All Forum Posts by: Michael Guzik

@Kenneth Williams Congrats brother that's freaking awesome! I think I know which triplex you are talking about and was looking at that deal a while back, glad you were able to make it work for you! I may be wrong but when I was with my PM company we simply called CPS and asked about it and they took care of it on our duplex's. It's just simply contacting them and writing a check, but that check ain't cheap depending on a multitude of variables. Good idea on implementing that system but you also need to check that area and rentals around it to see if tenants are being billed individually like that. It may be a wise investment on paper but if you are the only one billing tenants like that in your area that could be a red flag.... I know it's a pain in the butt, but you need to reach out and call CPS and let them know of your situation and go from there. Good luck!

I agree my friend there is a bad reputation and stigma when most people think of wholesalers. However there is a difference between a low ball offer and a calculated and thought through offer. You don't just throw out an offer you give an offer and an explanation for it. For example on a house worth 100k with an ARV of 140k with 30k in repairs, you would probably offer around 70k. You would say "Mr/Mrs seller in order to get this place fixed up and in tip top shape I would need to invest at least 30k into it to fix the foundation, roof, repaint and put in new carpet, not to mention closing costs and fees which you won't have to worry about. I also need to make a reasonable profit for my time and effort in this investment. All things considered my offer would be 70k cash." This is just a hypothetical situation of course. I don't know where you got this mentality that wholesaling is a win/loss situation but you need to fix that if you want to have success in real estate. You are providing value and a solution to the seller. You also should know when you are or aren't a good fit for them. If they want tip top dollar then tell them they should consider looking at selling with an agent, they will just have to pay all the fees and commissions and wait for it to sell. You should show and tell them that your value and service is fast and stress free. Of course like in many areas and jobs there are unethical and immoral people who do take advantage of situations and do low ball sellers. Don't be like them. You also need to get change your view on your offer being a low ball offer. Your offer is your offer because that's what the numbers come out to. Take the emotion out of that side of the transaction. You should work on learning to present your offer and less on the actual offer. That would be the easiest part because it's just plugging numbers in a formula. I wish you the best of luck my friend and don't let things like this discourage you. If you are working hard and doing the right thing like I think you are, you should have nothing to worry about!

@Jason Malabute School districts are definitely something to look at brother, but they are far from being the deciding factor. I don't know how things in California are but here in Texas and especially in SA there are good schools and bad schools in every school district. The school is far more important than the school district. You may be in a "desirable school district" but if the school itself isn't desirable it defeats the point. My opinion is to focus on parts of town, focusing on school districts is not wise, at least here in San Antonio. For instance in NISD (Northside independent school district) you can have a great school in a great area like Clark with upper middle and upper class people in the area. However a few miles away in the same district you will be at Marshal,  which is lower middle class and is a much rougher area. Same school district, very different area, tenant base and culture. People will pay much more to live within the zone of Clark than Marshall. If you don't know that and think it's all the same school district you can lose a lot of money. I really hope you aren't just focusing on that my friend because I have seen wayyyyyy too many people from California throw their money here and don't do enough research and due diligence. If you are serious about investing here take the time and money to fly out and see San Antonio for yourself. Drive around and see the sides of town and get a feel for things. Things are very different in real life than they are on Google street view. Meet with the people you plan to work with in SA in person on your visit and see what kind of gut feeling you get. Sadly too many people take advantage of out of state investors and paint this amazing picture for this not so amazing deal. That's just my 2 cents though. Just make sure you do your due diligence on the property and the people you will be working with or trusting as your boots on the ground. Good luck and feel free to message me if you are ever in town!

@Nicole A. It really is! We can make money on this deal, I guess it's just a matter of is the money worth all the effort and stress? We haven't gotten her out of the house yet so that's why I asked the question because I don't know if I should just give up.

@Caleb Heimsoth I appreciate your insight that's the answer I was seeking from my original question thanks!

@Elizabeth Wilson Thanks for that I really do try my best. Wholesalers and especially investors in general have such a bad reputation so I really try to go above and beyond. The numbers work out A okay but I am just concerned if I am wise by using my time to help her when I could be pursuing other deals.... She wants to move to a small town here in Texas and believe me I have called the only agents in the area. I had to call each of them several times and leave multiple voicemails to even get a response. I finally got a call back and there is one rental home in the whole town available... Thank God our seller loves it and wants it.. The trouble is before the move she is wanting a car. She was wanting an $18,000 Honda Civic and because she would be netting less than that through this deal she wanted 10k more than we can pay. I searched and found several nice, reasonable cars for around 10k and told her that we can't raise our price but we can help her stretch the money we give as much as possible. After the car now she wants to get her furniture re-upholstered and that will cost 10k too. I told her that she could get a brand new set of furniture for less than half of that and am now helping her search for a new set within a reasonable price range. I just don't know if this is even worth it anymore and am wondering if I'm the only person who deals with crazy stuff like this?!?!

