All Forum Posts by: Jesse LeBlanc

My current flip just came from Craigslist. As a matter of fact, I merely posted that I was an Investor and taking a few months off but wanted to find some handyman work to keep part of my crew busy while I relaxed. An owner sent me his house and said he was tired of his tenants and wanted to sell. So I went from taking time off to having a deal land in my lap. You can always create free ads and use google voice accounts or use a virtual assistant to screen calls.

If they're renovating it and the response to your question was "it's not on the market yet", this leads me to believe it was either just purchased and about to be flipped, or held for a while and about to be sold. IMHO I'm not sure I would invest my time to get the owners (possibly investor) to stop in the middle of their rehab so you can buy it when there are so many other houses sitting vacant. If you're this motivated you can probably find a better deal on a house that doesn't already have work done on it and come out better!

I'll let the CPA experts chime in to verify. From my experience, the answer is YES. Your plan is to go for business. If you took a day to relax, then the expenses on that day would not be deductible. But your flights to and from are.

That's a tough one, or at least for me and in this area.  A few catch 22's regardless of what you end up doing.

If the house has been renovated, you can AirBNB it very cheap just to keep it active.  You will likely get offers of people staying for a week to a month as well.  Make sure they're clear on the house is for sale and within reason agents will be showing the property.  You can contact some of the local companies that are shooting films, see if they have someone who would rent it out much cheaper than a hotel while they're on the film.  Most companies stake out a place for 20-30 days.

Otherwise, you may want to install motion sensors, automatic timers, an alarm system, or cameras (live or fake, but either way a deterrent).  Another suggestion is to put one of your cars in the driveway.  Randomly move or switch with another vehicle.

Another option that just came to mind, post a listing for free (or very cheap) office space.  Give someone who might work at home but needs a different atmosphere (or away from their kids) space to work in your house temporarily until you sell the house.  That will at least keep cars in the driveway and some activity there.  There is NO guaranteed way to stop theft, but you can certainly make it less attractive while they move on to a neighbors property.

I wish more companies would be smart enough to supply their new hires with this book! Good for you guys. It shows in everything you all put together. 12 of the properties were with a partner last year. Starting this year I've ventured off on my own. My first house of this year will be listed for sale next week. I'm about to close on my HELOC and have several properties I'm chomping at the bit to put an offer on. I'd like to acquire and start 2 more projects by July. My operation is quite the "The Flywheel Concept" but one day I'll be like so many others able to share better stories and educate those willing to listen. I realize the more I talk about this business the more soaks in. Duh! But easier said than done sometimes when you don't want to give out false information and feel as though I've go so much more to learn. Thank again for all of your help on here!!

Justin Fox - do you have an insurance/home warranty provider you prefer? I've used a couple in the past but have not researched others lately. Feel free to email the info

@Mindy Jensen - my level of experience is "a long way away from a pro".  I'm on my 13th property now in just over a year with SO MUCH room to learn.  Looking to make some significant changes this year to meet my goals for the next 5 years.

As for my book(s), if I was to judge by the amount of bent pages and highlights in the book it would have to be "The Book on Flipping Houses", second would be "How to Flip A House" by Brant Phillips.

Aside from the bent pages, for personal development/learning to relax, I'd have to say "The One Thing" by Gary Keller and "The 4-Hour Workweek" by Timothy Ferriss.

Although not exactly a RE success, more of a proud moment for me as an Investor! I want to thank everyone here on Bigger Pockets. I've always been one to search for what I didn't know versus asking about what I didn't know. I've finally popped the cherry of responding to others on BP. All that to say, I've been on this forum all day, glued to BP. Waiting for the chance to chime in. I can feel the excitement level rising now. Honestly, I've been looking forward to the emails from my keywords over the last couple of days. I've already learned more and contacted several others now that I've finally decided to chime in. Thanks again to everyone out there in this business making my life easier by the knowledge you've shared. I'm almost caught up on the podcast and I've already finished every book that comes up most frequently. :)

Evening Mark, Although I have never met this appraiser, he did a phenomenal job on my last project. He is commonly used by my lender, LendingOne. He was SPOT ON with my research unlike most appraisals I've had. His name is John D. McKerley. I'm looking at the report now for his details. I'll message you the contact info

Maxwell Hunter - thank you sir for that article! I missed that one. As a matter of fact I was calculating the months of supply in several areas of DeKalb this morning and was excited to see how low it was. I don't mind working hard for a good property because I know it will sell quick!