All Forum Posts by: Jim Viens

Hey all! Long post. For the short version, skip to the bottom of the post. I've been a member here for a long time but after only doing 2 wholesale deals I had to take a hiatus to care for a sick child. Got back into the game in spring 2021. I'm a bit of a late-comer (I'm 53 now). Had a fairly large amount of capital to start with and jumped in with both feet. Needless to say I made some not-so-wise choices, but here's how the past couple of years have gone:

1. Established LLC and purchased first property in April/May 2021 for my aging in-laws to move into. Paid cash & they give us enough to cover taxes and insurance.

2. My W-2 job laid me off in June 2021 so with the capital we had I decided to go full-time in REI and use the capital and my severance pay to live off of and try to get my business off the ground.

2. Purchased first true investment rental property (again...all cash) in July 2021. It was a duplex that required full rehab (roof, siding, new retaining wall...cosmetic rehab upstairs with HVAC, kitchen, bath & deck...downstairs got cosmetics with new kitchen & bath with mini-splits for HVAC)

3. While above property was under contract, a wholesaler brought me a deal in a nearby town that I picked up and closed two days after #2 above. Needed paint, new kitchen flooring and some light electrical. Got that finished and rented out in December 2021 (have since renewed the lease through Dec 2022)

4. August 2021 purchased a burnout on 2 acre lot to flip (all cash...hope you're seeing my first mistake)

5. December 2021 purchased another flip property. Finished it by February 2022 and sold it at full asking price...but because I paid too much for it I only made about $3,000 true profit. :(

6. February 2022 purchased next flip property while the burnout is being worked on. Planned to have it finished and on the market by April or May. Contractor and supply-chain issues mounted up and it ended up not being finished until July. Put it on the market and it sat for a month with no offers...not even low-balls. Took it off the market and did more work to it. Re-listed it in November and had it under contract in 3 days...but because (a) I wasn't familiar with the nuances of the specific area in that market which let me to have an overly-optimistic ARV and (b) the market turned, I'm going to end up losing about $20k on the deal when it closes on the 20th. :( :(

7. Along the way I did finally get my self to start using hard money to conserve my capital and have a loan out on the duplex and another to finish rehab of the burnout.

Basically, I was moving so fast (due to being flush with cash) that I wasn't able to identify and correct mistakes before jumping into my next deal. Now I have 5 properties on the books (3 rentals and 2 flips) and insufficient cash to move forward. My YTD balance sheet shows $1.2M and I've got almost $400,000 in equity between all the properties, but I can't access that equity until I have 2 years of tax returns files. I'll have about $150k coming in when the most recent flip closes next week and another $250k-$300k when the burnout sells (it's 2,700 sf, 6br, 3ba on 2 acres). I'm also cashflowing about $700/mo off the rental units (after setting aside for maintenance, vacancy, etc). My business expenses (QuickBooks, CRM, etc) are around $700/mo.

I need to step back and re-asses what I'm doing and how to go forward from here. My overall strategy is to do rehab to build up chunks of capital that I'll then use to put into rentals. I'm looking for ideas on what steps I need to take to get the train back on the tracks and be profitable this year. 

Another idea for making money while learning the ins and outs of the business is to hook up with an established investor and work for them as a "bird dog". Find run-down properties that meet their buying criteria and give them the addresses (bonus points if you can learn to research online to find the owner's name, address if different from the property, and phone number).

A lot of that general data is available by googling it (try something like "columbia missouri real estate market data"). Since MO is a "non-disclosure" state you may need to work with a licensed agent with MLS access to pull some of the more granular data like actual sold prices in a particular area. You can also reach out to some property management companies for data like average rents. For active listings you can use Zillow or Redfin.

It sounds like it's a product directed specifically to investors getting into Subject-To deals that have a high level of concern about the DOS clause. If I remember the podcast episode correctly they offer a refi into a new mortgage in your name with the same terms as the one being called. If you're experienced and have several deals under your belt with no DOS issues then pass it up. But for someone reluctant to get into Sub-To deals because of a fear of the DOS clause it may be something they could get to ease their concerns. If the numbers still work even with the added cost of this "insurance" then good on them. Go forth and crush the Sub-To market in their area!

Hey KJ! Been a while! I actually just sold a rental I had off of 78th & I-70. I've lived in WyCo pretty much my whole life. Let me know if you want to get together and discuss. Don't know if I'd have much to add to what Nathan and Andrew have already said but it would be nice to catch up.

Sorry I missed this. Let me know if you do it again and I'll see if I can make it.

Am I correct in assuming these 10 units are in one or two buildings? Or are they a bundle of single-family units? If they're single-family units you'll have to go by recent comps to get the value.

I had to step away from my business for a while due to a major family illness but I still keep my finger on the pulse of the areas near me so I'll be ready when I get back in.

@Rich Lopes - It's tough for me sometimes to differentiate narrow differences between, say, a "C" and "C-" area as many investors have their own subtleties in how they grade these. I would say it's a "C" area for sure and would personally rate it at more of a "C+". Values are ranging between $175,000 & $200,000. Median income in the area is around $55,000/yr. Less than a mile to an elementary school, a middle school, a high school, and the Community College. Definitely a solid area.

It's a spotty area. If you're careful you can land a real home run. I lived in that ZIP for 17 years. Kept our house there as a rental when we moved in 2016 and just sold it due to some family issues. Hit me up and we can discuss further.