All Forum Posts by: Ken M.

ChatGPT pulls information from the internet.

OpenAI takes 10x more energy output than a Google search anyway.

What's really spook is Anthropic who made Claude AI is now starting to think for itself, build safeguards and has it's own agendas and consciousness.

It other words, Claude has been shown to blackmail, deceive and even have self preservation.

Talk about Skynet in the making.

ChatGPT is just a glorified text chatbot and search engine at this point. It's been proven many times to pull false information from Search Engines. So everyone using it to cheat on a test, are cheating themselves.

The only full article I could find was

Anthropic gave its AI chatbot Claude a small store to run, and the results were... interesting.
https://tech.co/news/anthropic-gives-claude-ai-store-to-run

"While the model, named Cladius, excelled at some tasks, there were plenty of hallucinations, and a brief identity crisis (where Claudius thought it was a human), which didn’t deemed the AI a pretty bad business owner."

In 1973 while travelling through the Knoxville area I toured the Oakridge Nuclear Facility visitor's center. They had a state of the art teletype computer that acted human. You could ask it's name and it would type it out on computer paper (no screens then) and it would ask your name.

It would respond with questions like "how are you today" and depending on how you responded, it would respond back with a comment and another question. All written in code, there was no man sitting in the box answering your responses. But, it seemed human. AI in the infancy. Lol

There is nothing out there that can qualitatively think. "in a way that relates to how good or bad something is

0 Votes

Quote from @Aaron Gauthier:

BP community,

I’m looking for a software subscription that gives access to actual sold data from the MLS in Texas. As many of you know, Texas is a non-disclosure state, so public records and most tools don't show true sale prices, just estimates.

Here’s what I’ve found so far:

PropStream – Great tool, but it uses estimated sale prices, not actual MLS comps.
Bright Investor – Integrates with RealEstateAPI, but I’m unsure where that API sources its sold data.
CoreLogic – From what I understand, it likely pulls from MLS, but it seems to be geared toward enterprise or large-scale institutional use.
Plexerr – I’ve reached out to them directly to ask where their sales data is coming from, waiting to hear back.

Ideally, I’m looking for a service (paid is fine) that:

Pulls real MLS sold data for Texas
Is accessible to investors (not just agents with MLS access)
Can be used for comping or market analysis at a detailed level

Another thing to take into consideration is Days on Market. In my opinion a sale at $450,000 that took 28 days to complete is very different than a sale for $450,000 that took 150 days to complete. So much depends on the interior of the property.
Also, the MLS doesn't usually tell you the concessions needed to get the deal deal done.

Sometimes a 1% or 2% concession is provided to the buyer so they can buy down their loan rate, sometime a new HVAC or roof has to be replaced to make the deal work. I've seen sellers pay substantial amounts to get the seller the price they are asking, but not reduce the asking price. Sometimes agents will reduce their fees to get the transaction to closing.

These all add up and frankly, you do your best guess and offer what makes the deal work for you, not what worked for a buyer down the street on a different property with different goals.

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Okay, maybe I've got this all wrong.

Is AI a search engine that spits out what it finds on a given subject of already existing information that is currently stored on existing platforms across the internet (therefor it's as good as the information it finds, the old "garbage in, garbage out" problem)

or does it analyze & synthesize variables to form a NEW composite picture that provides unique insight into the requested subject?

For instance, "What effect would finding uranium on Navajo tribal land have on code talkers finding affordable housing in Farmington NM? Is there sufficient water to handle the increase and how much could I get for rents?"

AI should be able to handle those kinds of questions. Otherwise, you're just using search engines that tell you general information, which have been around for decades and can be reached without using Chat GPT or Grok and any other engine.

Or am I wrong? Does AI do that already?

0 Votes

Quote from @Myka Artis:

Quote from @Chris Barrett:

I haven't used it for market research because what are it's sources? It's also backwards looking and not forward projecting.

