All Forum Posts by: Loren Clive

I'd definitely get the cousin issue resolved before doing anything. Talk to a lawyer.

Thanks for update @Isi Nau

What are the cabinets made of? If wood much easier to paint than laminate. You don't want the paint to peel!

I agree with everyone here to stay in your own area and do owner occupant! Or perhaps move to a less expensive area, if you can keep your job for financing purposes, and house hack there. After almost 15 years in the business, I would never invest out of state where I can't manage the property. Especially as a first time homebuyer. 

Finding the right home is a combination of patience and preparation, so if I were you, I'd talk to a lender now so you're prepared when the right opportunity comes along.

Cozy.co is a free service to collect rent. Highly recommended

Aloha, James. The best way to learn about the Maui real estate market is to attend open houses. There are always agents holding them, particularly in Maui Meadows where you reside. 

www.ramaui.org (REALTORS Association of Maui) also posts stats every month. These are good to familiarize yourself with. Here's the link to January stats

http://www.ramaui.com/UserFiles/File/Stats/All-Jan...

Happy hunting!

Don't assume your taste is everyone's. As a realtor I have seen so many decor jobs painstakingly done by somebody's wife that were a total waste of money and ended up getting gutted upon closing. 

You wan to rehab it enough to make it blank canvas for the new buyer to make their own. Light paint that's easy to change. Don't go for the custom turtle or whale tiles in the shower that you love that might strike someone else as cheesy. Or really expensive kitchen knobs. Or a tile pattern that's too busy and would be difficult to repair/replace.

Spend some money on the appliances, but don't go for the wine chiller in a beer neighborhood.

Make it clean and simple (think architecture magazines), make it work, and move the real estate. 

You can get all custom in your own home.

@Raj I. Setting up a LLC is $70 in Hawaii, no attorney required. I recently paid a local Harvard-educated attorney under $2200 to set up a trust for estate planning purposes.

So my gut is you're getting overcharged. Keep it simple. I like your idea of umbrella insurance.

@Joe Villeneuve I'm sorry you don't respect realtors. Granted, some realtors, just like any professional, don't deserve your respect. However, you may have noticed a lot of experienced real estate investors, some on this site including myself, are realtors.

If you can't rely on your realtor as a reliable source of real estate education, you should not be working with them.

Having run and attended events like these, I say RUN! An experienced, knowledgeable realtor or lender should be able to teach you everything you need to know to invest in real estate for FREE. Most of the schemes touted by the real estate education people simply don't pencil out in real life . . . like wholesaling, seller financing, etc. 

Sorry for your swindle @Erica Nagle and good luck with your lawsuit! However, I daresay your money would be better spent invested in real estate, stocks, your 401k offering a more reliable return and positive vibe.

It's hard to let go when you've been had, but having pursued such lawsuits myself, and won, at the end of the day after attorney's fees it's hard to come out ahead, much less even collect on your judgement.