All Forum Posts by: Donna Smolinski

Jim Q,
If he moved out because of deployment, just have compassion and return his deposit in full, (other than a small cleaning fee). Don't waste your money on calling an attorney. If this ever goes to court, the judge would most likely rule in favor of the marine. When you rent to someone in active military, there is always the risk of deployment. Personally, I would thank him for his service, and wish him the best and return all monies, unless he left the place a mess. If he left it a mess, you better document it with photos and only debit him the actual cost of repairs.

Yes, I do understand that it's not always easy to get a quality, stable tenant in Oceanside. Just screen the new tenant good and you should be fine.

Jim Q,
Hello neighbor... I also live in Carlsbad!

Ok... here's how the CA law reads (no legal advise given). You are entitled to loss of rents/damages, HOWEVER you must make an attempt to rent the property for the remainder of the lease. Keep copies of ads or MLS data showing that you made full attempt to re-rent it. Any vacancy time can be deducted from the security deposit. Any remainder of the sec deposit must be refunded to the tenant in a timely fashion. You must itemize the costs deducted when sending any refund to the tenant.

Now, if you are unable to re-rent the home for the same price, the tenant can actually be liable for the difference, however, I wouldn't suggest taking it to court. Since I'm a Broker here in Carlsbad, I'm sure you will have it re-rented soon, as our rental market is very strong and you might have a hard time convincing a judge that you made full efforts to re-rent it.

Good luck... hope you get it rented real fast! And if it were me, I wouldn't send the full security deposit back. I assume you've lost at least a couple weeks. Deduct it! (Again, not legal advice).

Actually, I guess I should ask "why did he break the lease"?? Job Loss or issues with the property itself? Either one of these issues could possibly change your right of allowing you to deduct for any rental loss. And of course, if there was a job loss or health issue involved, compassion should be considered.

There's been sooooo many changes in the tax rules with these Short Sales, that it's very important to talk to a good tax consultant before entering into a Short Sale. At one time, forgiven debt was only tax free if it was "purchase money". Not sure if that's changed. In other words, if you refinanced and took cash out, then did a Short Sale (or even a foreclosure), then that debt would be taxable. Alot of people that were using their home as an ATM machine, took 100s of thousands in cash out over the years, then let the bank foreclose when there was no longer equity in the property. OOPS... those folks didn't realize the forgiven debt would be taxed! Quite frankly, I think that those who used their homes as ATM machines for, should pay tax on the debt! On the other hand, I'm glad to see they relaxed the tax law for the poor homeowners who have gone through tough times.

ALBERT,
I LOVE your idea of buying the Home Warranty every year. What a GREAT idea... I never thought about it! I self manage, and rarely have problems, but what a great insurance for little cost. Thank you for sharing :):)

Steve... the bootcamp I went to in 2010 primarily focused on buying & rehabbing to flip BUT they covered ALOT of other topics, including formation of LLCs, corps, etc. They went into wholesaleing a little bit, buying notes, etc. I actually felt they tried to diversify a little too much for one bootcamp because I noticed alot of the folks were getting overwhelmed, particularly the ones that were really newbies. All in all, their info was very good for the ones who had a little bit of experience under their belt, but they should have cut out some of the material. And yes, they DID suggest it was a GREAT idea to raise credit card limits to help finance the investments. And I'm sure they wanted to suggest raising credit card limits to help also pay for their mentor program
:(:( NOT A GOOD IDEA IMO!

Anyway, I'm sure they've revised their bootcamp since then, and maybe revised their prices too. I'm not sure, because I didn't feel the need for further training with them, so I haven't followed their offers.

On one of the afternoons, they put us all in a bus and took us to 3 of their properties. First one was just purchased and barely started, 2nd one was midway in renovation and the last one was completed and on the market. This was a great exercise for the newbies. I'm in San Diego, so they had properties here to share with us. Obviously they can't offer this in parts of the country where they do not invest.

All in all.... I'd say they are pretty good guys who know the business very well, but I don't agree with all of their concepts. Also, I feel their prices are pretty hefty (but that may have changed now).

::)) Good choice Will. Enjoy it. I'm sure you will get something from it.

You mentioned "wholesaling" in your last post. You might want to consider fix n flip first, so you'll have a better idea of what the end buyer/Investor will be expecting from a wholesaler. The market is pretty rough right now, as far as finding good values, but if you are patient and do your homework, you can still find them. It's going to be harder to find a good enuf buy to build in a profit on wholesaling, verses buying to fix n flip or hold.

Let us know how you like the 3 day class. Did you say it's only $197? DAMN.... We paid $1995 for boot camp 2 yrs ago with Fortune Builders! And if I recall, it was only 4 days. So you are getting a good buy! ::))

Will,

Yes I attended their free 1 day seminar, and then paid for a 3 or 4 day bootcamp 2 yrs ago (can't remember if it was 3 or 4 days). These guys know the biz and if you are a newbie, you'll learn something. However, most newbies found it a little overwhelming as there's alot of stuff crammed into a few day. When my hubbie and I took the bootcamp, we already had 10 flips under our belts, so we had a leg up on most others who were attending. Based on our knowledge prior to attending, we didn't learn much more than we already knew, but we certainly picked up a few tips. We were having a terrible time finding a decent insurance company to insure our vacant homes during renovation. Thru them, we found a decent company.

On the negative side, be prepared for A WHOLE LOT of upselling! It was actually getting quite annoying. We almost left early because of the excessive upselling.

Anyway, in a nutshell, you will definitely learn some things at the bootcamp if you are pretty new in the fix n flip biz. I would recommend their bootcamp. However, their $40k mentoring program is way too high. Leave your checkbook and credit cards at home if you go to the bootcamp! LOL

Yes, that's true Karen. Thanks for the clarification. I only mentioned this, because I have seen many contractors use unlicensed helpers on the job who are NOT covered under Workmans Comp which can be a liability issue if they are hurt on the job. Also, if using subs, the homeowner should get a copy of the sub's license & insurance.

If you aren't doing a major rehab, you shouldn't need to be there to oversee work since it will be vacant. As the previous poster said, use a combo lockbox, but put TWO on the property, just in case one forgets to put the key back. If you are doing much more than simple carpet, paint and minor repairs, you should be ok. Ask contractors for a copy of their license before you hire them. If they are using workers, make sure they also have Worker's Compensation insurance! MANY contractors do not have this, even though they are required to. I ALWAYS check the site on the state contractors board too, for current licensing info. If you are looking for contractors, try Angie's List. I've had good success several times from that site. Good luck!

I'm not sure about other regioins, but here in San Diego County, most Homepath properties are listed OVER FMV or it's a complete dump, and still listed over FMV based on condition. I think their strategy is this: List it high during the 1st Look period, knowing their market will be much greater when it opens to Investors too. Then after 30 days of no offers, they do a pretty good price reduction. If no offers in 45-60 days, they bite on a lowball offer or make another reduction. I've never liked working with FNMA, but you can get a good buy once it sits on the market for awhile. New listings are just too high priced here.