This is a great question. If you pay for the $20/mo version, you get access to deep search. In a deep search, it will conduct a thorough investigation and provide comprehensive reports on any topics you need. It will then give you all sources. Depending on what you are researching, it can take up to half an hour to complete the research. If you invest in a state like Arkansas, where property sales are publicly disclosed, you can even have it pull comps. However, for the $20/month plan, your deep search knowledge searches are limited. To get the full experience, it costs $200/month. Sorry, I can nerd out over AI all day. I've been building bots with it for the past two years, and it's now taking over marketing.

At this point, if you teach a VA how to use AI efficiently, you can automate your STR/MTR business within a few months. Good luck to you all.

Okay, maybe I've got this all wrong.

Is AI a search engine that spits out what it finds on a given subject of already existing information that is currently stored on existing platforms across the internet (therefor it's as good as the information it finds, the old "garbage in, garbage out" problem)

or does it analyze & synthesize variables to form a composite picture that provides unique insight into the requested subject?

For instance, "What effect would finding uranium on Navajo tribal land have on code talkers finding affordable housing in Farmington NM? Is there sufficient water to handle the increase and how much could I get for rents?"

AI should be able to handle those kinds of questions. Otherwise, you're just using search engines that tell you general information, which have been around for decades and can be reached without using Chat GPT or Grok and any other engine.

Or am I wrong? Does AI do that already?

0 Votes

Little Rock, Arkansas

Quote from @Michael Carlson:

AI has become an incredibly powerful tool for market research, especially in real estate. I’ve been using ChatGPT and other AI data tools to analyze rental markets, model cash flow projections, and even write property descriptions and investor pitch decks.

For anyone researching markets, another cool AI use: Have it compare two cities side-by-side for rent yields, appreciation, vacancy, and landlord laws. Super helpful when deciding where to deploy capital next.

Has anyone here started using AI for property management tasks? That’s the next area I’m looking at.

Appreciation is an unproven construct. In order to compare two cities, you have to make a lot of assumptions based on static information, 1. Things won't change in the cities in the near future, 2. New landlord/tenant laws won't be enacted 3. Selective enforcement of those laws won't happen 4. Black Swan events won't occur 5. The next government will follow the current government's policies 6. A butterfly won't flap it's wings in Hong Kong 7. Fuel prices won't deviate over time 8. The tenants you select in city A, and the the tenants you select in city B are the same 9. Your tolerance for risk won't change over time 10. That what is good for investor A is also good for investor B 11. You won't have "Life changes" 12. And on and on and on.

I like to think of investing as constantly self correcting as new information becomes available.

0 Votes

Little Rock, Arkansas

Quote from @Brian Teeter:

Plenty of great uses, even just with everyday business. Quick example: Yesterday I had a prospective property management client whose attorney made changes to our property management agreement. The attorney did not redline changes, rather just added in new language and left it to me to figure out the differences. I simply dropped both my master PMA copy and their amended copy into AI and asked it to compare both and provide summary of differences. 30 Seconds later, I had a full summary. Saved me a lot of time digging through

That function has been available in commonly available software writing applications for 30 years. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/office/compare-and-merge... I'm glad you discovered it and find it useful but that's my point that AI hasn't brought us anything new yet.

It's reintroducing people to functions that have been around for a long time that an intro class to software provides. No offense meant, just historical fact.

One overlooked aspect of using ChatGPT or Grok , etc is that anything entered, personal, private business, scientific development, whatever becomes information for the developers of the platform to exploit. It is no longer confidential.

By the way, as a matter of policy, I reject any modified contract that has been changed that isn't redline for easy review. I send it back, and say "mark the changes so I can see what they are or we use the original I provided". I've never had someone who wanted to do business with me not be up front and clear about the changes. I don't have time or patience to second guess.

