I should clarify that my criticism of the speaker should not be construed as criticism of the Tulsa REIA or the individual organizers of the event. I can imagine that it is expensive to get speakers in and if they have a product to pitch, they don't charge as much. I just didn't find value in the product offering and wish there was a little less fluff in the presentation. The latter being true of almost every real estate presentation I've heard.

My ex's parents used to flip houses. They used Joseph McCormick (http://www.mccormickandfield.com/). One time when I was having some trouble with a fraudulent credit card processor he gave me a lot of good advice for no charge. So, I always said that I would give him my business if I ever needed a RE lawyer. I haven't talked to him in years and I haven't ever used him professionally, but I would recommend that he be one of the three you interview. 

Awesome! 

Welcome to BP! You did indeed find the city of gold when it comes to real estate knowledge on the internet.

I don't know anything about that book, but here's what I do the night before the exam. I get a good night's sleep, wake up early, exercise for 15-20 minutes (gets the brain working), then casually review the material before the test.

Don't sweat it. You'll do great.

I think you should look at your historical cash flow over the course of your ownership. Is it meeting your expectations? Have expenses increased? If you are happy with it, I might not take the risk of losing a good tenant, but if your margin is shrinking to the point where you question the investment, you've got no choice but to raise rent.

I have a small commercial property that I manage mom-and-pop style. At the end of December, when leases came time to renew one tenant said she and her husband were about to make an offer on a property and asked to go month-to-month. I said sure and within a month they had another place under contract. 

Long story short, that contract has fallen through. So I need to get her under a lease again. She is probably going to say that they are still looking and she wants to stay month to month. I'm considering several options:

• Be hard nosed and demand a 1 year lease. 
• Be nice and include a clause in the lease that allows them to terminate the lease contingent on them closing on another commercial property and with no less than 60 days notice. (Perhaps I could include a "lease termination fee" in there)
• Be a bit of an ******* and find another tenant willing to sign a multi-year lease, then kick them out. I probably won't do this, but it is a consideration. 
• If she flat out refuses anything other than month to month I think I may choose to evict. I know that's a pain, but its not like I'd be loosing a long term tenant. It may not necessarily be the most financially prudent thing to do, but I don't want to be pushed around.

What are your thought, BP?