All Forum Posts by: Duke Marquiss

I find that a warm buck of water and some tide powder soap in the water and then on the wetted floor and scrub with a good stiff bristled brush.  May take several tries but it will get most of it.  You may be able to get a company to do the epoxy paint do the work and have them polish the floor before application.  I do have a company that does that but they are about $4/sf.  If you need anything more, feel free to contact me.

Check with a title company or a real estate attorney.  They can guide you.  Every state is somewhat different but each state has a condo statute.  Good luck.

You are in a good place, it just takes a little time.  I can give you a good agent that speaks "investorese " and a good property management company.  The numbers worker better in Cheyenne than they do in Fort Collins or Greeley.

Duke Marquiss

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You will do well. You have made the decision to do it and now you have to execute. It is a lot like baseball. Not every swing of the bat will result in a home run, however, if you don't swing, you will never hit the ball. 

Good luck. 

Jerry,  when I first started buying notes, I had the same feeling as you.  I wanted to buy a discounted note in Fort Collins or at least along the front range of Colorado.  I wanted it to be secured by a 3 bedroom 2 bath 2 car attached garage in a nice neighborhood.

I found out that that note did not exist.  In the last three years we have purchased over 400 notes in 18 different states - all non performing.  We can have a brokers price opinion and title in our hands within 4 business days.  Are they always spot on? No.  but we buy at low enough that we can loose on 20% and have various degrees of success on the balance.  Some are home runs and some aren't.  You mainly have "blight, taxes and title" to worry about.  I am originally from Gillette so I know your turf.  Thanks for the comment.

February 2014, my partner and I purchased  5 second deeds of trust having a balance of $1,300,000  for a total purchase price of $107,000.  Two were in CA and three in AZ.

Thirty days later, we sold the two in CA for $125,000 and paid a broker $25,000 for bringing the buyer.  Two of the AZ notes were too costly to cure the first.  We let one go and the other one agreed to list the home with a "Short Sale Broker" who eventially sold and closed the property giving us $8,000 to step out of the way and release our DOT and now we have a $1,000 profit.  

 Our last home was occupied and the first was current.  We tried working with the borrowers but they would not budge.  We ended up foreclosing on the property - no one bid at the foreclosure sale, cost of sale $1,800 to foreclose, $4,000 to cure the first $7,000 to clean out and haul off debris.  Sold and closed within 90 days. Total net profit after all expenses and hold costs - $140,000 in 10 months. 

Second mortgages are not for the weak at heart, but they are a great way a large return or a way to buy properties.

Nest time I will post "Area 51".

We never have right mix of product or capital. We buy whenever a good deal arises. If we can't start right away, we will wholetail some as we go. Right now we have 10 under rehab along with about 14,000 sf of office rehab. Due to market in our area we have had a shift to medical office buildings that tired and wore out.

I find Zillow to be within a hundred thousand for value in a cheap house but fairly accurate on rent estimates. Good place to start and use for a benchmark.

One more thought

Dealing with the Turkeys in Your Life

nShare1

A potential investor asked me a very reasonable question about my track record of finding “fix and flips” over the past year, and projections of success for the next 16 properties. I responded that he can reasonably expect of the next sixteen homes, four would be genuine giant winners, four would be profitable flips, four would be cash break even investments, and four would be flops. All reasonableness flew out the window as the investor said “Why do I invest in flops!!!” Wow! What a strategy. Just do the profitable ones! Why didn’t I think of that?!!!

It would be great if we were all masters of our universes and could press a repeat button for success time and time again. But, we’re not. I know firsthand. In looking back over my 41 years in Real Estate, I have learned that nothing stays the same very long and a certain percentage will be a turkey. We must look at each deal with new eyes and look at what the universe is around us every time. We must look at investments differently as the recession recovers and changes the ground rules for buying and selling as well as what segment of the real estate market is emerging from the depths of despair.

These turkeys are a constant presence and they seemed to breed especially forcefully in tough economic times. I learned I wasn’t in charge of success. I was in chargeof the processthat hopefully would yield more success than failure. I began to be guided by three navigational stakes:

1.My process and my diligence to execute was the best I could do.

2.My attitude and determination to remain positive and confident was a critical catalyst for my success.

3.My resiliency and ability to see failure as but a speed bump on the road to success allowed me to get back up when I was knocked down.

So, what does it all mean? Maybe it’s save turkeys for eating on Thanksgiving and try not to create them. Or perhaps it’s a reminder that turkeys are a part of life.

Bob, I agree, we do not use this site as much as we should.  My partner and I have the Homevestor Franchise here in Northern CO.  As you are aware, the market is a lot tougher than it was a few years back.  We still get a few leads from our billboards, direct mail and our wrapped trucks.  We have moved up to higher valued properties and include commercial offices and industrial.  The shift happens in all markets, what is good today won't necessarily be good tomorrow.  I will try to be more diligent in posting here and also maybe we could get together for coffee some day soon.

Duke 970-218-2296