All Forum Posts by: William Morgan

Insurance companies have high statistics?? How??  

I'm not sure what you mean.  Statistics I cited were taken from the Centers for Disease Control Study on Dog Bite fatalities - linked above.

Do you know that in today's world of pit bull they breed has changed and bred out human aggression?

Not according to the CDC study in 1998.  Nor this reference showing they accounted for 62.3% of Dog Bite fatalities from 2005-2014.  So no, the data does not support the assertion that there has been some kind of a concerted effort to breed out aggression.

Do you know that a dog that fights In a ring with another dog is not human aggressive and any form of human aggression displayed the animal is euthanized. 

I have not seen a credible reference for that. And, again, it's not supported by the data.

Yea these animals were bred for bull baiting and bear hunting. How does that play a part in human aggression??

They cause a disproportionate amount of human fatalities - way more than any other breed profile

I'm sorry, I don't buy the "it's all in how you train them" argument, at least not in totality. While I'm certain that training comes into play, keep in mind that "Pit Bull type" dogs have a long breeding history as fighting dogs. We can argue whether or not how precisely the "Pit Bull" breed can be determined but lets not forget their selective breeding for Bull Baiting and fighting.

"To understand the origin of the pit bull, one must go back two hundred years to a time when two dogs fighting to the death in an arena was as acceptable as two prize fighters punching each other in Las Vegas is today...

...the Bull Terrier was created "by crossing English Bulldogs with several breeds including Black and Tan Terriers, Spanish Pointers, English White Terriers, Dalmations, Greyhounds and Whippets in order to create a dog breed that would fight other dogs." (link)

Also, while acknowledging the limitations of breed identification, the Centers for Disease Control nonetheless has this to say:

"Despite these (breed identification) limitations and concerns, the data indicate that Rottweilers and pit bull-type dogs accounted for 67% of human DBRF (Dog Bite Related Fatalities) in the United States between 1997 and 1998. It is extremely unlikely that they accounted for anywhere near 60% of dogs in the United States during that same period and, thus, there appears to be a breed-specific problem with fatalities."

Nobody knows risk more than insurance companies. They study it with far greater precision than anyone else. That they would seek to disallow coverage based on breed profiles shows IMO that certain breed profiles are predisposed inflict injury and aggression. Keep in mind, most of the time these fatalities are kids (70%).

And really, doesn't it make sense?  Does anyone think you can take a dog with some mix of a dog fighting breed and not have *at least the potential* for those traits carry over?

I inherited a tenant who used 2 "Blue" pits, around 80lbs apiece.  BTW they also made great guard dogs for his home grow operation. He, like many owners of these breeds claimed they were "friendly and have never bitten anyone, I swear".

I and all the neighbors (and their kids) were happy to see them go.

I've encountered a property owner who has a duplex with over $1 million in tax liens (state and county) placed on it. The liens originated from prior failed business venture. The property ARV is ~$500,000. I'm interested in buying it for $3-350,000.

Question: Has anyone successfully purchased a property where the leins exceeded it's value?

How did you negotiate with the taxing authorities?

Were you able to get the liens reduced and discharged to enable the sale?

I invested  fairly substantial amounts  into  gold, platinum and palladium  in 2008 .  I've sold some of that  in the past couple of years. I am mostly neutral  about gold.  Since 2001  it has had a large run up .  Platium and Palladium mirror overall economic activity and I think we are topping on that front.

 I do think gold is a good place for savings as opposed to all cash. Silver is more volatile but trades in similar fashion. If you do invest in physical precious metals I would recommend you buy well-known pieces such as commonly traded coins, and PAMP bars. I would recommend you get them from a large dealer such as APMEX so that you can sell quickly if an opportunity arises. These same dealers often do not buy back oddball coins and bars. In my opinion however, the very best way to invest in the metals themselves without taking possession is through a Goldmoney account. I would never have more than $50,000 of metal on hand, too risky.

I am not as big a fan of the miners. If you compare long-term gold miner indexes to the price of gold (GLD vs GDX) you will see that they only loosely correlate. Their costs increase as energy costs increased so they negatively respond to inflation. Additionally, ore concentrations are at historic lows meaning it costs more to get an ounce than it used to.

Are they offering you a cashiers check originating from a Bank outside the US?  If so it is most likely a scam.

