All Forum Posts by: Ivan Lai

Hello all, I have two properties in Chicago area, bought them through MACK and let them manage my properties.  I'm one of the MACK victims, they haven't paid me a penny since March and I was slow to learn about their bankruptcy and legal troubles.  I'm looking to move to a new property management company asap, can someone recommend a good property management company in Chicago area?  I have one in Chicago proper and one in Matteson.  

Also, I have an appointment set up to talk to my lawyer about MACK, may want to start a class action lawsuit for their stealing of investors rent payment.  I believe it's illegal for them to take rent payment and even the bankruptcy doesn't allow them to take rent payment and not forward it to investors.  For the legal experts out there, can you please let me know if this is true?  Anyone interested in participating in a class action lawsuit?  Is there one started already?

Hi, I'm also looking for a new property management company in Chicago area, any suggestions?

@Christopher Winkler, @Dion DePaoli, 

Thank you for your info.  I was under the impression that if I purchase a non-performing note, it's 120-day past due so the note owner would be able to foreclose unless the borrower pays up.  I find it puzzling that a borrower can squat in your house for 4 months without paying a penny they're owed, and possibly destroying your property in the mean time, and that's not breaking the law.  But when the homeowner or note owner tries to foreclose, that's "predatory"?  I suppose that's the environment in California.  I'll do more research on that.  Papersourceonline.com seems very interesting, I'll definitely check it out, thanks!

@Dion DePaoli, just to clarify, I'm not trying to flip the note, I'm trying to purchase a non-performing note with the intent to foreclose if the borrower doesn't pay up, then fix up the house and sell the house.  

@Kevin Moen, thank you.  I'm looking for flips in Southern California area, mainly San Gabriel Valley and Inland Empire (Riverside, Temecula, Murrieta, etc.).  I'm also very interested in investing in notes but haven't quite figured out what to do if they become non-performing. If the borrower stops paying, what are my options if I have 1st position?  If I have 2nd position?  How do I find out what other liens are on the property?  Thanks!

Hi Chi, the legal address vs. physical unit discrepancy is a big red flag.  If you're going to have an attorney do a title search, s/he should be able to clarify what is on title in court records.  That just doesn't sound right.

Also, looks like the property you're buying is a condo, is that right? If so, make sure to do your due diligence on the condo community. Talk to the neighbors, find out what they like and not like about this condo community. If they're renting, what's the going rent? Are there any annoying tenants in the building? Loud tenants? Ask the seller to provide the CC&R so you know what's allowed and not allowed. Ask the seller for a copy of the past two years condo HOA financial statement and look through it. How much is the monthly fee? What do they pay for? Any utilities? How many assigned and open parking spots? Is the reserve going up or down? If they don't have much in their balance, they may have to raise the monthly fee soon which would eat into your monthly cash flow.

I've never invested in a condo, so some of the things I don't know that you may want to look into:  If your upstairs neighbor has a leak that leaks into your unit, who's responsible for the repair?

Get all this info and straighten out the title issue so you can use all this info, along with the inspection results, to renegotiate with the seller and re-assess the deal, make sure you're getting the proper return and cash flow you're looking for.  Then just jump in and go for it!

Hi, I'm trying to start investing in non-performing mortgage notes in hopes of finding notes where I can evict homeowners and flip the house.  What's the best way to do research on what other loans have the property as collateral?  If I'm buying 2nd position loans, how do I find the info of 1st position note owner?  Thanks for your help!

Hey Chi!!  Great to see you on here!  Congratulations on this deal!  What are you trying to do?  Flip this house?  Not sure about Connecticut but in most states you don't need an attorney if you're making the offer through your agent, the standard purchase agreement template should suffice as long as you and your agent filled it out properly.  Now that the cash offer is accepted, you want to get the inspection scheduled ASAP, leave yourself plenty of time before the contingency period expires.  

You have a great advantage now that the seller is in contract with you.  Utilize the inspection for two things:  (1) Make sure you identify the major risks with the house so you know how much you need to spend on the repairs and decide if the deal still makes sense, and (2) use the inspection findings to negotiate the price down, either in the form of lowered price or repair allowance, or just have them address issues before closing.  If you're flipping, you wouldn't want them to address the issues, just have them give you credit for major issues.

Give me a call if you want to chat live, I'm no expert but am happy to help.

Hello all,

Wow, the responses on this forum is amazing, thanks so much for the welcoming and the comments!

@Douglas Skipworth, I sent you a request to connect, looking forward to connecting with you further.  I've looked more into Indy area and made a visit there, haven't done much research yet on Memphis but do plan to shortly.  Appreciate your offer to connect up!

@Michael Le, thanks for the note!  I'm in escrow for my 4th property in north Houston area (Spring & Tomball) but I'm rarely down there, only about once a year, so it'll be tough to attend any meetup events down there, unfortunately.

@James Wachob, thanks for the note, looking forward to checking out your website.

@Mike D'Arrigo , appreciate it, I'll check out your website and get in touch, thanks!

@Stephen Akindona, thanks for the note, do you have a website I can check out?

@Raj S., I invest mainly in northern part of Houston suburbs, mainly in Spring (Montgomery county) and Tomball area. My properties are all single families... I have three quadplexes in California and love the cashflow, but they certainly bring a different level of hassles compared to single families.  Being so far away, I'm sticking with single families for now to avoid the headache.  My properties are all quite close to the new Exxon Mobil campus and the new freeway they're building.  I bought a few A / A+ properties to bank on both cash flow and appreciation potential, and they have appreciated quite well; now that the prices are higher, it's getting harder to get decent cash flow on A properties, so I'm shifting towards B+ properties for better cash flow but am still trying to stay in good neighborhoods, in Conroe or Klein school district. I like the area a lot and am staying with the area I know for now.  Would love to hear more about the areas you invest in in Memphis.

Thanks again for all your responses, everyone!  The responses are fantastic, I'm really happy I finally pulled the trigger and got involved in this forum!  Happy investing, everyone!

Hello,

I've been reading the forums for quite a while now and finally decided to dive in and actively participate.  I'm an investor, started my investment path in Southern California where I live, then migrated to north Houston area.  I now have 10 rental properties and 19 units, looking to expand to Indianapolis or Memphis area while still keeping an eye out for good deals in north Houston area.  Looking to build my network in Indianapolis area.  I look forward to meeting great folks here at BP!

Ivan