All Forum Posts by: Michael Orf

Hi John,

As others have mentioned in this thread, the Denver market is hot right now, but there are deals to be had for sure.  You are starting in the right place.

Thanks for everyone's input on this.  As an update, I am not renting to these tenants.  I sent the potential tenants a note with a list of questions and never heard back.  I think that I was simply asking too many questions.  And that is fine with me.  I would rather rent to a nice family that will take care of the property and pay rent on time.  

Honestly, I would not be worried about being prosecuted by the feds.  There are now 18 states where MJ is legal and they have said that they are not going to interfere.  Even if they changed this stance, which is not likely, they would go after the dispensaries first before trying to find people growing in their homes.  

My worry would be the potential damage to the home, security issues, smell, potential complaints from neighbors/HOA, etc. Just not worth it.

Hey Jeremy,

Welcome!  I'm an engineer by degree as well - don't run into that too often on here.  I was in IT for 20+ years before I decided to leave the corporate world behind and focus on building my own businesses.  Anyway, some good advise on this thread.  It's kind of a crazy market right now in Denver metro, but there are still deals to be had.  Keep hanging around BP and build up a library of knowledge...

Hi James,

I recently quit my traditional job to focus on my real estate business (as well as one or 2 other business pursuits).  It's great to be free of corporate america, but being a small business owner has it's own set of challenges!  As others have recommended, you definitely should have a nest egg or other source of income before going cold turkey as it could take some time to get the cash flowing in real estate.  It may make sense to start investing while still working so that you can build up that cash flow before going at it full time (this was part of my strategy).  

Hope that helps a bit.  Congrats on taking the first step toward an exciting career change!  Let me know if you need any advise along the way!

Hi Logan,

I charge a pet deposit of 1/2 months rent.  I typically don't charge per pet unless they have several...but then I probably wouldn't want to rent to them anyway.  I would suggest replying to their e-mail inquiry asking them to call you.  In my experience, less than half of the folks will actually call and this weeds out the ones that aren't serious.  I would not recommend asking them to fill out an application before even talking to them, but definitely have a list of questions ready that you want answered prior to showing the property.

Thanks all for the great feedback!  @Jean Bolger, I will reach out for that lawyer contact if things progress.  @Bill S., I didn't list it as a grow site.  I have several rentals in the area and am actually pushing the top end of the market for a classic rental, but you are right, I am not sure the going rate for a grow operation.  If this ends up happening, I will update this thread for everyone's info.

I currently have a rental on the market in the Denver area and was just contacted by someone out of state that is looking to move to Denver and open a dispensary with some colleagues.  He and his wife and young child are looking to rent my home and also grow some plants there.  He is offering substantially more rent than I am asking and also a large security deposit.  I have never encountered this before, so hoping someone out there has and may have some pointers.  I'm not very comfortable, but spoke with this person at length and do not get a bad vibe from him.  I would definitely put together a custom lease with stipulations on following CO law and would involve a lawyer.

Appreciate any feedback.

Welcome @David Gonzalez! As others have stated, you shouldn't need an LLC or a lawyer quite yet. Sounds like you have a lot of ideas. I would recommend reading and talking to investors (BP is a good place to start!) to help refine your strategy. Good luck with everything and let me know if I could help in any way.

Hi @Jeremy Lerner.  Good to see a fellow Littleton resident on here!  I agree with what has been said on here that single family is a good place to be.  It is competitive, but there are deals to be had.  Littleton is a great area to buy right now - I picked up 3 places here recently and am looking for another. I would suggest talking with a mortgage lender regarding some of the creative financing that you are mentioning.  Let me know if you'd like to talk about the market...

Welcome Evan!  There are definitely deals to be found in the buy and hold rental space.  It is competitive, but inventory seems to be increasing of late.  Good luck - this is an exciting field!