All Forum Posts by: Jon Slack

If this is where I think it is then most likely YES. I have a feeling that I am in the same area as you. I own lots of land there, I know the area extremely well.
You should really talk to me before making any final decisions though.

Originally posted by Cody Clark:

just a quick question, would developing a green building attract more tenants?

Though this point is totally unrelated to RE but I saw a recent study from the Natioanl Restaurant Association saying that 8 of 10 people would choose a "Green" restaurant over any other.

I would assume those same people would choose green housing over conventional too. However, in this market will affordability supercede environmental consciousness? I don't know.

Originally posted by Briant Patterson:

What does it take to get LEED certified?

I assume your talking about getting a new construction home or building LEED certified? Leed has documents on their website that you must fill out to determine whether you qualify. Each category has a point system, your score determines whether you meet, fail to meet or exceed LEED qualifications.

We build with ICF for example. Our ICF material is LEED certified but many other factors come into play in new home construction such as roofing material, paint, windows, appliances and much much more.

Currently the only property moving is those offered at deep discounts. So I think your only option is to price it to sell or do as you suggested, sell with owner financing. Personally I would choose to sell owner financing or look to rent out.

What will your aunt do for housing? Does she need the money from the sell to find new housing?

You need to determine to what extent you are going to consider green.

A completely "green" home can be very expensive and you will never meet the local comps therefore, no bank will give you a loan.

We build green housing using ICF. Our homes will decrease your energy bills 40-60%. We use no wood for framing. Our homes also include Energy Star appliances and numerous water saving features. We exceed Leed requirements and also, which is very important for the buyer, we qualify for energy efficient mortgages.

We have found that almost everyone who has inquired about our homes will ultimately choose a Green Home as apposed to other construction methods. The selling points are many and the long term savings more than justify's the extra expense.

Instead of starting a new post...

Does anyone have an answer to the OP's question? I too am curious as to the liability in purchasing tax liens and having them go into bankruptcy.

Was is our protection, if any? What is our risk?

Due-diligence with my title agent is not going to discover a potential bankruptcy.

Originally posted by "atarget":

[quote="jslack"

not true

here'san example: on $ 125 K REO deal......................

I admit with my brief experience in REOs I shouldn't have commented on that post. My experience so far is that they are just paying 3% but these deals are also much larger, all 3 mil plus.

I really need to get my friend on this board as he is extremely knowledgeable about REOs. I am basically just bringing him clients and letting him handle the rest all the while learning as I go. My biggest asset is my contacts so that is where I am concentrating most at the moment.

I just noticed this post was suppose to be under "How did you start?"
Not sure how it ended up here.

Originally posted by "EricFoster":

Try Indymac.com

Hmm. Never heard of them before.
Do you know if they are writing CTP loans now? Because they weren't a few months ago.

With bank guidelines changing by the hour I need to hear from someone who knows for sure who is writing these loans.

Originally posted by "Upgraded":

The reason I said ' I dont want to work ' was mainly because my mentors ie Sylvester Stallone, Robbins would always hint ' never work for someone else ' as it takes your focus away from what you want to do.

I personally couldn't agree more with not wanting to work for someone. I am not the type of person who could punch a time clock but, I did punch a time clock, many times. I did what I had to do at your age to eat.

My personal opinion is that you make investing secondary and owning a business your primary focus. You say you are willing to work hard well getting loans for business startups are much easier than finding someone to float you for a RE investment.

Come up with a good business concept, follow it up with a solid business plan, work your butt off making the business successful and with that, hopefully will come the monies needed to venture into RE investing.

Of course that is just my opinion and I dont want you to sway from following the advice of the many great posters on this forum. I am just offering another approach, which is the same approach I took.