All Forum Posts by: Mike Welch

I'm just getting my first property, a SFR in Tucson, in order as a rental.

Does anyone have a good and ethical property manager in Tucson that they can recommend?

Thank you in advance!

Thank you J Scott and Dave1 This is exactly what I'm hearing from the HVAC contractors, who prefer to let the roofers work first, but want some say in the proceedings.

I'm preparing to renovate my first investment property, a 2bd / 1ba home prior to renting it out. My first order of business is to have the roof replaced. I'm also upgrading the HVAC from evaporative to a new A/C gas pack that will be installed on the roof.

Would you recommend that I have the roof replacement completed prior to the HVAC work? Should I have the two contractors coordinate their work?

Any advice on the best way to schedule these two contractors would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.

Just wanted to share with you all that Chase approved my short sale offer as part of their HAFA program. My offer was $50K on an original ask of $69K they had come down to $59K.

Chase responded and accepted my all cash offer within two weeks.

The property does require a new roof and some plumbing work which we used to negotiate price down. They were likely concerned with the possibility of getting an offer contingent on financing.

This will be my first investment property. I'm very excited to get started with the rehab, getting a PM in place, and then a tenant.

May it be the first of many!

Thank you for posting the link. In that article, the lawyer pokes holes in Corelogix's findings, but does not address what made the transaction in question in the article a case of bank fraud.

I did find the FBI's press release about the case in question:

http://www.fbi.gov/newhaven/press-releases/2010/nh021910a.htm

Also, the actual case document is here:

http://www.mortgagefraudblog.com/ee-assets/my-uploads/NATERA.pdf

The code cited in the complaint 'Bank Fraud' is here:

http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/718/usc_sec_18_00001344----000-.html

It would be nice if consumers, i.e., individual tax paying citizens, in this country were afforded the same level of protection as our financial institutions. Are they required, under penalty of fine or prison, to fully disclose the nature of their transactions?

When I was in Arizona looking at properties last weekend, my realtor brought the following article to my attention detailing fraudulent short sale flipping:

http://azstarnet.com/business/local/article_7ce108c5-307d-582d-935b-d7cbe0ac3a01.html

Based on this article, can someone on this forum venture a guess at what point the transaction described became fraudulent? Was anything misrepresented to the bank? Is it the fact that the agent already had another, higher, offer lined up? Did they have duty to disclose and did not?

Does she have a law degree?

Did she offer any advice on tax treatment as well? How about medical advice?

Hi Randy,

Glad to hear your HAFA short sale went smoothly. Did Chase disclose to the listing agent what their BPO came in at? How many times did you counter to get them to $115K?

Thank you,
Mike

Hi Leah,

I've lived in San Francisco for 11 years. I was a renter for the first 3 years. During that time, I read up on the rental code to the letter of the law. There is a tenants union that is a powerful voice in the city council. There are rent control ordinances, zoning laws, etc., that are among the most stringent in the nation.

These considerations make it an amazing place to live, but I think they also make it difficult for landlords.

These factors, combined with high property values make it difficult to offer rentals in a lucrative manner. One must have significant capital invested, or have purchased many years prior (also taking advantage of Prop 13 which freezes tax levels pegging them to the original purchase value of the parcel) to offer a rental property and retain margin.

Good luck with your article!

Thank you Jon. The advice I've gotten from other investors has been consistent with yours: "if they can't pay the mortgage, they probably can't pay rent."

Plus, I really want to renovate the interior once I acquire the property. The property also requires a new roof, some plumbing work, etc. It would be best to have the property vacant to have this work done.

I've also heard HAFA requires the seller vacate with premise in good condition as a prerequisite to receiving their $3K payout. Can anyone confirm this is the case?