All Forum Posts by: Mike Hansen

Good point... I guess only thing titles do is define to someone who you are in the company.... Which they should know since we're explaining who we are before we give them our card :)

Mike

HI there --

Well it's official... We have a logo for our new company:

Now its time for the business cards and branding.

My business partner and I are trying to figure out what we should put for our titles on the business cards. We're both equal owners of our LLC, but want a nice, simple, kinda understated title on our cards (No C level titles or anything). Primary receivers of our cards will be other real estate investors, investors, and businesses.

We're thinking:

- Owner

- Partner

- Manager

- Member

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks much --

Mike

In regards to getting rid of the people not on the lease, if you don't have it already, add a clause to your Lease that states something like:

"No other person or persons may occupy the property for more than X weeks without the prior written consent of the owner..."

That way as soon as people show up, your lease allows you to slap a 5 or 10 day notice to quit on the tenant to remove the people from the premises.

Same idea for pets...

Your lease is the most powerful tool you have to define the rules. We're always adding to our lease as new "experiences" show our leases' weaknesses.

Mike

"Richest Man in Babylon" ... Thanks to BP for introducing me to it :)

Hi Jennifer welcome aboard.

Mike

I think location, location, location such a big deal because it helps primarily to identify 2 of the tangible numbers in a typical analysis:

1. Vacancy. If the properties are in "bad areas" you probably will have less interest in the units when they need to be rented, and attract not so ideal tenants that will give you headaches (late/non-payment of rent, don't take care of property, etc.)

2. Operating Expenses. Cheaper properties usually have more that needs fixing. They also might be in areas with higher crime rates so home and car break ins, property damage like graffiti, etc. more common.

1 and 2 are tied together and can create a death spiral. When you can't rent them, you don't cash flow as well/at all, which means things don't get fixed, which leads to reduced property value and you lowering rents, which leads to things not getting fixed..... etc.

I think you need to strike a balance: on one side, you can buy great homes in great locations that attract great tenants which saves you time and headaches, but the numbers won't be as good. On other side, you can go for properties with high returns but it takes more time and effort to operate them. Everyone picks where they want to be in this range depending upon what works for them.

Mike

Hi Matt --

I work at the Merchandise Mart downtown, so if you'll be downtown I'd love to meet. Plenty of good places around me for coffee/drink.

Mike

Yes formulas!

I think this is a decent formula but don't forget about a few "intangible" factors:

- Location: do some of your comps lie in more desirable subdivisions/areas? Proximity to "the cute downtown area", shopping, expressways, big roads, close to parks, noise issues, close power lines/treatment plants/etc.

- Schools: Are some of them located closer to "the good school" in the area?

- Repair costs: Are all the comps in same shape? I'd be impressed :) Might want to factor in a repair value into sq footage.. Maybe guess an overall value then shred that cost across sq footage

- Average asking price to closing price ratio: the market supports a certain criteria in terms of pricing ... better know that so you're not running a 3 legged race with crutches against single olympic sprinters

In terms of getting laughed right out... Yeah you just might..... Then you adapt and adjust :)

In the end start and worse case scenario you wrap something up, have an "oh crap" moment as you find out it's infested with God knows what, or everything needs replacing, or all the fun unforeseeable stuff, and then back out and try again :)

Mike

Hi Jason --

You're reading my mind I think about this all the time. We're doing buy-and-hold too. Right now my mindset is to see things in both the micro and macroeconomic, then pull the trigger. I'm thinking like this: First the Micro: How are MY target areas performing in terms of economic indicators? Is there job growth? New jobs moving into area? What's the unemployment rate? Better yet, any idea how many people are simply out of the job market or under employed? Is construction picking up? What's local media saying?

Then Macro: How is overall US economy? Where are people moving? What areas are under-performing? What's government doing? What's the media pumping out? And all the Qs from Micro too :)

I think you need to get an overall picture and then decide. For me, Chicago markets we're in are strong, growth is apparent, and home prices are not shooting up like in some parts of US. Construction is starting again: we have 2 large residential projects starting up, and the "Will build to suit" signs are starting to appear in the more expensive areas. We have low inventory levels too but 2014 already showing more life than this time in 2013.

I don't think we're out of the woods, but I'm bullish on things getting better, and now is a good time to buy here. I think it's all about keeping your eyes open...

Mike

Honestly we haven't really hashed out details. We had our "annual strategy meeting" a few weeks back and we think flipping makes the most sense for our long term goals. It's a completely new ballgame for us, tho, and we have a lot to learn and formulate. We are simply planning on a single house to purchase and flip late this year to see if it works for us. We have resources to tap (money and people), and some experience in rehab, but My business partner and I have "regular jobs" so a balance between cost and required repairs has to happen.

Just took a passive scan on the MLS. Nothing that really stands out there. We're getting the feeling we'll need to get a lot more invested in connections (hi, connections!) with people when it comes to flips to bring out deals. Also we have a feeling that the places we want to buy-and-hold might not be where we want to flip... So we have to figure that out, then learn those areas.

Mike