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there's an entire forum section on books/gurus/programs. you should check it out.

i'm sorry to hear that. it sounds like she had a good long life. i'm sure she was just as glad to be with your family, as you were to have her.

-dean

i have to agree. that post was not only strange and out of the blue, but it seemed pretty rude.

i was reading a story about ray kroc (the guy that transformed mcdonald's from a drive-thru into a franchise monster). he was speaking to a group of college students, and he asked if anyone knew what business he was in. everyone looked around like he was joking, and finally someone raised their hand and said, "hamburgers." mr. kroc said, "no. real estate."

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i agree with the main point that you bring up. it's about what makes you happy, and that's different for everyone. but i'd like to bring a little perspective to your comments on people living on $65k a year. believe it or not, the majority of americans in fly-over country live on less than that. i live in dallas, tx, which is a large urban center, where we do have electricity and horseless carriages, and yet $65k a year is a comfortable living. now, i'm greedy, and i'd like to make considerably more than that. i plan on re-investing all my re earnings for awhile, while i live off my j o b. but i love my job, so it works well for me. when i've had enough, and i start looking at an early retirement, hopefully i'll have a healthy business ready to go.

-dean

john,

i wouldn't do a deal unless i can afford to make the payments out of my pocket. that's the good thing about getting started small (for me, anyways), that i can afford a vacancy (like the one i've had for a year now) without having to live under a bridge. it hurts, but i can still manage.

and as far as a mark-up, i would only price the property a few percent higher than FMV, with an interest rate hovering near 9% or 10%. i figure to give them about 5 years and then call the balance due (as per the contract, of course).

of course, it all depends on what a lawyer tells me.

-dean

john corey,

thanks for taking the time to answer. although, as you stated, you are not overly familiar with the texas market, i'm always amazed at how much information you have about different aspects of investing in different parts of the country. thanks for being such a regular contributor. as for my problem, i've resigned myself to the fact that i'll be needing an re attorney with some time on his hands. i want to do all my research on escape plans before i need them.

-dean

i saw on here somewhere (or maybe it was somewhere else...) a guy offering loans for multiple properties. something like a minimum of 5 props, or $1mil. and he was pushing the fact that they'll do it on your business name, not yours, thus freeing up your personal credit. i'll look around and see if i can find the name of the guy. in the meantime, maybe someone else will chime in. you might want to start contacting some mortgage brokers and see who else might offer something like that.

-dean

joeguz,

if i were you i'd find a mortgage broker that specializes in working with investors. where you're at, there shouldn't be any problems finding a local re investing club -and the money guys will be found there. i've only done 1 house, and i fha'd it with a 203k. what a royal pain in the rear. wish i could take it back. i got a great rate, but it was the biggest hassle to close, and took about 60 days... knowing what i know now, i would take one of the rehab loans. most are hard money, and are far from free. a "normal" hard money loan for about $90k, using the full 12 months, will probably cost you about $17k. and that's not with any equity paydown! and if you want/need to keep it for longer, remember that refinancing isn't free -you'll lose a few more thousand. so, if you're going to keep it as a rental, or to live in it, you'll need to plan that ahead of time with the loan product you use. i have found a couple that are closer to normal loans, in that they're only around 11%, with 3-5% on closing, 12 month terms -and they're for rehabs! i probably talked to a gazillion loan guys, and i wish i had done that before i got my first one. scott miller will probably chime in if he reads this. he had some good products, and he's very good at responding to all your questions. i haven't used him yet, but he sounds good. all the rest of the loan guys i've talked to are local to the dallas, tx area. alright, i'm starting to mumble... best of luck.

-dean

Jim,

Sorry I didn't call while I was home on leave. 2 weeks went by FAST! Not too much longer and I'll be home for good. Anyways, I've been doing a lot of shopping for loans, and I've found a few good things. Scott Miller, who's a pretty active member of this site, with EZLoans (Cataret Mortgage) had some good products, and he's very good about quickly responding to emails. Also, I found a couple of local guys that had some promising products. I plan on trying everybody at least once, and then picking the best. The last 2 guys I used were TERRIBLE, so I'd really like to find someone squared away that I can depend on. Anyways, I'll email you their info, and some of the products that I plan on using in the near future.

-Dean

vehicle mileage is always a good dedection, assuming it's not a "company" vehicle. if it were purchased for the business, i'm not sure how the mileage issue would work... i would imagine it wouldn't be deductible, since you already offset some profit with the purchase, and you might even be depreciating the vehicle. maybe someone else can chime in on that.

as far as the expenses incurred, you should be ok. pretty much any cash outlays you have are deductible against the profit made, but the actual manner you do it can differ. i would make sure that you keep good receipts and a mileage log (they sell little mileage books at office supply co's), and at the end of the year, depending on how much money is involved, you probably should have a cpa take a look. a little money with a cpa can make for a big return...

-dean