All Forum Posts by: Dominic Mazzarella

Hello Bigger Pockets family

My wife and I are selling a single-family rental property we’ve owned for 18 years in Portland Oregon. We want to do a 1031 exchange and buy a property outside of Oregon. We’re told by our accountant that we would be on the hook For up to $34,000 in taxes based on the fact that we 1031 exchanged into this property 18 years ago and all the depreciation recapture, etc.

Does anyone have any recommendations on strategies for limiting what Oregon will claim that we owe them after the sale of our property and successful 1031 exchange out of state?

Our proceeds from the sale will be around $150,000 that we will exchange into another property and State and we would have to come up with that $34,000 tax bill from somewhere out of our own pocket during the 2025 tax season

Any help/ tax strategies for avoiding some or are all of this would be much appreciated!

Matt

Hello, 

Since google search traffic is down since the launch of ChatGPT and other AI chat bots. 

Curious if to has anyone has heard of anyone in real estate optimizing their websites to funnel traffic from these chat bots?

I feel like there could be a major opportunity for people to capitalize on with people asking ChatGPT questions like "Where is the best place to live in XYZ" or "what type of house can I buy on X salary", or really just any question they may have about real estate. 

I've done this for my own real estate tech startup and we've seen a majority of our organic traffic coming from ChatGPT. 

Would love to hear if anyone's experimented with this or seen results.

Not everyone sells their note right away. Sometimes it’s a life event, sometimes it’s just better returns elsewhere.

Curious from this community: if you were holding a note, what would be the main reason you’d decide to sell?

Hi everyone, I do cold calls for real estate and I know my accent is strong. I tend to read scripts word-for-word, which makes me sound flat. I want to sound more natural and conversational. What exercises or tips have helped you improve your phone voice?

You make a really good point, Dominic. By the time it reaches foreclosure, the major financial hit has already happened—the real decision often comes down to whether they minimize the damage or let it spiral. Pride definitely plays a big role, and unfortunately, I’ve seen homeowners choose to “lose big” rather than confront the situation early.

That’s why having open conversations and offering clear, judgment-free guidance as early as possible is so important. Sometimes just knowing there are options can help people avoid the worst-case scenario.

My apologies for the confusion. I'll clarify, Drew. I started texting around 2019; however, it wasn't my primary marketing channel and I wasn't doing a ton of volume until early-2022. Due to market saturation, I stopped in late-2022. 

I started again in October 2023 after the 10 DLC regulations went into effect. It essentially gave us a blank slate to work with as it eliminated all foreign marketing companies from texting because you need an American LLC to become compliant. At the same time, most domestic investors were lost on how to get their accounts compliant, so this eliminated over 90% of the investors who were texting sellers.

After a year break, I started back again and now it's my primary marketing channel. Please let me know if you want me to elaborate.

 Hi Dominic - do you have any suggestions on who to use for a Registered Agent?  Think I need one in state and can't just use my out-of-state mailing address.

I had an interesting conversation recently that really made me stop and think.

A fellow investor told me they avoid buying from homeowners in foreclosure because they feel it’s “taking advantage of people in crisis.” On the other hand, another investor argued that buying distressed properties helps homeowners by giving them a way out when no one else will.

Two completely different perspectives. Same situation.

Here’s where it gets tricky:

• Some sellers are truly relieved to have a fast, clean exit.

• Others feel pressured and walk away feeling like they lost.

• And investors, depending on their approach, can either build trust or burn bridges.

So, I’m curious how the community views this:

• Do you think buying from distressed homeowners is helping or exploiting?

• Have you ever walked away from a deal because it didn’t “feel right”?

• Where do you personally draw the ethical line?

Dear BP community, 

I am an out of state landlord with a rental property in Bluffton SC. I had tenants move into the townhouse earlier this year. My contractor rehabbed the townhouse and the unit was given to the tenants in pristine condition.. I visited Bluffton last month and walked through the unit, which was in great condition. However the tenant mentioned that she was getting bitten on her bed but her partner was not. We walked through the unit and there were no signs of bed bugs, and my contractor assured me that there was no infestation. I continued to follow up with the tenant asking her if the issue persisted and she emailed me to let me know that there were no more issues at the property. Fast forward to yesterday, I scheduled my regular quarterly inspection of the home with my contractor. The downstairs was very clean but when he went upstairs, he noticed black stuff all over the walls and in the outlets. It was pretty bad. The tenants have their 24 year old nephew living in the upstairs bedroom. He was obviously aware of the infestation since he had a can of insecticide that he was spraying. The tenants claimed that they were not aware of the infestation since they do not go upstairs and the nephew did not mention anything to them. Could you please let me know if the tenants are liable for the damages? Do I need to seek legal counsel if they refuse to pay? They have a guarantor on the lease as well. I do not mind covering some of the costs but as I understand, this is going to be expensive. I have a Bed Bug Addendum in my lease which states that they need to inform me immediately when there is an infestation of any kind or it is a breach of the lease. Thank you in advance for any guidance that you can provide.