All Forum Posts by: Tommy B.

Tom Goans- Interesting post. Thanks for taking the time. Sounds like you had a great example to learn from. My dad is the polar opposite of your dad, with one exception, he's never owned his own home either, but for far different reasons. He's been a great example of what I don't want to be.

You make a good point about the adviser. I'll think it over. It may be worth a phone call to see what he has to offer. I think my initial reaction, based on everything leading up to the referal, was that she thought he'd give me a financial reality check or something. I may have been a little hasty in my judgement.

Again, thanks for the time.

I agree. That's what BP is for, right? I just don't know where a Financial Adviser fits in my "team" right now. Maybe in a few years when I have much more money to manage.

I hope I'm not coming off as egotistical, but My wife wife and I are raising two small kids with a single income and zero debt outside of our mortgage. I think we're handling our finances pretty well without an adviser.

In any case, I did email her and asked if there was a specific reason she thinks I need his services.

Thanks. I thought I might have been overreacting. It should have been a red flag when I mentioned foreclosures in our initial conversation and she immediately mention a "cute" house she just listed @ $125,000.

Moving on.

I contacted my realtor a few weeks ago to discuss my ideas. I've used her to buy and sell my first home and to buy my second home. Since then I sent her a couple addresses, which she never replied to. Then last week I get mail from her with a couple of business cards; one for a mortgage specialist and one for a financial adviser, whom she says is expecting my call. Then yesterday she leaves me a message asking if I have called him yet. I don't even know how to respond.

Does she think property investing is unrealistic for me? I don't want to pay someone to tell me how to invest my money. I have a pretty good idea how I want to do that.

Thanks!

Is it necessary to send rejection letters to anyone who completes an application or only applicants who have submitted an application fee or background check fee?

I came across Dave Ramsey's TMMO back in 2006 and it changed my life. My wife and I paid off $27K in about seven months. By the time she gave birth to our first child 9 months later, we had saved an additional $15K and she was able to stay home with our daughter. Now, 7 years later, she still stays home with our two kids. We were able to do that because we followed Dave's advice, although not to the letter. We simply needed to learn how to be financially disciplined. We still use debt, but sparingly. If we want something that we can't afford to pay cash for then we find the best deal, finance at the lowest rate, and pay it off as fast as possible. We never finance more than one big ticket item at a time.

Now, I am completely comfortable with the concept of using other people's money to build wealth because I know that I am responsible enough to manage it properly. If I had to save my own money before getting into real estate then it would take far longer to do it and the returns that I would lose in the years that it would take to get to a point that I could afford it would be huge. Even worse, I may lose interest in real estate during that time. Good luck with your decision.

Mason Crane- How is it working out for you so far? I'm in Rio Rancho myself. I haven't "started" anything yet other than trying to organize my thoughts and learn where to start. Have you explored the local market? What is your strategy?

According the New Mexico State Bar a landlord must:
Supply running water, a reasonable amount of hot water and reasonable heat in the dwelling unit at all times.

I assume that means making sure the plumbing, hot water, and heater are in working order and not that a landlord must pay gas and water, right?