All Forum Posts by: Mack McPhatter

Originally posted by @Mason English:

Mack McPhatter I figured it was maybe around the $140K range. It's off Nederland Ave, near Highway 69. Do you do a lot of work in Southeast TX?

Yeah, I'm from Nederland and I am a Realtor, contractor, investor etc.   I can run by and check it out if you need me to.  

@Mason English Your ARV is high. Depending on what part of town it is in, I would say $100 a foot on the high end which would put you around $140k.

I had an ex GF file for divorce claiming common law. Her argument was that we had a joint account at the gym(saved me $25 a month) and thus I portrayed her as my wife. The judge originally said I couldn't spend anything over $100 or sell any of my properties. I had 6 houses at the time and 2 under contract to be sold any day. The judge relented when he found out that real estate was my job and he was basically telling me I couldn't work, which I guess her lawyer forgot to mention. It cost me $5 grand in lawyer fees to break up with my girlfriend, but I guess it could have been worse.

I don't work in Illinois, but can you really tear down an old garage and slab, haul it off, pour a new slab, and build a new garage for $15 grand?

I go on vacation every time I sell a flip. It's pretty much a part of my budget now that I'll need a couple grand to go see the world when I finish a house. I'll be in Grand Cayman in 2 weeks! I actually found an auction in the Virgin Islands last year. I was trying to get my accountant to let me write it off, but he shot me down. I really need a new accountant.

If you are planning on wholesaling, I don't know if having a license would be very beneficial. The Ethics part is iffy for wholesaling. If you plan to flip or buy & hold it can definitely help your business. 1. I get paid every time I buy a house, so I basically get a 2-3% discount on the purchase. My broker let's me sell 3 of my own properties a year for free so that's more money saved when I sale. 2. MLS access helps. You can go see properties as soon as you see them and don't have to wait on a Realtor to find time to show the property. Time is of the essence for really good deals. 3. I can't buy them all. I'm already looking for deals everyday, so it not a big effort on my part to pass along a deal to another investor and make commission. You may even get the listing when they sell which is more money in your pocket. 4. Once you get your name out there, people will call with future or off market deals. The less competition the better and cheaper you can purchase the properties. Those are just a few benefits off the top of my head. It's cheap and easy to get your license. If you are serious about investing, I would definitely recommend it.

Russ Brantley It's on a nice street right across from an elementary school and city park. The house burnt down a few years ago and it's been sitting. There isn't much land left in the city so builders are buying dilapidated houses and tearing them down. Someone is building a new construction 2 lots over right now.

I couldn't make the foreclosure auction today so I sent my step dad. He's a contractor/wanna be investor that has done 2 flips that I set him up with. This was his first auction to attend, so I sat him down, explained how everything would go, researched the list, and picked out 2 properties that I thought he could get for a good price. He's the type that will call me a million times asking for advice, but not listen to any of it because he knows it all. Enough about him, let's talk about the property. Vacant double lot with a slab on it. -cost to remove and haul off slab ~ $7-$8k -5 city grass cutting liens for $150 each -survey to split lots in 2 ~$1,000 Around $10k total to get lots cleared and ready to build on I could list these 2 lots for $30k each. I know builders that would buy them for $25,000 each tomorrow, so selling them would have been easy. I told him that I would bid up to $20,000. These lots sold for the opening bid of $100!!! He didn't bid! He said he froze up and didn't know what to do! I wanted to kick him through the phone! I tried to hand the guy $40,000 and he didn't take it. These type of deals that need very little work hardly ever come up. When you do, you better not freeze up! Sorry I just needed to vent. Needless to say I wasn't very happy with him this morning.

I am a Contractor/Investor/Realtor and I think it is beneficial for me and my clients. Sometimes I do jobs for them, and some I just give them my subs numbers and let them deal with it. They seem to like that I can give them estimates on repairs before we get too far along in the process. I do probably kill some deals before they start by being honest with my clients about the cost of repairs, where as some Realtors are just interested in the commission. As a contractor you will notice more issues than a majority of other agents, which can be a downfall I guess. Just be sure to protect yourself and make your buyers get a home inspection and not just rely on your opinion.

I pay $1.50 for square lay, $1.75 for brick lay, and $2 diagonal. Backsplash is usually around $300 for an average kitchen. You need to find a new tile guy.