All Forum Posts by: Danny Duran

@Brie Schmidt that's awesome! Thanks for helping me get started investing in Chicago. Let me know if you want to celebrate and we'll be there.

@Elizabeth J. I also use William paid, suggested to me by Brie Schmidt. It has worked well so far I just started using it last month. I did not offer an incentive to my tenants for using it. I simply stated that this is the preferred method of collection and encouraged it strongly with them as a way to avoid lateness and associated fees. My tenants have an appetite for using online payment means. I suspect that older tenants may not be as willing to adopt something like that and might prefer paper methods of payment. Overall, I think offering incentives to pay rent a particular way creates a bad precedent for the tenants.

Matthew--yep, I used Kevin Lochen per @Cliff Mccue  's reference and it has worked out very well. I recommend him. 

@Nathan Grant send me a private message. I've got someone for you. Diligent, professional, and efficient. 

Hey welcome to Chicago! I am currently in the process of buying a four unit building in the north side of Chicago. My real estate broker is @Brie Schmidt . She specializes in helping investors get started with multi family properties. Hugely helpful to me.

You should get in touch with @George Foster for your general contractor needs. He's not only a contractor but a registered broker, inspector. He has this great software for mapping out renovations. I hope to see you around at the meet ups in Chicago. Good luck on the move here.

I can't really comment on areas that are up-and-coming in the west suburbs. I don't know from experience, but, I've heard that Berwyn is on the rise.

@Crystal Smith the loan I'm working with is Freddie backed. Looks like Land Trust acquisition isn't going to be possible for me in this situation. Thanks for responding to the post, though!

What are the best Black Friday deals for landlords? I'm about to become one and I'd like to take advantage of the best offers. Thanks!

@Emma Chen you should listen to this podcast: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2014/05/29/managing-tenants-section-8-mark-ainley/

@Mark Ainley is very knowledgable on section 8 tenants and manages a bunch of them. 

@J. Martin would you mind tagging the attorney panelist from the SF networking event? Would love to get his opinion. Thx!

@Wayne Brooks We live in a country obsessed with litigation. When you title your real estate holdings in land trusts, you appear broke to the public. This discourages contingency-based attorneys since they believe they probably won't collect anything from you even if they did obtain a judgment.

Since only the trustee (or the trust name) appears on title, the beneficiary remains private. This level of privacy offers numerous advantages including the ability to conduct business without making your affairs known to the world. Walt Disney used land trusts when buying up tracts of land in order to build Walt Disney World. If people knew that Walt Disney was buying up land, then prices would have certainly skyrocketed.

When a property is sold, a deed is recorded in the county recorder’s office where the property is located. Most states require the payment of a deed tax. This is often noted on the deed and is usually based on the sales price of the property. This information is then filed in the public tax records for the world to see. However, if you sell a property you own in a land trust, you can simply sell the “beneficial interest” in the trust without making any transfer information available.

Tax assessors often watch for properties to be sold so they can increase taxable values. In many states, there is a significant increase in property taxes after each sale. However, when an "Assignment of Beneficial Interest" is sold, one avoids any public record of the sale or the price paid.

Source:http://www.dealmakerlibrary.com/10-Reasons-to-Use-Land-Trusts-to-Buy-Real-Estate.aspx