All Forum Posts by: Justin Bernsten

Hey Everyone,

I introduced myself and planned to get involved in Real Estate last year but had to/decided to put everything on hold for 6-12 months. I am now in a position that realistically I should be able to view homes and put in offers by the end of February/early March at the latest. 

I come to you for referrals for awesome Real Estate Agents that know the area really well and have experience working with aspiring investors going for their first home. I will be going the FHA route and taking advantage of some of the Counties (possibly City instead but plan to stay this side of the line) closing cost down payment programs. As such though i planned on targeting duplex properties I will need to focus on houses that are zoned for single homes but have finished basements, in law suites, etc to accommodate more easily setting the home up with room mates.

I will be looking from Towson around through to the Middle River area and everything in between and price wise around $150K. I scour Zillow and the other sites  from time to time so perhaps will find my deal there but an agent with some good wholesalers and other places to look would be fantastic. I look forward to seeing who the community thinks are some exceptional agents to work with and doing the first of hopefully many deals together. 

-Justin B 

I feared that would be the general consensus but I will continue looking into it before giving up just yet.  

Is it common for a Bank to wait this length of time on a property before listing it?

Also how can you tell what the bank is owed on the property. The records the various sites state is that they took possession for $85K in 6/14. Is this the total amount the bank is in on that property? I know that the property previously sold for $200K+ in 07 08 if I remember correctly so I would imagine that the outstanding balance would be significantly more than $85K. 

The person at the asset management company that I called said that Chase often puts homes on Auction.com instead of normal listings and that it has possibly gone through a few rounds of that with no bids meeting their min amount. I would think that if they were able to sell they would prefer a quick low hassle sale as long as they get what they are owed at least. 

Hello Guys and Gals,

After viewing a home in an area that was not right I decided to dig a little deeper and found a property that looks great that I would be interested in viewing and potentially making an offer. According to records on the various RE sites the Bank took ownership in 6/14 for about $85K... it has not been listed since that time. I believe it was taken over by JP Morgan/Chase but not 100%. 

Is it possible to track down someone directly and get information on why this property is not being listed and potentially make an offer?

What I have learned:

1. Chase is very difficult to contact a REO department directly... no # found thus far.

2. The Asset management company that seems to list most of their properties in Baltimore (Green River Capitol) does not have it in their system. (should I check with their other listed AM companies as well?) 

3. I left a voicemail for the Lawyer involved in the foreclosure which was listed as the seller to JP Morgan Chase.

4. Spoke to 2 Realtors listed for other Chase properties in the area and got very little information. 

Is what I am trying to do possible to accomplish? Where should I look or dig next? If I did manage to contact someone how should I proceed? 

Thanks! 

Let me know if you have any tips. I am looking to contact people in similar situation for short sales or possible subject to deals.

I am a newbie who has not done any deals yet but on the hunt. I think that ultimately which strategy to start with or use will be best determined by your experience and means. I think doing both would be beneficial.

I am planning to start by doing buy and holds and 'house hacking' for my first property aking advantage of FHA loans and possibly some grants. In a few years when I have more savings/safety net/track record to get money together for flips where I can have staying power to not sell short and deny large % of potential profits I will consider doing those deals.

The main thing I think that is being overlooked is that when a buy and hold deal is being done right you will have cash flow and ideally appreciation. That cash flow may take 22 years to = one of your flip deals but as a main strategy you are left with a whole lots of homes that have been paid off by other peoples money. You will have lots of equity to cash out someday or to continually leverage to acquire more properties. 

Personally I find the prospect of having someone else pay my mortgage nice... multiply that many times over where I am providing a good service in the form of reasonable rates and ethical land lording just makes sense. 

-Justin Bernsten

My main question as a newbie (I am planning to go owner occupant FHA financing for my first home) is how readily available would Private and Hard Money loans be? Will these lenders base their decisions on the merits of the deal even when being proposed by a person with little-no experience?

My personal main fear of private or hard money lending while i am getting started is an early deal having some nightmare unforeseen issue or repair that puts me in the hole. That would be a pretty crippling start. 