1 Vote

Little Rock, Arkansas

Quote from @Daniel Sharma:

Hi,

Looking to understand the legal process for foreclosures (paper work, dos and don'ts, legal costs, how much time it takes, etc). Any lawyers or professionals out there that can help? Happy to pay a lawyer for consultation also.

Thanks,

Daniel

No worries, how would you know what to ask on such a difficult subject? That's why God invented questions. ;-)

Foreclosure is a very complex process involving lots of laws and procedures. Every state has different laws. The answers already given appear to concentrate on Texas. However, online auctions can be in any state or territory.

For the basics, I refer you to https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/foreclosure They used to break it down by state, but I didn't see that list when I visited their site this time. I assume that keeping it properly updated by state was a difficult task.

I started by focusing on one foreclosure from start to finish before I actually bought one. There are a LOT if twists and turns available to the lender & borrower through the process. It's a dance.

What generally isn't mentioned:

1. Few houses are currently in foreclosure

2. Most houses don't actually go to sale, they get postponed or reinstated or paid off. Or they go into bankruptcy which generally stops the foreclosure, but not always. If someone files a bankruptcy moments before the sale, the sale gets unwound and the house is protected, . . . usually. You get your bid money back, but, your winning bid is reversed.

3. Bidders generally way overbid

4. People in foreclosure don't maintain their house and there is a lot of deferred maintenance.

5. Foreclosed people are generally angry people and yes, I've had guns and knives pulled on me.

6. It's never the borrower's fault he didn't pay the mortgage, it's always the bank's fault (in the borrower's eyes)

7. Banks do make mistakes and sometimes you can use that procedurally, to your advantage.

8. You need to be well funded or you have to really, really, really know what you are doing to play with alligators and foreclosures.

2 Votes

Dallas, Texas

Quote from @Andrea McClary:

I've been using for tweaking documents, branding statements, and things like 30 sec commercials for networking. I just recently started playing around with it for researching markets and I'm going to test the results by making some calls.

To @Ken M. point, it's not going to mention changes unless you prompt ai for it. I would recommend adding to your research prompts is if there are any insurance issues and/or regulations for STR/MTR for the area you're concentration on.

For what I've found so far it does give a good starting point and I have to keep giving prompts for it to go deeper. I'll have to check out the deep search feature that @Myka Artis mentioned.

I can prove unequivocally, only God knows the future. AI can't help where you need it the most. Otherwise, if we knew the future, most real estate agents wouldn't have wasted their time getting a license and most college graduates wouldn't have paid so much to get so little out of worthless psychology and arts courses.

2 Votes

Little Rock, Arkansas

Quote from @Nicole He:

Hi everyone,

I’m a landlord and property manager operating in both the State of Delaware and Delaware County, Pennsylvania. I’d love to hear from other landlords and managers who have successfully collected judgment costs (e.g., unpaid rent, court fees, damages) from tenants after an eviction.

Specifically:

What methods have you used to enforce the judgment (e.g., wage garnishment, bank levy, collections agency)?
Have you had better success in Delaware vs. Pennsylvania?
What are the legal or procedural steps you’ve had to take after obtaining a money judgment?
Have you had any luck using private investigators or skip tracing if the tenant disappears?
Any recommended attorneys or collection services you’ve worked with in either state?

I know collecting post-eviction judgments can be tricky, and I’m hoping to learn from others’ real-world experience. Thanks in advance for your insights!

Best regards,

Nicole

Delaware and Pennsylvania are not my turf but here is what works where I operate. They might work where you are.
Once you get a judgment, you can usually call a meeting with your attorney and the debtors and gather information such as bank accounts, assets, employment and so on. Sometimes you can make them empty their pockets of cash on hand.

That is useful for garnishments.

You can record the judgment at the county so that if they try to refinance or sell, you must be paid.

There are services that send the collection to the credit unions so that it shows up on their credit.

Debt collection has certain laws that have to be followed, so you want to become aware of those.

