All Forum Posts by: Lesley Resnick

This is really cool, I have never seen this.  I am assuming you can combine this with the discounts coupons you get in the mail for 10% off a purchase?

Has anyone found a way to pay a mortgage with a credit card?  More specifically a rewards card?  If I could get miles or cash back for all the mortgages I pay, I could go on a nice trip every year for free! 

Jacksonville Florida is a great city to invest in, I live here and I am invested here.  It is not a top tier city nor will you find it on the top of the, "coolest cities to live in this year", by hip cool magazine.  But what it does offer is RETURN on your money.  You can make cap rates of 10%, without going into the war zone.  Far higher if you are willing to deal with that.  Florida is landlord friendly state.  Most of the large city's are not, NYC, SF, LA, DC, etc.  Cash flow is king, you can live off of it or fund your next project.  Appreciation is tough to monetize, you must sell or find a loan to get at your money and it is on someone else's terms.  With that said, Jacksonville has been seeing steady SUSTAINABLE growth in RE prices.  As an out of town investor in a hot fast moving market, how will you know when the market has changed?  Hitting boring old singles and doubles, wins games.  Swinging for the fences is cool when it happens, but risky.    

I am game.

I am not a big fan.  My understanding is there are no contingencies, financing, inspection, title issues discovered before it closes.  I have seen some good deals, but I am concerned about the risk of losing my deposit if I discover something unfavorable and want to get out.  They do not let you inspect before or after contract.  You purchase AS IS.  Buyer beware.  Given theses reasons, I believe it is slanted to the seller.  

If you are looking for an out of the box idea:

Partner with the owner to flip the house.

He puts up the house and you the renovation.  After the sale, he gets the 45k for the property, you get your reno costs and split the profit.

This saves you on transaction cost and carrying costs for the house.  It also limits your risk and upside profit since you will be splitting.

Make sure you use an attorney, just to be safe.  

I love the ambition and the goal.  However, 100k a months is going to be a tough goal to reach.

If you assume 1% a month gross rent you need $10m in property.

If you add in expenses you are more like 2x that amount $20m.  As you get bigger you become less profitable.  You will need large multi family properties to get to that volume.

At 20% down, you will need $2m - $4m in cash, if you count expenses.

Syndicating the deal will allow you to raise that kind of money, but will dilute your part.

Social media is everywhere and there is no escaping. As Mark Zuckerberg says, "privacy is dead, get over it."  However, there is a degree of character and constraint one should exercise.  There are a  lot of people who do not necessarily follow this  The play out their lives on FB and try to drag others into it.  Without more information they seem like they type that will put everything out there.  I have no problem with them checking me out, but theses people scream DRAMA and possibly more.  I ask my tenants to pay the rent on time and not destroy the place.  In exchange, I provide a good value for a safe and comfortable place to live.    

The first question that comes to mind is, "Do you cut your own hair?"  Most people own a scissor and can operate it.  There are some things that is just make sense to outsource.  That does not mean the a buyer is revealed of  making a good decision.

Agents have access to information and MLS data that non-agents don't. You can not go into an MLS listed house unless you are an agent. Granted there are better and worse agents, but they should have relationships and help in building a team.

This one sounds like a keeper.  The transaction costs for selling and buying something else are going to eat into your equity.  If you are clearing $662 a month, you are going to be hard pressed to beat that with all the other costs and time it will take to get another property online.  If you can convert it to one tenant that would help, but the rent will probably be less. 

If you can get 100% financing and the you don't mind dealing with a tougher area, I think it is worth a second look.  Cash is king and if you can pick this property up with on money down and could still invest your cash somewhere else?  That is a great deal.  

It does not really matter if you pay market, oblivious it is better to pay less.  If the numbers work, then it is a fit.  The market is fickle and always changing compare 2003 and 2007.  The market value is a moment in time.  Cash flow is far less exciting more dependable.  It is a different approach than wholesaling

If I were in Jersey I would be interested in the deal.