International  cashiers checks take 3 weeks to clear. Scammers have been known to write a large cashier's check for a rental on a long term lease. About a week later they call the unsuspecting landlord and say their transfer got canceled or some excuse like that therefore they cannot go through with the lease. But they only ask for a little of the total money back, like one or two thousand dollars. You check your bank account and see that the cashiers check has posted so you write them a check for $2000. About two weeks later you get a call from your bank saying the cashiers check they credited you with came back bogus therefore it didn't actually clear even though it showed up as a credit to your account. The scammer walks with your $2000 scot-free.

I think every Investor deals with this question initially. After doing a few deals though, that notion vaporizes quickly. 

By and Large my business takes on problems from irresponsible people, fixes them and offers a beautiful property to responsible people.

In just the last 6 months:

• I bought a thrashed house from the parent of a pill popping gun nut who had numerous run-ins with the police, including an armed stand-off with an AR-15!! We made that house the most attractive one in the neighborhood, now in escrow with a stable family with good credit, kids and jobs. Needless to say the neighbors are ecstatic.
• I removed an amateur pot dealer who guarded his stash with two 80 lb Pit Bulls who regularly got through the fence and into the family neighborhood. After a comprehensive gut there are now tenants with excellent credit and good jobs. Needless to say the neighbors are ecstatic.
• I bought a worn out, defaulting property from a substance abusing couple who managed to have altercations with everyone on their block (and me). We're fixing this one now. Needless to say the neighbors are ecstatic.

Business in general is the meeting of those in need with those who stand to gain from that need. Doctors, Nurses, Lawyers, Auto Repairmen, Funeral Homes, Judiciaries, Walmart, Walgreeens, and the local Piggly Wiggly Supermarket all gain from others time of need.  

Are they "predators"? 

Maybe I've gotten a little callous but after while you notice trends.  Rare indeed is the hard working, responsible, upstanding person in dire need to sell their train-wreck of a house. 

Kinda like Bigfoot - it's plausible they exist.... I've just never seen one!  :)

Thanks for the perspective James. I've heard this combination - a Trust formed and an LLC assigned beneficial interest - touted as a good way to quietly assign interest to an LLC in order to enjoy the benefits of the LLC with a conventional loan. While commercial financing is an alternative, LTV's, rates and amt schedules add non-trivial costs and limitations. While I don't currently use this kind of Trust-LLC pairing I have seriously considered it so I appreciate it.

I did understand that a trustee is personally liable for a breach of his or her fiduciary duties. I was not aware that a Trustee (who is not the grantor) is personally liable simply by faithfully acting in the capacity as Trustee.  To be honest I've never heard that before and I suspect that is not exactly what you are saying. Otherwise why would anyone act as Trustee if it means they assume the Trusts liabilities personally?  

I do understand that someone who creates a Trust and remains a Trustee has not reduced his or her liability with the transfer.

Again, many thanks.

-W

@James Miller

Negligence, breach of contract, strict liability, etc.? You sue the trustee when a trust is sued, not the trust in general. There's usually no liability protection with a trust.

I don't think anyone is claiming a Trust offers anything other than privacy. Regarding Trustee liability however, how do you see my buddy Fred (Trustee) incurring liability as a trustee for say a tenant who incurred damages at a rental?  Fred wasn't a property manager, nor involved in transactions or in any other way connected to the property other than his nomination as Trustee.   Genuinely curious.

a transfer into an inter vivos trust in which the borrower is and remains a beneficiary and which does not relate to a transfer of rights of occupancy in the property)

OK, so the lender has the option of calling the note due and payable when they discover the transfer.

However, the LLC likely won't be affording ANY liability protection by being a beneficiary, so why the heck use an LLC at that point?

Perhaps you can elaborate. How would a judgement awarding say, $1MM, affect Tom the original property owner who had a tenant successfully sue him? He owns a duplex created a trust and assigned most of the beneficial interest to his LLC (99% / 1%)

How much does Tom owe? How much does his LLC owe?

@James Miller

The reason most people advocate a trust holding title with an LLC subsequently having beneficial interest is so that a lender will not accelerate a loan on the property. A transfer to an LLC is a valid reason for a lender to accelerate (or at least threaten) the loan whereas a transfer to an inter-vivos revocable trust is not. Quietly assigning interest to an LLC thereafter affords its protections. Thoughts?

"the trustee is going to be exposed to liability."

What liability, aside from their fiduciary duty as a Trustee, are they exposed to? 

Arnie,  What you are proposing is called "predictive maintenance".  Almost always the best way to go.  If you "Run until Failure"  you will likely pay double for the after-hours or expedited service.  You may even see water damage expenses.  

I say do them all - you look more professional and get much better price.

-W