@Caleb Heimsoth We are offering her 90k. That is the most we can give and still make a decent profit. The house is worth 120k as is and ARV is around 160ish. Maybe 10k is needed in rehab so it's a solid home for Buy and Hold or owner finance. The reverse mortgage just really diminishes her money after all is said and done. We finally showed her that we could not offer any more money for the property which is what she wanted... I kindly told her that we were really her only option. It was either pay for the rehab and sell on the market which she can't afford, die there or have someone pay cash and free her from that situation. She is wanting a car for reliable transportation, new furniture for the new home, and is wanting a rental home in Cuero Texas. I have been helping her to do this so I can get the best quality item for the cheapest price which will leave her with the most cash possible, but it's like one thing after another and I don't know if I should see it all the way through or just say fck it and move on...?

Hey guys and gals. I am pretty new to wholesaling and have come across a distressed owner who is under a reverse mortgage.. I have never heard or dealt with something like this until now. this owner wants to get out of this home but in order to do so must pay off the remaining balance of 68k. This could be a great wholesale deal potentially but my question is how far do you go to get a deal? I know that we are problem solvers and should help provide solutions but I am not sure if I am going too far. I know that at least with wholesaling people will let you purchase their home if they like and trust you, I am great with people so it isn't too hard for me to befriend someone. Real estate is a people business and I realize that. However in this instance she is needing help finding a new car, new furniture, a new house to move into, and needs to be driven everywhere because she doesn't have a car. She has been through a lot and lost her husband, parents and parents in law in a matter of 5 years. She has nothing left here and wants to move back to her hometown. I empathize and truly feel like we are a great solution for her and can help her achieve a better life so she doesn't die in her current house alone, and depressed. However I have a hard time separating the emotional side of things from the numbers/deal. When do you draw the line and say this deal isn't worth the effort? Is there no line and I should just do my very best, and if that's not good enough just say I tried my best? Would love some advice  and experiences some of you have been through to get a deal.

@Darci Aita Wow it sounds like you have a really good problem lol! You seem very knowledgeable so good job on really thinking through all your options. If you are ever going to sell it now would be a great time because we are at the tip top of the market. I would even see about 1031ing into a larger property maybe a plex? That could be very stressful though and that due date can lead to some impulse decisions.... I personally think you should either do a HELOC or sell and use that money as a down payment for another property. That Airbnb idea sounds great but keep in mind that is a job and is much harder than most people make it seem. I would look into smaller apartment buildings too because you could use that money you get as a down payment or maybe passively invest in some deals? There are so many options that I would just stop and focus. What part of real estate do you want to focus on? Once you know that I believe that will help guide you in this situation. Good luck!

@Luke Medina Hey Luke welcome to BP brother! I'm glad to see you on here and proud of you for continuing to look into real estate even after that loss in 2008. Just from what I hear finding a plex in Austin is not the easiest thing to do. Austin is flaming hot and the prices are sky rocketing. San Antonio is about 7-10 years behind Austin so it is much more affordable. However finding a 4 plex is pretty difficult. Finding a plex in a decent side of town is pretty difficult to be honest, by the time they hit the market they are usually already over priced and do not fit the 1% rule. In either market I would suggest finding one that is off market and can be rehabbed so you can force appreciation, unless you want to purchase turn key which is expensive but theoretically takes all the stress away from you. Just make sure you run the numbers, and do your due diligence on the property and the people you will be working with!!! It may be a good deal but if you have bad people on your team for the transaction it can go south very fast. If you are ever here in SA feel free to give me a shout and we can meet up and drive around the city and I'll show you the areas and sides of town! Good luck man and keep doing what you are doing my friend you are on the right track!

@Taylor Dove Hey man just wanted to say good job on having the courage to do that and start your own business. Many people don't even get that far. You are now facing adversity which everyone does and this is what makes or breaks people in the beginning. I would first try and find and network with other wholesalers and see if you can find a mentor or friend to guide you or show you where you are going wrong. Two brains is always better than one and it is really helpful to always have someone to go to for advice or help. I personally don't really think being an agent is that beneficial, but that's just my opinion. Both being a realtor and being a wholesaler are much harder than most people think and most that start or think of doing it don't actually make it. Stay strong and surround yourself with people that help motivate, push and guide you my friend! Good luck and whatever you do man don't give up.