All Forum Posts by: Craig Janet

I'm curious how it got to this point. You don't provide much details. Usually with an insurance claim, they will send out an adjuster, then they give you a summary of the damages and how much the insurance is going to pay. Then YOU go out and get a contractor that will agree to the repairs for a price. The agreed price should be close to the insurance's settlement unless there is addition work the adjuster missed. Then the insurance will issue a check to you and the contractor once the work is complete.

So where did this deal go wrong?

After a hurricane, I used to bring my roofers beer. They weren't getting wasted. They would take a break, drink a couple beers to cool off, then back to work for hours. A crew of 4 guys would go through a case a day. It didn't bother me. 

I have 15 LTRs and when I talk about my rentals to friends and family, I usually talk about the crazy bad stuff. Like the evictions, nasty tenants, all the stupid stuff tenants do, etc. Its just good to laugh it off with other people. I don't talk about how much money I'm making, how awesome it is to not work a W2 job, all the free time I have to fish and travel with my wife. It just seems like bragging.

So maybe everyone hears all the bad stories and just repeats them. 

Don't let all the guru's fool you. They say you don't need a lot of cash. Real Estate takes a lot cash and a lot of credit. You can't get either unless you have a good paying job. If your school is paid for by scholarships, you would be a fool not to go. A fulltime student only goes to school a around 3-4 hours a day. That leaves plenty of time to get a job and save, save, save. If you can get a job in construction that would be best. I was lucky to get scholarships, live at home with parents for free. I saved up enough in college to buy my first home at 22 while my friends were still partying and I rented out my extra room to them. 

A middle ground would be to learn a trade such as HVAC. You will learn valuable skills in construction that will save you thousands and you will earn a higher salary at a younger age.

I wouldn't pull any permits. It's not rocket science any licensed electrician should handle this easily. Would you pull a permit to add a outlet in your living room? Not in my area. The expensive part depends on how far the plug will be from the breaker box.  

I'm stashing cash. Getting 5% on T bills and CD's is hard to pass up with the high cost of real estate, higher interest rates, rising insurance rates, rising maintenance and materials. Real estate is not worth the extra risk and headache for a few percentage points of ROI. In my market I need housing prices to decline and rents to increase. I'm always looking for deals but they just aren't there.

Just start listing all your other requirements to them, credit score, income, previous landlords etc. Then they will likely just move on.

20 inches seems like a lot, why doesn't he put it on his property? 

 Nice job calling her bluff. Now proceed with the eviction hearing. She won't show up and the judge will rule in your favor. You may not get any money out of it but now she will have a eviction on her record. You may save some other landlord the headache of this deadbeat tenant.

If there was no unexpected cost, such as rotten floors, shoddy electrical, had to reroute plumbing that couldn't be seen in the initial bid or you changed to more expensive materials. Then he simply under bid the job and is legally obligated to finish the job at the agreed price. It's very common for contractors to under bid to get the job, blow through the first couple of draws, and then near the end ask for more money. Tell him to give you a list with invoices of all the expenses. Ask why were they more than expected. If you don't agree, pay him for what work has been done and get someone else to finish.