I have been working with a lender to be preapproved (still waiting on their answer) to allow me to put in an offer on a HUD home that I think will be a great deal and a good place to live for the next few years. Being a recent graduate with good credit it is still hard to get approved for the amount I want because my pay is a largely commission based and only a little over a year track record (they want 2 years).... but wish me luck.

-Justin Bernsten

Hello Everyone!

I am planning to get into REI in the near future and our first property may actually be the property we currently rent. It is an end unit townhouse that is set up as a duplex (1/1 upstairs and 2/1 downstairs with an unfinished basement).

My questions are mainly related to zoning and code. 

1. I believe that the home is properly zoned as a duplex (separate meters set up) but would like to confirm this, do I contact the county clerk?

2. The first floor unit (which we are renting) has a room built as an addition. I have concerns that it is not built to code and did not have building plans approved... Is there a way to find this information in public records as well and if so where? If not besides taking the home owners word for it (have not asked her directly yet since we are just beginning to explore this option) how do I proceed? Will an inspector be able to verify if the addition is built to code? I have heard of problems arising related to 'illegal' improvements being costly to fix/increase the difficulty of selling a home so want to make sure I am covered.

3. Currently the basement has minor leakage after very bad storms. I know the headaches involved and some of the ways to address this. If I could properly seal the basement it would be relatively east to finish it and install a shower and potentially a kitchen. The basement as its own entrance/exit. Would i be able to have to property converted to a triplex? How hard is it to do so? How do I find out if that is an option (I believe certain neighborhoods have limits)?

Anyone that could help me think and plan through some of these issues would be great! I would really appreciate it! 

-Justin Bernsten

Hello Everyone,

I am a younger guy that has been preparing to jump into REI in the coming months. I have been learning what I can and trying to get a good grasp on the local market I plan to invest in.

Rather unexpectedly I came across a listing for a duplex in the area I am looking for that I suspect could be a great deal. The owner is looking for $150,000 obo. The home has 2 units each with 1,050 sqft 3Bed 1Bath kitchen/living room. 1 is remodeled and looks like a great job was done. The other is still a mess but looks livable (I would move in there while renting the other and slowly rehabbing my side). There is an unfinished basement as well that I would look into renovating. The property is in an area in Baltimore with 0 crime and top public schools for all grade levels, easy highway access, and close to several hospitals/Universities etc. 

He claims rent for a 3br of the size goes close to $1,600. Rentometer said the same thing though I think a more realistic # is $1,400. In either case I think the #'s work for a first property for me to start in as a live in rent out situation. 

The main problem I have and want to get advise on... if I decide to move ahead in considering the property:

1. The seller is looking for cash/hard money I imagine for speed of closing. How do i finance this instead of a Bank loan? I should be prequalified for more than the amount needed quickly/easily. For my first property I wanted to do low interest FHA loan plus there is a program here to take a class and receive closing cost assistance.

2. What steps do I need to follow to make sure the title/ownership is being transferred properly without any risk on my end?

3. Should I have concerns about zoning of the duplex and how do I confirm there are no issues there?

4. Does anyone know a good inspector to recommend here in Baltimore to let me know of any issues? Perhaps a contractor to recommend as well to do a walk through to get an estimate on rehab cost of the 2nd unit? 

Thank you for any advise and guidance you can give!

-Justin Bernsten

@Jeff G.  and @Colleen F. 

Thanks for that tip. I did not even think of legal concerns related to renting rooms separately like that. I know to check various different ordinances though.  

I am just starting out and actually crunching #'s to see if a nicer home in a good area by a University here would be the best way to start out. Can @Joe Schwartzbauer  and @Nicholas Miller (and anyone else with experience in this area) give me some advice?

For example are there any hidden concerns I should take into account... for example would Insurance be more expensive? Not matter the type of rental?

Do you typically rent rooms out separately to individuals or groups for the whole house (maybe adjusting price if <x people)? 

How long do you make the leases? How do you minimize vacancies between semesters? How do you balance that with needed time to clean and repair between years potentially?

Could you perhaps run through details of a deal you did? Cost, space, rentals etc? 

Sorry for all the questions!