All Forum Posts by: Mark F.

As a landlord, REI investor and having 30 years experience in Law Enforcement as a Police/Fire Dispatcher, you cannot simply tow a car off the street, in fact the towing companies will refuse to do it you're not the owner of the vehicle. Likewise, you do not own the parking spots in front of your house, as mentioned above they are public streets and anyone is allowed to park there whether they live in your house, live 100 miles away or down the block. Can't tell you how often I've taken these type of calls at work, it's a city street and anyone is allowed to park on it or drive down it as they choose (barring any city ordinance/parking sticker requirements).

With that being said, once the vehicle is there without being moved for a certain amount of time it can be considered abandoned, that time frame varies based on your state/city laws. In Illinois it is seven days, after that the police can come out and may attempt notify the owner to move the vehicle and/or place a tow sticker on the window. From there a registered letter is also sent to the owner and the owner has another 10 days to move the vehicle before it can be towed as abandoned. Again, that is state and city specific but gives you a general idea of the process.......

Hi @Ashly McGlasson I used Keith Murphy at 235 Insurance, he is a broker who specializes working with investors. In fact he is on the prefered contact list with both my lender, Renovo Financial as well as ClickInvest another platform I use.

I will DM you his contact information, if he can help he will.

@Tal Shachar also not sure if Menards is in your area or not but in addition to off the shelf Jen Weld windows which I've used many times https://www.menards.com/main/d...   They also let you custom order the same windows with down to 1/8" with no, no minimal, additional costs , pre-covid the timeline was 3 weeks but I'm not sure what it is at the moment however    https://www.menards.com/main/m...    

@Tal Shachar I've done this numerous times and typically put in new windows unless the house already has new(er) windows installed in the last 10 years or so. Typical off the shelf Home Depot or Menards double hung windows work great, get the closest size to the opening you have and just trim it out, easy peasy!  I usually budget $400 per window, depending on labor and materials, these can typically be installed in an hour under normal conditions, add in some labor costs for trim, molding etc. 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Am...

I have to 100% agree with @Nathan Gesner on this one. Being an investor, self managing my own portfolio PLUS 30 years in law enforcement as a police/fire/911 dispatcher - this nothing more than family drama. 

As mentioned above, she is also half owner, and has the same rights to the property as you do. Would you really ask for her permission if you wanted to go there? The ONE exception to this would be if there is a court order, such as an Order of Protection issued by a Judge and the property was listed as a "protected address" then she would be prevented, by court order to be there, however that is highly unlikely for a rental property. Also, your estranged wife did not legally "trespass" as she is co-owner, and even without giving notice it's not a criminal offense for her to be there.

I get it, have been divorced (more then once) myself plus decades of call like this on ABC (you pick subject) and it all boils down to the same thing. Absolutely no offense mean @Robert Vanecek just let it go my friend. Its difficult to keep emotions out of it but you will be much better off in the end if you do/can.

Mark 

Funny you should ask this question, as newer but seasoned investor I often try to pay it back from what I learned from those that were my mentors when I first got started and over the last few years have met with a dozen or so brand new investors that had many questions and I was glad to help. Likewise I've always shared my subs with other investors but I recently had a new local investor, who I helped in several ways with questions and guidance, but kept trying to steal my main contractor even AFTER I had a discussion with him of how when he does that he is screwing me over because my projects then are stuck waiting. It's never good to screw over one investor to get a head yourself, I am/was very tempted to call him out by name on here so others would know to be cautious but I will take the high ground. First time EVER I've regretted helping someone in this industry,

Ok, off my soapbox, didn't mean to steal your threat - subs YES, main contractor NO 

Hey @Jonathan Klemm thanks for the mention, I know that I'm doing ok when I get mentioned with the guys who were my mentors!  =) 

Hi @Ben Larson I live, work and invest in Elgin and surrounding towns in Kane County, if there is anything I can help with or you'd just like to grab a cup of coffee (or beer n burger) let me know, I always love to meet like minded local investors.

Mark 

@Jeffery Drayton I could be wrong but I don't think there is a law on this but be kind and, IF you need to assess late fee's only assess them to the tenants portion. I mean, after all section 8 paid their portion so technically the only portion that is past due is the tenants. My thought is, people on Section 8 are already financially challenged so no need to make it any harder on them then needs to be. 

That's what I do anyone, just my $.02

@Jonathan Klemm pre-pandemic I was probably getting 1 acceptance out of 10 offers, but my offers are strong, usually $10k+ EMD, 10 day closing, no inspections or contingies and I do walk the property and do my own inspections once we have a "verbal acceptance". This year, with the market as tight as it has been the success rate is lower but I am guessing we have all seen that with the current dynamic of less available properties, higher costs and more competition. From what I've seen on the emails that go out to Clients it seems that FL IS KILLING IT!

I'm sure @Rosario Terracciano can comment on that as well as what other investors might be doing globally on their offer vs acceptance ratio.  

@Jonathan Klemm, the membership subscription is $3500 a year and the platform actually has significantly more properties in and closer to the City of Chicago then this far out. You'd be better at knowing ARV and construction costs down that way but I'd imagine there analytics are fairly comparable across the board.

The other thing to take note of, as per the membership contract that ClickInvest will be the buyers agent on the properties purchased through them, with a $3000 minium commission requirement. I just consider it a cost of doing business just like any other sunken costs and for me, I it's not a big deal at all since the seller pays those costs anyway, not a bad thing just something to be aware of especially if you have your license.