All Forum Posts by: Jon Schoeller

What age and relation is the new tenant to the original signer? If they are over 18, I make sure to get heir information and add them to the lease. If they are renting out a room then I make them pay an additional security deposit. If they are a boyfriend/girlfriend or family member I usually let them slide on asking for additional money. 

 Thanks for the feedback. Absolutely, feel free to reach out anytime. Glad to help. 

Agreed. I guess it only happens a few times a year. It just seems like we have had a bad streak lately. It also stings because that can be a 20k to 100k swing in planned income if a couple of contracts drop out. Of course in this business, we learned not to count our chickens before they hatch. 

Yeah, I guess it's that fine line of fighting for our money and keeping our reputation. I guess we can't have our cake and eat it too. I just wish there was a way to be upfront and be like "We accept your offer with a 1000 dollar non-refundable deposit" lol. Appreciate your feedback. 

I agree and we have tried that but we are in an area that operates a little slower than most. Inspections average about 14 days and now with COVID, longer. I am fine with the buyers being protected but I think the seller should have some as well. We all know that buyers can pretty much claim any reason to get out of a contract at any time. As the seller, it's hard to prove that they just changed their mind. I am just trying to protect our company as well. 

Hello BP! 

My partners and I flip houses here in Charleston, WV. We flip between 45 and 50 houses per year and have done so for the last 3 1/2 years. We recently ran into a little streak of houses falling out of a contract just before closing. Some of them are earlier in the process due to being scared of inspections. (First time home buyers). 

We stopped taking earnest money about 2 years ago because it seemed like the buyer could ALWAYS get their money back. We understand if financing falls through but if you are just changing your mind a week before, that's a different story. 

With the recent fallouts, I was wondering if there was a workaround to this. Maybe we don't even call it earnest money but we call it "holding money" to hold their spot to buy the house? Maybe even a completely separate contract? 

We are just trying to avoid buyers from wasting our time. If they hold a house up for 30-45 days, it costs us money more money but they walk away scotch free. Even $1000 or $2000 dollars could help us without holding costs in the event they do back out. 

Maybe I should just mark it up as the price of doing business but it is frustrating. Thoughts? 

Hello Shiloh,

As a real estate and finance "Youtuber" myself, I think you should go for it! I have been making videos for about 2 years now at an average of 1 video per week. It is a great platform to reach more people and help the masses if educating others is your goal. 

A few things, just so you are aware. Youtube takes A LOT of time. Way more than I expected. Planning, filming, editing, thumbnails, posting, answering comments, etc. Each video can take 2 to 8 hours depending on if it's a talking head video or vlog. 

Tips: Makes sure you have a good camera and good audio. I can give you some suggestions if you message me. Also, while this sounds trivial, focus on good titles, and thumbnails. Probably 80% of the equation as to whether or not your video gets clicked on.  

Lastly, understand that for whatever reason, the Youtube algorithm doesn't love real estate. I am in a mastermind with some other real estate Youtubers who have the same theory. Debt, stocks, savings, and retirement all do relatively well in comparison. I think it is because it's not as relatable to as many people. Everyone understands debt and everyone has 100.00 to invest in stocks. Real estate has more barriers. 

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out. Good luck! 

Hello Franck,

Take out enough to put a down payment on another rental. BRRRR rinse and repeat.

Hello Rao,

If the house was assigned there may not be any public record of the wholesaler. I would simply call the owner of the LLC that purchased the home and ask them who they bought it from. Maybe they tell you, maybe they won't. But that is where I would start. Next, you can try yo contact the original owner and ask who the original purchaser was before the contract was assigned. Good luck.

Yes, we invest in both areas. Dunbar is more focused on rentals for some reason. Most of the landlords I know have a lot, if not all, of their properties in the Dunbar area. I think because it's close to Charleston but also has parking. Which is hard to find downtown.