All Forum Posts by: Matthew Hodge

We like Oklahoma City Abstract and Title (Hefner Lake office) and Chicago Title (Gaillardia office).

Oklahoma City Abstract and Title works well with investors. We use the Lake Hefner office. They will do double closings, and you can negotiate good investor discounts if you're doing a lot there.

Chicago Title is also investor-friendly, but I am not sure about double closings.

On a deal this large, and with little experience, I strongly recommend getting help from a professional if you're serious about making the deal work. A real estate attorney or, at the very least, an experienced real estate agent, will be able to give you specific advice and help you figure this transaction out.

The first mortgage almost certainly has a Due-on-Sale clause. That means that they can technically call the loan if ownership changes. They may call the loan, and they may not, but if you don't have the means of quickly refinancing that loan, it's extremely risky to take ownership and hope they don't call the note. Honestly, they very well may not, and I know people do these deals all the time (If you want to read up on this exact type of deal, it's called a "subject-to"deal because it's subject to existing financing).

As far as your second question goes, it's unlikely you'd need a quitclaim deed unless your friend isn't the actual current owner (if, for instance, he actually has a contract for deed instead of an owner carry). If he is the owner, the lien-holder will jus a need to release the lien once he's repaid.

Welcome, and good luck. There are several good real estate meet-ups in the area that you might try.

As long as interest rates are reasonable, the leveraged investor will always crush the cash buyer. It's that simple. It's not a matter of personal preference or risk tolerance -- cash investing in real estate is demonstrably worse than leveraged investing. If you are uncomfortable with debt, then you are better of investing outside of real estate. Everyone here tries to be so nice and fair to both sides of a debate, but this is an issue where the debate has already been won decisively.

The guy who's never had a day if vacancy in 5 years is questioning everything because he had one month of vacancy...I'm cracking up. You're obviously doing a lot right. I wouldn't read anything whatsoever into numbers on a single unit taking a few more calls than normal to get occupancy.

I've got two questions, but they're related. First of all, how should we apply the 2% Rule, or another similar guideline, to improvements? Specifically, I've got a triplex that doesn't have central heat and air. The three units will each rent for $50 more if I add it. In order for it to conform to the 2% rule, I need to get the work done for $7,500. Am this a misapplication? Do you guys use a guideline like this for improvements to rental properties you own? Is a 1% rental rate return on improvements enough to justify making the improvement on rental return alone? Obviously we aren't going to over-improve for an area.

My second question is related: We are going to offer to the optional rental of a stackable washer/dryer to our tenants. Do you have a rule for how much to charge for additional items like this? If they will only pay $40/month for the washer/dryer, what's the cap on what I can pay for the appliance to make it profitable, in your experience?

So are you wholesaling in OKC?

If you are, feel free to send me any deals you have, and send me a colleague request.

I just sent a PM. I've got some questions for you, but I am optimistic that we could work something out. 

We've recently started investing in the area, and we are also doing some short-term, asset-backed lending. If the deal is good, I can help him out. We live in Moore. PM me or have your friend do the same.