All Forum Posts by: Jeffrey Hayes

Hi everyone, quick question, I'm putting an offer in on a REO property today and bank is requiring a proof of funds letter. I've provided one to other banks before for other purchases but is it a good idea to only get the proof of funds for my initial offer amount which is $78,000? I might go a little higher if they counter but I'm thinking it's not a good idea to show them how much I have so they might try and raise their asking price for me. On the other hand I don't want to be going into the bank every day for a proof of funds letter for different amounts for different houses I'm bidding on. Any advice would be great! Thanks, Jeffrey Hayes

Ok,  thanks to everyone who responded.  I appreciate it.

Hi everyone,   I now have my first flip under contract!  I'm really excited and if everything goes smoothly with the transaction then I should make a higher profit then I originally calculated and that would be wonderful. My question is what is the best/most cost effective way to insure vacant flip homes when they are on the market and also when they are in the rehab phase?  My insurance company charges more because the home is vacant.  I would stay there part of the time but it will be difficult to stay in 3 houses at a time once I ramp up my flip business to several at a time.  I'm sure every state is different as far as insurance laws go.  Any ideas or suggestions would be great!!  Thanks

Hello everyone. I have a house I rehabbed under contract and the appraiser is coming out in a day or 2 and I'm just wondering if anyone knows of a good template or has a generic form that works well with appraisers as far as demonstrating how much money I've spent on my rehab? It's a VA loan and I want to make sure my home appraises for what it's worth. I looked in the forms section of bigger pockets but I couldn't find anything that would be good for giving to the appraiser. Any advice would be great! Thanks, Jeff

Hi,  does anyone out there have any experience using Angie's List or a similar type service for hiring contractors?  Supposedly the contractors are background check and the reviews are more reliable with this type of service.  I'm just wondering if it's worth the money for any of these type of services for hiring contractors?  Thanks in advance

Thanks for everyones advice.  I appreciate it

Hi, I'm seriously considering buying a Condominium in the Riviera Maya part of Mexic)(Playa Del Carmen to be more specific and I'm wondering if anyone out there has had any success with vacation rentals there?  My budget is $175,000 USD for a 2 bed 2 bath unit or larger somewhere within walking distance to the beach and close to 5th ave/downtown area?  This home will be a vacation rental that I occasionally use.  I would like to achieve at least 75% occupancy and I'm not sure if this is realistic?  I could even go a little North or South of Playa Del Carmen if it will still rent well and if it's a better value.  I know Playa Del Carmen is booming now but I still would like to get in on it before the real estate is too high for me to afford. If anyone who owns any rental properties from Cancun down to Tulum is reading this I would love to hear your feedback/advice on buying down here in this area.  I currently have a vacation rental in Tucson, Az that I will be selling to pay for this rental home in Mexico.  Thanks

Hi, Thanks again to everyone who has given me advice. I know 14K is not a huge profit but I want to let everyone out there know that I have done thousands of BPO's in the Tucson, Az area and I am extremely familiar with the market. In addition to that I have read several flip books cover to cover, attended several flip seminars around the state, read many blogs, and studied repair costs extensively. I also decided awhile ago to be my own GC not only to reduce costs but to make sure that everything is going the way it should be and on schedule. There are several fresh comps that are model matches in my subdivision that further justified my decision to go forward. I got all of my bids and I'm doing part of the work myself along with my father who has done quite a bit of work on homes before. I decided to replace the fence myself instead of contracting it out which should hopfully put my profit into the 17-18K range. I was fairly conservative with my ARV so in reality I think this home will sell for at least 5K more if this home follows the newest comp trends. I'm closing tomorrow so hopefully all will work out. Since it's my first flip if nothing else it will be a great experience and hopefully my numbers work as I've had about 5 months to think about it due to it being a short sale. Thanks again to everyone that has helped me. That's what this site is all about!

Thanks to everyone for the quick responses! I just called the title company and they still aren't sure if that 90 day no sale restriction that Wells Fargo will place on the title means that I cannot list the property for sale on the MLS until 90 days after I close escrow or if that just means that escrow can't close for the new buyer after I buy and rehab home until after day 90 after I close escrow? Ideally I would like to rehab this home in 30 days, immediately list it, and let's just say it's on market for only 15 days I could then set the closing date for 45 days later(which would satisfy the 90 day restriction on my title for the over 120% of what I paid for the house($86,000) clause. Is that how other flippers deal with this issue or do they just wait the full 90 days before they even list the home they just renovated? Please advise. Thanks

Thanks to everyone for the quick responses! I just called the title company and they still aren't sure if that 90 day no sale restriction that Wells Fargo will place on the title means that I cannot list the property for sale on the MLS until 90 days after I close escrow or if that just means that escrow can't close for the new buyer after I buy and rehab home until after day 90 after I close escrow? Ideally I would like to rehab this home in 30 days, immediately list it, and let's just say it's on market for only 15 days I could then set the closing date for 45 days later(which would satisfy the 90 day restriction on my title for the over 120% of what I paid for the house($86,000) clause. Is that how other flippers deal with this issue or do they just wait the full 90 days before they even list the home they just renovated? Please advise. Thanks