All Forum Posts by: Michael Taylor

Thanks everyone, I feel better now.

One my last deal, I had a nightmare with the finance broker I used so this time I said that I would have more than one.  I have not committed to anyone yet, have not signed anything.  Is it cool to fish out a deal to several financing brokers to see who can offer the best deal in regards to terms?  Just want to know if it is ethical?  Thanks,

Is there a easy way to find out if a prospective tenant has ever been evicted in Chicago? I use Cozy for my management software and they perform background and credit checks, but unless there is a judgement against a person the eviction never shows up. Is there a website or something that shows if a person has ever been evicted in Cook County or Chicago? What do you guys use?

@Shawn Stiteler, I will let you know what works.

@Darius Ogloza, I was told that he has been there 13 years and that his family is moving.  Looks like they did a complete building upgrade during that time period, but now he has to move.  My guess is that since he and his friends did most of the work, he only wanted what he put into the building, so the agreed upon price is very good for me.  I don't know if the tenants are new immigrants or what, but yes they are very low.

I just signed an 8 unit under contract, it has 6 two bedrooms and 1 three bedroom apartment with one finished commercial property. On a scale of 1 to 10, the condition of this property is a 9 having already been rehabbed by the prior owner. The apartments are nice, but rather small with no separate living and dinning room. The rents are extremely low at $500 and $600, that area should have rents at $850 to $950 (this is adjusted for the smaller area). I am getting $975 and $1000 a month for a two bedroom duplex I own just 1.5 miles away in the same zip code.

The current tenants are there month to month with no written lease. So the question to the BP family is, how do I handle the transition? I don’t want to kick the tenants out, however I doubt if they will want to pay the increase of $300 to $350 dollars. I am African American, all the tenants are Mexican. I do speak some basic Spanish and would be able to communicate with the tenants. I don’t think that language will be a major barrier, but I am wondering how I will be received. I am sure that some if not most will move out, mainly because of the rent increase. My plan is to clean up each unit after a tenant moves out and try to add some additional value like LED accent lighting. I am confident that I can get the rents I desire from either market rate tenants or Section 8.

Any suggestions on how to handle this transition and the rent increase?

Thanks,

@Moshe Gross.  What is your email suffix?  I can't send an email without it, is it dot com?  I have a variety of immediate real estate financing.  I have a multifamily that I am trying to buy, I have one that I need to refinance, and there is another one that needs rehabbing that is on my radar.  I need to make a decision who to go with by Thursday. What is your phone number?

Hello Bigger Pockets family, I need your help.  I found this great small multifamily property and I have an agreed upon price with the seller, my broker is working on the contract now.  There is a finance company that I have been in communications with for several weeks that seem legitimate, but I am wanting to do my research and confirm that they are real.  With the internet these days, a company can look and sound big but could be a scam operation out of someone's basement.  I Google map the address of the business, and yes it is a nice southern California home (I guess this is ok, as I work out of my house as well).  What can I do to vet this finance company?  The contact I deal with emails me, but doesn't communicate via phone much.  We talked only twice and he has some kind of foreign accent, and it reminds me of the time some Nigerians tried to scam me when I sold my boat (you know the guys that will send you a cashier's check at or above your asking price, but has to have the boat shipped because they are in the military).  

Is this normal and legitimate:

LOAN ORIGINATION/UNDERWRITTING FEE: The borrower(s) shall make a one-time deposit of 2%, ($8,400.00), which is a
compulsory and mandatory deposit to cover all cost incurred on the loan process and it is expected that once this fee is
made, the loan funds are wired within 48 hours maximum time interval. Therefore, the total funds to be wired to the
borrower(s) shall be $420,000.00

So they want me to send them the fee first before closing.  Is this legitimate?

Thanks in advance.

@John Warren, thank you my friend.  Just what I needed to hear.

Thanks everyone for your comments, just what I needed.  I wish there was a way to hit a "like" button on your comments like there is on FaceBook.  @Kenneth Garrett, despite the tenant friendly laws in the city I have purchased on in the city of Chicago because of the tax difference compared to the suburbs.  My six unit taxes are less than $6000 a year, in the suburbs they were about $13000 for a similar building.