0 Votes

Wilmington, Delaware

Quote from @Russell Brazil:

Quote from @Ken M.:

Quote from @Russell Brazil:

Zillow is violating two different aspects of the Sherman Antitrust Act.

The first is a Conspiracy to Restrain Trade. They are using their monopoly power in order to attempt to end the business practices of some of their competitors, namely Compass, who is the largest brokerage in America.

In order to full fill their goals in the said conspiracy, Zillow has engaged with two other conspirators in the 2nd violation of Sherman with a Group Boycott. These companies plan to by and large start banning Compass' listings, and the listings of other brokerages that are not marketed on the Zillow platform. Redfin plans to follow Zillows lead starting on September 1. There is another co-conspirator, but they havnt announced a specific date they may start with their part of the boycott, so I wont name them directly.

Compass has filed suit, with an Antitrust complaint attached against Zillow, Redfin and the other conspirators.

The facts are pretty clear in the case actually, and this seems like an odd hill for Zillow wanting to die on.

Perhaps you are unaware of Redfin.com. Realtor.com and a lot of other places you can list properties. These are all available as paid options.

I'm not sure how a company can be in violation of a "conspiracy to Restrain Trade" by locking out unpaid advertising.

Redfin is actually a party to the conspiracy as well, and has been named as such in the antitrust complaint.

And no, none of those sites are available as paid options. All of those sites receive their listings from IDX feeds. And again, a DOJ consent decree governs how this listing data is distributed. Zillow by choosing what they will display, or wont display based on a competing business model is the definition of a conspiracy to restrain trade, and a group boycott.

Ive been at the forefront of this issue for 6 years now, and was one of the key persons in getting the 2nd largest MLS in the country to change their previous practices, and getting NAR to change their policies in what set off this battle.

Congratulations on your success. I still don't see the value of worrying about it though. It actually seems counter productive to me to fight to make them "behave" to your liking so that they are more successful, rather than you putting your energy into promoting local agents and local sources.

By the way, I can pay $300 to get a listing to show up on Zillow and Redfin and Realtor. Yes, there are paid options.

I am not an agent. I do not use local MLS sources. I don't have access to them. But, If it was definitively proven to me that I don't see all of the available listings by using Redfin, Zillow, Realtor, etc I would be forced to contact a realtor for their expertise and access, now wouldn't I.

Don't get me wrong. I like the way it currently is, but I understand that if agents didn't list properties, it would be a very different ballgame. The wider the reach, the better from a listing agent's point of view, it is assumed. But they don't realize they are missing the phone calls they should be getting. I assume at least two transactions, likely more, for each successful listing an agent does.

The narrower, more focused the reach, the better from an investor's (and family buyer) point of view. The more control the agent retains.

Maybe you aren't aware of this little gem, when you call the first obvious number on Zillow about a property, you get a Zillow paid advertising agent, not the listing agent. That's frustrating as a buyer, because it's the listing agent that has all the info and relationship with the seller. and now with the "requirement" that you have to sign an agreement before you are shown a house (many agents are requiring this) it's gotten tedious and I employ "work arounds". Most people don't know to do that.

0 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Ken M.

Ken M. has started 83 posts and replied 1121 times.

Post: AI, ChatGPT, Grok and the Wizard of OZ

Post: Software That Provides Actual MLS Sold Data in Texas?

Post: AI, ChatGPT, Grok and the Wizard of OZ

Post: Anyone using Chat GBT / AI for researching markets and general RE business?

Post: Anyone using Chat GBT / AI for researching markets and general RE business?

Post: Anyone using Chat GBT / AI for researching markets and general RE business?

Post: Lawyers/Professionals experienced in foreclosure home

Post: Anyone using Chat GBT / AI for researching markets and general RE business?

Post: How do you collect the judgment cost of the evicted tenants

Post: Zillow Is Being Sued for Banning Listings — and I’ve Been Locked Out for Over a Month