All Forum Posts by: Derek Luttrell

@Caleb Heimsoth I agree. I actually countered that I would pay the $139,000 they were asking for if they gave me immediate possession on 8/3, but they were a family with kids and said the extended possession was a must. Onto the next one. 

@Mike Cumbie good point about the possession. Who knows what kind of condition the house could have been in after a weekend of a family moving out. Holes in walls, trash, unwanted personal belongings, all could have been left behind and I would have been SOL. 

@Will Gaston that's a nice perspective. I should be more excited about the deal itself, and less about just adding something to my portfolio. I need to remember that the benefit of being an investor is that we can be picky, and there's always something else out there. 

I'm in my acquisition stage, and put an offer on what would have been my 4th purchase in the past 12 months on Monday. It was a 3/2 single family in a top school district, asking $144,000. I offered $135,000 with 20% down and to close on 7/20/18. They countered at $139,000 and to close on 8/3/18, plus they wanted 3 days' possession so they could move out over that weekend. 

That weekend following 8/3/18 would have been valuable time for me to put in new flooring and start showing to applicants. I'm out of state, about 2 hours away, so I would have had to waste a week before getting the chance to be back in town. They wouldn't budge from their counter, and I did not want to overpay AND give up the 3 days' possession, so I walked. 

Part of me wants to feel proud for not "chasing the deal" just to get my fix of an acquisition, but part of me wonders if it's petty to walk away over $4,000 stretched over a 30 year loan. However, it would have added $800 to my down payment, and the lost opportunity cost of the week I would have waited to be back in town. Anyone out there with a similar experience, or an opinion? 

Hi Everyone, 

Just wanted to share a small victory from this week. This Tuesday, I closed on my 3rd property since July 2017. As of last night (Thursday), I now have a signed lease with a paid security deposit ($1350) and June's rent ($1350). My tenants seem great, are definitely financially capable, and their previous landlord had great reviews (they rented from her for almost 3 years). 

I'm enjoying the experience, and hope to close on #4 and #5 by the time I turn 27 in March 2019. 

@Account Closed thanks for the input. There are only three 3 bed, 2 baths available in the entire zip code, and I listed mine to match up with the highest priced competition. You could be right, and mine might be the most desirable because of its quality and walkability to an elementary, middle, and high school (all schools that I attended while growing up). 

I wasn't sure about being the highest priced product on the market, but I also wasn't anticipating having four physical showings the morning after posting the ad. 

@Michael Garofalo thank you for the insight. Right after posting this I received their official application, and more info came to light....such as having 4 pets, they are a single-income household, and both primary applicants are smokers. 

You're right, there is definitely other interest. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't drafting a wrongful rejection e-mail, as they were the first ones to submit the formal application. 

Hey Everyone, 

I closed on my first out of state rental today--it's my hometown in Indiana, but I live in Chicago now. My dad is still in this town.

Anyway, I put up an online ad yesterday, had my closing at 9:00 a.m. this morning, and then had 4 showings/applicants at noon today. One told me that it will be her, her husband, their young grandson, and that her adult daughter and her boyfriend plan to move into town and stay with her "while establishing themselves." I told her that every adult occupant needs to fill out the application and be screened, and she said that "doesn't know when they're actually moving in," and it would be difficult and time-consuming to get them to fill out the application. Because of this, she wants to apply just with her and her husband. 

Am I right in thinking that this is not an acceptable request? Even if she doesn't know when exactly they're moving in, if it's a possibility at all, I'm allowed to require that they apply beforehand, right? 

My biggest fear is losing momentum on my earnings/W2 to the extent that my REI growth comes to a halt.

I graduated college 4 years ago and got into commissioned sales, and my W2s have been $35k, $44k, $74k, $154k, and now in 2018 I am pacing for $230k. I know for a fact I can do big things in real estate as long as I keep this streak alive at my day job (I am under contract on my 3rd property since July 2017). The fear of plateauing in real estate is my ultimate motivator to keep my performance up at work.