All Forum Posts by: Bob Hank

With the amount of repossessions that have happened in the last few years how many owner occupants are left that will qualify for a home?
At what point will most people be able to get a decent loan? Is it 7 years from a foreclosure or bankruptcy?

I look at this biased on what is happening where I live.

If it was not for the investors picking up the properties there would still be a astronomical amount of properties on the market with out buyers. If this was happening family would not be able to down grade the living style (house) to better fit there lower budgets. At the same time where would people live if all the houses were vacant and on the market?

The last I know there were over 200 houses between the city and county that are in the HUD program that need to be on the market. The local HUD department is trying to not flood the market; the last time they did that the entire housing market went south.

There have been a few times that people have come to us looking at abandoned properties that wanted them fixed so they could buy. If you can prove to HUD that there is an interest they will put it on the market.

Glenn I tried to send you a PM. If you did not get it let me know.

I'm not sure how they do the tax value where I’m at. But right now there a third lower than than the market value. I also found that when I fix up a junker they miss estimate on the high side 90% of the time. We always call them and invite them to the realtors open or set up a time for them to stop by.

For about the last 6 months I have found that houses are selling close to what the rebuild cost would be. If there is a deck, patio, car port, detached garage, or odd size lot it changes the pattern.

When the market dropped I owned both side of a street. We had 19 duplex shells built and we finished the inside our self. With the bad market and the amount of work we gave the contractor we got a good deal.

It would have been cheaper to buy duplexes, but at the same time I was not going to be able to sell the land to a developer so I was going to be stuck with it all for who knows how long.

I would never buy anything more than a duplex because of the codes and regulation changes I would have to deal with. Right now you can buy a used one cheaper than you could build where I’m at and know a few that might be for sale.

We have only have a few a year to do and most are not that bad.

Lady was 15 days late with rent and started the eviction. We found out she was going out of town for 10 days. The papers had been served. A few hours after she left I posted a 24 hour inspection notice. During the inspection we put up a wireless monitored severity system took pics and left. After 7 days we saw the sheriff and did a conference call with the monitoring company to prove the property was abandoned for 7 days. Changed the locks, stored her junk for 24 hours, painted, buffed the floors, and were looking or new tenants before she was back in town.

I had my electrician once decide that there was a safety issue with the between the meter and the service head. Had the power cut off at the poll. Called a shop for them to come out and look to see what there opinion would be. It took 10 days to get the work done, permits, and inspection. During this time the tenants were left with no power and could of used there renters insurance for a hotel room. They told us they no longer had the insurance and that’s a breach of there lease. To get them out we had to help them move there stuff in to a storage unit.

I had one that was a drunk with kids. She would drink when she was out side with her kids. I started call the cops any time she was doing it and told them she was a threat to her self and or others. After the 5 time I called child services. They made an agreement for her to move back in with her mom so she could help with the kids. I never started the eviction process and got them out.

I convinced one guy that was 30 days late that if he found a new place to live in 7 days we would help him move. He singed the contract found a new place and helped him move for the keys. He still had to pay us what he owed.

When it comes down to it most of your “Power team” will be used less than 100 hours a year and that would be if your renting / flipping / wholesaling a lot of properties.

When you first start out do you truly need a property manager? Could the same thing be done between your self and a little help from a realtor? If your not ready to find and screen tenants on your own I’m sure that you could find a realtor that could help with that for a smaller fee than a property manager.

When it comes to realtors / brokers I go through them like candy. I found it's best not to put to much onto one realtor unless you are at the point where you are there main source of income. I found it's better to have one that works for a larger agency, this way they have people they can go to when they run into something there not sure on. The down side to this is the company is not going to make them work with other house than just what you have on your slate.
The good part about going through so many agents is I will get random phone calls and emails when they have something that fits in with my style.

I can see finding a title company and sticking to it. We use 2 different title companies. The one we use for HUD and other long drawn out government titles. The other one the rest of our business; there great with fast cash closings to the point we did a 48 hour close with them last month.

Handy man is a big one. You asked about a property management company and they are going to use there handy men. When you first fix something up then you'll be better off doing as much of it as you can yourself to save money. I don't like bringing in people that are a master of nothing to do work for me; I found they over look stuff and end up spending more money on it at a latter time to fix it right.

CPA can go 2 different ways. If your using a property management company then mostly will be needed for setting stuff up at first and then for your quarterly taxes. If you don't use a management company then you will need help with start up, a few hours at the end of each month where you work together (till you learn what to do), and then for your quarterly taxes.

I have a power team, but were also renting out close to 200 properties and flipping 30 to 50 a year. I look at a power team as people you employ, not some that is employed by someone else. If you don't employ them you don't know what there doing when you need them.
2- landlords + 1 in training
1- plumber
1- electrician
1- HVAC
1- flooring installer
1- cabinet maker
3- grass / landscapers
2- painters
7- trades helpers
7- general office staff / go-do-ers
2- warehouse workers
2- CPA / data entry / computer system upkeep
1- wife
1- me

Where I’m at they would of not placed a meter at a location like what is described. If the land scape was changed then it would be the owner / contractors responsibility to make sure everything would be safe.

It might be best to sink a few thick walled pipes with some concrete to protect the meter.

Don't forget to call “811” 72 hours before digging or sinking anything into the ground. (your local rules on 811 might be different than mine)

Are you able to do a search by mailing address (owners address)?
If so it will bring up a list of properties that he or she owns and will give you a better idea of the person.

I would not write a letter to the owner unless there is 3 or more houses to his mailing address. If you do write a letter it's best to check out all of his properties before hand. He or she might want to deal in bulk or have other properties that would be better for you.

I read this wrong, but I typed this out before I reread it so I'm posting

I have a guy in a 2 bedroom duplex that emptied the living room and hug ghosts all over it. At night he turns on a fan with dull back lighting. It looks cool, but we have gotten some phone calls about it with people complaining.

When you buy calk you need to read it. Silicon needs the additive to prevent mildew; they do not put it in all of the silicon because of the cost.
An oil biased primer and a coat of oil biased paint will do the trick to seal it up, but then the water will sit on the sub floor below flooring.

For bathrooms we use vinyl flooring and put silicon where the wall meats the floor and put the molding in to it. We try to keep the water on the floor so they can clean.