All Forum Posts by: David Casas

Does anyone work with a tech-saavy, driven Real Estate Agent that works well with Real Estate Investors and/or has good contacts/connections in the Northern/Central NJ area? Looking to fix and flip while the market is hot and then get in to Rental Properties of Multifamily homes once the bubble bursts.

Thank you,

David

@William Beck Add me to your list. Looking to invest and partner up within the next 2 months. I have a good contractor contact and I’m willing to form partnerships to invest in a few more properties.

@Tom Gimer Thank you for all your help. I did my own research and found the title to be free and clear (as you stated), and no outstanding taxes or HOAs due on the property. The unit, however, is in COMPLETE disrepair, and with my calculations, the best offer I can make is about $50k. The bank is looking for $140k if they want to sell prior to auction, which is just not going to happen for me, so I will just bid until $50k and if someone else takes it, so be it. I've learned a lot in this first analysis and I really appreciate your input and help taking a look at this listing.

David

Tom,

Thank you for the reply. It is currently owned by the bank. Was transferred to the Sheriff for $1k, then bank took over, and now it is being sold on auction by the bank. If it is owned by the bank, and going on auction, can I put in a pre-foreclosure offer (an offer before it goes on auction)?

Also, do I purchase title insurance PRIOR to the auction, and home inspection prior to the auction? Sounds risky to put all that money up front and potentially not get the deal.

I am digging deeper into the paperwork myself and it seems as though there are some liens on the property previous to when it was transferred to the bank. Could there also be potential unpaid taxes and home association fees (since it is a condo)? I will be calling the Condo Management tomorrow to ask about the overdue HOAs, but how do I find out about overdue taxes? public record on the tax assessor's website?

David

There is an auction starting very soon on a property. I am looking to close quickly. 2 bed 2 bath condo unit. Bid starting at roughly 27k. The unit is in complete disrepair (All appliances, carpet, cabinets, kitchen, bedrooms, and bathrooms need rehab. Windows are fine, some spots need drywall patches, we will do the painting ourselves).

At the auction, they require a “Buyer’s Premium equal to 5% of the Winning Bid Amount or $2,500 (whichever is greater) will be added to all Winning Bid Amounts to determine the Total Purchase Price.”, “an Earnest Money Deposit of 5% of the total purchase price or $2,500 (whichever is greater) is required of the winner”, title fees, which typically cost between $500 and $1500 and are based on the purchase price, and escrow fees typically ranging between $850 to $1,375, paid in accordance with the applicable purchase sale agreement.

What concerned me about the listing are 2 things:

Buyer will receive a Special Warranty Deed or equivalent.

And

Property is being offered as is, where is.

I am 100% new to fix and flips, and auctions. My questions are as follows:

What is a special warranty deed? I did some research on the term, but am still unclear.

Should I contact a lawyer and request a research of the chain of title?

How do I get title insurance? Can I get title insurance on an auctioned property?

Should I have a home inspection done prior to the auction, or does the auction allow for contingencies prior to transfer of the lien in case the property is not up to par?

How much cash should I have on hand, aside from the 5% earnest money deposit, at the auction? Are they expecting cash in full on the property at auction? If so, does anyone know any good hard money lenders in the area?

I have a contractor that is a close family friend coming with me tomorrow to check the property and give me an estimate of labor costs, and my grandfather works at Home Depot, so I will be going with him to take down all material costs we will need for the full rehab, and I will then be using the bigger pockets fix and flip calculator to see what my max bid should be in order to turn a decent profit. I just need to know the ins and outs of auctions, lien disputes, and hard cash lender info in NJ to complete most of my research.

Also, is there anything else I am missing in my due diligence against this auction fix and flip? The auction is in 10 days, so I️ am looking to try and put in an offer before the auction starts to get in early.

Any and all help is welcome.

Thank you to this great community. I️ have been a Pro member for under a week and am already seeing the great benefits this community can bring!

David

There is an auction starting very soon on a property. I am looking to close quickly. 2 bed 2 bath condo unit. Bid starting at roughly 27k. The unit is in complete disrepair (All appliances, carpet, cabinets, kitchen, bedrooms, and bathrooms need rehab. Windows are fine, some spots need drywall patches, we will do the painting ourselves). At the auction, they require a “Buyer’s Premium equal to 5% of the Winning Bid Amount or $2,500 (whichever is greater) will be added to all Winning Bid Amounts to determine the Total Purchase Price.”, “an Earnest Money Deposit of 5% of the total purchase price or $2,500 (whichever is greater) is required of the winner”, title fees, which typically cost between $500 and $1500 and are based on the purchase price, and escrow fees typically ranging between $850 to $1,375, paid in accordance with the applicable purchase sale agreement. What concerned me about the listing are 2 things: Buyer will receive a Special Warranty Deed or equivalent. And Property is being offered as is, where is. I am 100% new to fix and flips, and auctions. My questions are as follows: What is a special warranty deed? I did some research on the term, but am still unclear. Should I contact a lawyer and request a research of the chain of title? How do I get title insurance? Can I get title insurance on an auctioned property? Should I have a home inspection done prior to the auction, or does the auction allow for contingencies prior to transfer of the lien in case the property is not up to par? How much cash should I have on hand, aside from the 5% earnest money deposit, at the auction? Are they expecting cash in full on the property at auction? If so, does anyone know any good hard money lenders in the area? I have a contractor that is a close family friend coming with me tomorrow to check the property and give me an estimate of labor costs, and my grandfather works at Home Depot, so I will be going with him to take down all material costs we will need for the full rehab, and I will then be using the bigger pockets fix and flip calculator to see what my max bid should be in order to turn a decent profit. I just need to know the ins and outs of auctions, lien disputes, and hard cash lender info in NJ to complete most of my research. Also, is there anything else I am missing in my due diligence against this auction fix and flip? The auction is in 10 days, so I️ am looking to try and put in an offer before the auction starts to get in early. Any and all help is welcome. Thank you to this great community. I️ have been a Pro member for under a week and am already seeing the great benefits this community can bring! David

Kerry,

Thanks so much for the feedback. I thought up a few more questions to ask the lenders and will start shopping around to find money lenders and real estate agents tomorrow.

Any other advice for finding good soft/hard money lenders that you found useful in your area? I'm just trying to get my foot in the door, so I figured knocking on all doors I can think of will be the approach for now. Any doors I'm over-looking in my search for a good lender and/or real estate agent?

I'll be checking the typical Century21s and national banks starting tomorrow, but I know there are private lenders I can find. I began looking in to the public records of mortgages in my county and seeing who the lenders were, and doing my research to find a time to meet with them. Are there any other ways to find lenders at my stage in the game?

Thanks again,

David

Good afternoon all,

I am starting my journey, and am very very excited to get going with the nitty-gritty of getting to know my area's best and brightest and building my Real Estate Investing Team to have a solid foundation. I have a basic strategy I would like to run by some of you more experienced REIs:

To find the best Real Estate Agents with an investor mindset, talk to many lenders (Mortgage company, private hard money lenders, banks, etc) and ask for their referrals, or whose name they see the most in their paperwork

To find the best Real Estate Lenders, talk to many Real Estate Agents and ask for referrals for REI Lenders.

I will be going in to banks and real estate agencies to start interviewing these lenders and RE Agents, and I was wondering, what questions would you ask a real estate lender? What questions would you ask a real estate Agent? Do you ask for contact info of past clients on the first meet? I want to be sure I am properly vetting them and doing my due diligence to build a great team.

Thank you,

David