All Forum Posts by: James Sebastian

Sorry, I'm in Ohio (and second one is in Indiana) so no advice on wholesalers. I lucked into REOs on the MLS for both of these- working thru the listing agent- although it was a lot harder in today's market than 4 years ago.

I'm doing this with my first daughter, and just starting fixing up another house for my next daughter for the fall.  The nice thing about buying a dump and fixing it up is all new systems = low maintenance when they move in.  Be aware, though, that we are signing leases now for Fall 2023. This depends on college but around here, most students are already looking to lock down fall housing.  Good luck!

Just to chime in, I've seen railcars maked "nonodorized propane" but at least in my area  (Ohio) it definitely has the mercaptan added before it goes to the consumer.

Nick, thanks for all you do and your earlier answer. Here is another one I don't understand. In my IRA, I would pay tax on UDFI on earnings from properties with "acquisition debt". Elsewhere I have read that it's NOT acquisition debt if the loan occurs more than 90 days before or after the purchase of the property. So am I exempt from the tax if I buy the property with cash on day 1, do a cash-out refi on day 100, buy a second property on day 200, cash-out refi on day 300... Seems like cheating if so.

Thanks for the feedback.  I think the best approach here is to let them have it, the goodwill will be worth way more than the dirt- the intent is for my daughter & roommates to occupy the house for a few years, then I will decide on keep or sell. If I can wrangle a little upside cash out too, more the better.  But it's still awkward to start the conversation.  And with a properly written easement I (or future owner) can claw it back if they don't maintain the fence or something.  I do have a copy of the boundary survey for the subdivision plat, the developer just failed to follow the map their surveyor provided. I'm kind of hoping the neighbors can gripe at the developers and get them to pay for cleaning things up- its really their mess.  But I figure contacting them directly has little chance of being productive.

So I just purchased property knowing the two neighbors behind me are encroaching.  This is a 1900 house and the lot lines are uneven, so when the subdivision behind me was platted 20 years ago, my lot protrudes 15 feet into two of those lots.  The surveyor's map showed this but the legal text didn't, so the developer basically sold these two lots as if they included part of my property.  Without going into excess detail,  I believe only one of them would have a valid adverse possession claim, based on the dates the houses and fences went in.

The crazy thing is that even Google maps clearly shows the conflict between the lot lines and their fences and sheds. I guess buying a REO you have to assume the previous owner was an idiot unless there is evidence to the contrary.

Although desirable, trying to "take back" the land would be petty and impractical, but I don't want this issue hanging over a future sale, or possibly being a liability issue for me.  I think granting them an easement would be quickest and easiest; quit-claiming the strip of land would be more expensive and complex.  I want to write the owners a letter (I'm 3 hours away) explaining the situation and asking them to at least pay the legal and recording fees for getting it cleaned up.  Anyone have a better idea, or a recommendation on what to write?  Thanks.

There's another angle where you can rent out the RV and let them figure out whether to travel in it or park it- pretty much like Turo.  RVshare.com and rvngo.com are two sites, there might be others.

@Nicholas Aiola,

Here's one in the weeds regarding UDFI for a self-directed IRA. If I'm reading things right, UDFI is charged on "acquisition debt". I have a cash-flowing property with no mortgage. If I borrow against that property to buy a second property, following interest tracing rules, UDFI would be owed on profits from the second property, not the original one. Is that correct? Thank you, James

Hello all. We have our primary home, auto, and an umbrella policies with one insurance company.  I have a rental house covered by a different insurance company (through the same agent) because the first company either refused or was way high on a student rental.

We renewed and increased the umbrella policy, and I just realized they will not cover anything at the rental property.  I feel like that kind of defeats the purpose... Anyone know if this a common situation?  Should we look at increasing the liability coverage on the rental instead?

Thank you!

I'm using rocketdollar.com for a self-directed IRA. Accounts are held at Solera Bank in Colorado, which will also lend to you if you have an account with them. Two things to watch:

- Check this, but I think you can do the mortgage for a 401(k) without incurring UDFI / UBIT (not so for my IRA, unfortunately)

- There are a number of lenders out there you can work with for nonrecourse loans, but be careful how you structure your deals. I got disqualified for most of them (including Solera) because I partnered with a non-IRA LLC so someone could do the work and almost nobody wants to loan to the mixed IRA / non-IRA partnership. We have a couple prospects but have done everything in cash to date. It's still been worth it, but we are also in the Midwest so have a combination of good cash flow and lots of forced equity on the rehabs.