All Forum Posts by: DJ Cummins

Thank you all for your responses.  The IRS did receive our taxes, but they were post marked after March 15th(werent completed until March 24th it looks like).  We are going to go ahead and pay the fine, and have a talk with our CPA about possibly getting some/all of that money back.  Tough spot as he is a close family friend.

DJ

Thanks all.  We had to file paper copies this year because my wife's SSN was stolen last year and used to file a fraudulent tax return.  Her company had a breach and 90% of the employees and fraudulent returns filed.  it was a mess. 

Good morning everyone,

So last night I got a letter in the mail saying that our business tax returns were never received, and my wife and I are each being fined $195.00. We own 3 different LLC's, and Mailed all 3 returns (prepared by our CPA) on April 4th. Apparently the other 2 business tax returns found their way to the IRS.

Do I have any options here?  Is there anyway that I can contest this?  I didn't send the paperwork as certified(that will never happen again) so I don't really have any proof.  Something tells me that they won't just take my word for it.  

I finally feel like I have a really solid grasp on this whole REI thing, and then something like this pops up, and I am not sure if there are any options for us other than just paying the stupid fine. The letter said we have to have the $390 check post marked by June 18th.

Thank you in advance!

DJ

Hello @Ben Davis,

The beauty about this business is that you can literally change your path as needed. My goal is the same as you, to scale into apartment buildings. I started with a 4 plex, and have actually moved to SFH for my last two purchases. I am growing the boring(slow way). I am not using any of my equity. It has taken three years to get to this point, and i have learned a lot. We have quite a bit of equity now, and it continues to grow a bit more each month with debt paydown. Right now my wife and i are on a path to purchase two more SFH's in the next 1.5-2 years. Once we get that done, we should have the equity built up to refi all of our properties, and get into a larger apartment. For the equity we will have, we will be able to get into a 16-24 unit apartment building with 20% down. Whatever route you take, just keep your eye on the prize and you will get there.

Good luck!

DJ 

Hello @Patrick Owens,

It sounds like you are in a good spot either way.  It will really come down to your personal preference.  i Agree with @George Griffith about the monopoly game, but dont make any moves that you might not be comfortable with.  If you are still up in the air, could you put 20% down on 2 properties rather than three?  You could keep any left over cash for reserves, and once you are feeling confident you are well on your way to rental number three.  I have been in the game for a few years now, so if i had a large influx coming my way, i would be comfortable with leveraging it out on a few properties.  You could always pay cash for the 1 property, and get us to the landlord process for a year or two, and once you feel like you are ready to grow your business, you could refi that property and buy a few more.  

You have options, and that is all that matters.  Do what you are comfortable with :)

Good luck!

DJ

Hey all, I am on the job search and was wondering...do you have anything on your resume about being a Real Estate Investor? I currently do not but am contemplating adding it. Thanks, DJ

@Joe M. i agree, i would keep your current home since it has good long term financing on it.  $200-300 might not sound like a ton of cash flow, but that could pay a large portion of your new mortgage on a new house.  You could repeat this process a few times over the next few years, and have eventually have enough rentals to be paying your mortgage. :)

Hi @Danny Amorando  Reading books, plus this site is a great way to keep learning.  I listen to at least 1 podcast per day at work.  I think i have heard them all a few times now :).

My favorite motivation is reading the success stories section on the forums here.  It keeps the motivation up, and the creative juices flowing! 

Good Luck!

DJ

Hi @Paul LaSpina,

Just my 2 cents, but i would recommend reviewing all of the leads you come across in depth.  At least for a while.  Once you do it for a bit, you can tell if something is a good deal within a couple of minutes.  That is what i would say.  And the 2% rule is very hard to find these days, so i wouldnt rule out properties because they don't hit that.  

50% rule could give you a quick idea on if its worth pursuing though.  Being a Pro member on BP here lets you use all of their calculators, and that is a huge help as well. 

Good luck!

DJ

Quick question... if your stove, fridge, etc breaks who pays to get it fixed? Is there a certain price that if a repair is under that the tenant is responsible for? Any items the tenant is responsible for? Trying to solve a debate here :) Thanks, DJ