All Forum Posts by: Jonathan Harms

Thanks for your help!

I'm looking for some insight to this scenario, thanks for your crack-shot advice! I have a few properties, but they are professionally managed. With this latest property, I want to learn the ropes so I advertised and found a nice young married couple who can afford the rent. Move in day is tomorrow, and we set up the time for the walk-through for late-afternoon. I just got an email from the husband mentioning his work schedule was changed and he wondered if it would be ok that just his wife did the walk-through. Not to be so conservative, but in today's litigious society, I feel a bit at risk with only myself and the female spouse doing the walk-through without the husband present. I'm sure I'm not the only one to face this dilemma. What is your experience BP?

Hunter, BP Podcast 133 answers this exact question in the "Fire Round." Lucky enough, I just listened to that episode yesterday, so the info is top of mind!

Hey Art, Sounds like you have a complicated issue to work through. I'm glad you mentioned the tenant listens to the Grateful Dead because I have insight on how to connect with a tenant with those musical interests. I certainly don't know your dynamic with the tenant, but I'm sure if you asked the tenant what his favorite tour year was, he will open up and tell you and also soften up and be easier to work with. As a side note, I bet he will say 1972 or 1977. Of course, your interactions could be too far gone to have any kind of friendly talk like that, but...since I know the Grateful Dead, I thought I would share one angle of insight. Good Luck!

Wow! Thanks folks. You put my mind at ease. You're kind to help my learning about these deals.

Hi all, Hoping to get the opinions of the smart folks in this community. I bought an REO from one of the big banks. Step 1 was to sign an addendum they required services via their asset administration division. Next, I heard nothing until the evening before the agreed upon closing date. I didn't have a closing location or any other financial info from the seller/bank Next, the day of closing, my agent, who is proving untrustworthy, said the closing wasn't going to happen and didn't provide much other information. Next, I asked my attorney for advice and found out it was ambiguous that the Purchase Agreement I had initials only in the countered section, not the accepted section. But...my agent (first time working together), said we have a done deal. I used addendum language from my lawyer to extend the closing date and reiterate the sales price and seller as the bank. Next, my agent said the bank wanted the seller listed on this addendum as "Owner of Record." And this is where we are at now. Is this common? Or is something shady going on? Thanks!

Welcome to BP Eric. And thanks for your service at Ellsworth! I invest in that area and have benefited from the information in this community. You should definitely check out the Wednesday webinars here on BP. I was sad to miss the one about multi-families last week, but I'm sure it will run again at some point. Good luck!

@Jesse Christensen Hey Thanks! You're right, this is a great resource...I've been referencing BP for a while now and finally signed up! Good luck on you and I hope our paths cross again.

@Mark Gruetzmacher You're kind to be so welcoming! I will root for our small So. Dak. community here on BP and be as active as possible. The vacation rental does ok. We take the attitude that we are subsidizing a place for our family to stay once every couple months.

@Joe Splitrock Hello in Sioux Falls. Thanks for the encouragement and reply formatting idea :) A cleaning service doesn't pencil out these days on the vacation rental, especially since the North Dakota oil boom isn't performing like it used to and bringing those young folks down to the Black Hills. And you know what is interesting about those Black Hills hotel prices is that the hotel groups in Rapid City are pushing legislation in Pierre to increase the "Business Improvement District" tax so that the city can build more parks. That translates to another $5 to $10 more per night on a hotel room.

@Ryan Folk Hey yourself over there in Watertown. "Arrow Pride," right? Actually, I live in Aberdeen, so I am just up the road from you. Maybe coffee sometime soon if we can cross paths?

Hi all! My name is Jonathan Harms and I want to say this is a fantastic community! For the last year, I've been reading the blog and searching out a few specific questions in the forums. It is remarkable to see people rooting for each other and offering their insight. Now I am a member! My REI'ing began in 2010 when I bought a 2/1 SFH in which to live in a quiet neighborhood on the good side of town. That gave me the bug. A few years went by and I got married. Guess what?! My bride is into this REI'ing thing too! So over the next few years, we purchased a buy and hold and are renting it as a vacation home near Mt. Rushmore. We also flipped a home we were living in and are now doing that with our current home yet again. I resigned my W-2 job last week (March 2017) to pursue this thing full time and I hope this career takes me (us) to retirement. There are two REI projects that will keep me busy for the next several months--rehabbing a buy and hold and flipping a foreclosure. I need these to be successful for me to continue. I hope to be a valuable member of the community and I anticipate learning a significant chunk of what I need to know about REI'ing from this community. Personally, I really enjoy general aviation, but I haven't decided yet if I am a Cessna or Piper person. I also love listening to the Grateful Dead. I am tickled to bits John Mayer is stepping in and touring with the boys this summer as he has the last couple of years. See ya next time!