All Forum Posts by: Jon Carcone

Thomas-- I am in the process of getting my realtors license so I have access.

I think it's worth it so you have access to all the REO listings, as well as the most accurate system to do comps.

It's boring but the few weeks or month you spend studying will probably (I'm assuming) be worth it if you're serious about being an investor.

Thanks for the replies everyone. Properties that satisfy the 2% rule are not easy to come by in the metro DC area, but I understand the implications of not having enough rent to cover the various expenses associated with a rental.

I was more asking if there is some creative option like a sub2 or lease option that might make this deal make sense. And, if so, how you'd structure it.

There may not be, but I was curious to get some opinions.

Stephani,

You have access to the MLS then I assume in order to find the contact information for the listing realtors?

Thanks,
Jon

Hey Guys,

I was hoping you could give me some guidance on how to approach a potential deal.

The seller is asking 430,000 for a SFH and the gross rent is 3500/mo-- utilities and non-cap expenses (up to about $200) are paid by the tenants which, in this case, are college students.

He owes about 60k still on this as he has owned this for a number of years. He is willing to carry some of the financing.

If you'd go after a proeprty like this at all, how would you structure a deal in terms of offer price and the right a combination of owner and bank financing to make this work?

thanks for any insight,
jon

Thanks for the guidance. Since they're less than cooperative is the trick just to be politely persistent and keep asking or is there something specific i should be saying/doing?

Like are they required to provide it or are they bending the rules by giving that information out?

thanks

Stephen-- Will all title companies have this list of non owner occupied properties? Is there a specific type of title company i should be looking for?

Thanks

I'm having problems getting lists of properties in northern virginia with code violations and with out of state owners. I've called a couple of times and keep getting told by the courthouse that they don't have lists of properties meeting these criteria and the only way they can tell you if the owner is out of state or has a code violation is to give the property's address.

I am planning to go down in person and try that way, but do you guys have any tips? Are there counties where they really don't provide lists of properties meeting those criteria?

Thanks

What does everyone use to write offers? Some people in my local REIA were talking about how they use Zipform. I looked it up online and it looks decent.

What does everyone use? Something like zipform or you just have the contracts already and send them off when you're making offers?

thanks

Whoops-- I'll do a search.

Hey All,

Is this worth doing for a starting out investor? I recently bought an online realtor course and have been working on getting through it so i can get licensed.

My thought is that there are a lot of newbie investors out there and it's hard for the more seasoned people to tell who is really committed to it and who is not. Having a license should indicate a certain baseline level of competence and seriousness, so I am hoping it will help in a) getting access to the MRIS and b) getting someone who can help me out as a mentor.

Curious to get other thoughts though.

jon