All Forum Posts by: Joel Nielsen

I've been lucky in that I have a few RE Agents who are "delicate" pit bulls. That is, they have an uncanny knack for getting the listing agent or seller to reveal much more information than what they should. When they call me up with a deal I really tend to listen and do my own Due Dilligence.

Great advice from Mike about getting with an REIA group. I have found that some of these old RE investors get as much of a kick out of helping a newbie out as they do in finding their own deals. There have also been some great resources on this forum as well.

Best,

You are exactly correct, RESPA frowns on anything that appears to be "colusion" RESPA requires our clients to understand that they can use whatever title company they want and are free to pick and choose whom they want for home insurance etc.

The biggest ADVANTAGE to using the same title company is convenience and speed. There may be a slight cost advantage (under $50-$1oo) to using the same title company too. The title market is so competitive that prices are usually identical.

The only time it has been a DISADVANTAGE to using different title companies is when there is a problem with clearing title. Because title needs to be cleared with both the buyer and sellers side, using two different agents in different part of town (or the state) can cause an extra days delay or two to get both sides on the same sheet of music.

I have one or two title people that I LIKE to work with, but I ALWAYS defer the choice to my clients first, and if they don't care I'll use someone from my posse to get it knocked out.

This was probably WAY more information than what you wanted to know but I wanted to share anyway.

Best,

Welcome to BP. It has been a wealth of information for us. We are looking to invest in the RE market in Houston. Is there anything out there going for 30,40,50 cents on the dollar?

Best,

Joel

Doesn't RE in Dubai START at $1M? My question is this, do the properties there come with oil rights? With oil at $106 a barrel, I bet a Dubai home with a small oil well in the backyard might be the best investment of all!

Best,

Joel

Welcome Brad.

I have been on this forum for a few weeks and have enjoyed the information. I am an investor in Salt Lake looking to buy properties in Dallas. We are looking for properties that are 30,40,50 cents on the dollar. Would you be a good contact for that? Feel free to PM me or post here.

Best,

Joel

While I am not a fan of Armando Montoblfjpkindoihga;oij (I think he's a prima donna too) I have seen appraisers do some really stupid things and then try to blame it on the broker.

We had an appraiser call us last week demanding payment for several appraisals that he had done for our clients. We order ALL of our appraisals COD and have so for years. But this particular appraiser never collected the COD and then wanted us to pay for it. I told him "sorry bub, you shoulda collected at the door, as directed." He was NOT a happy camper.

One of the things that will thwart your closing numbers is the size of your loan. When I do a $250,000 loan the appraisal is still $350, the processing fee is still $500 etc. etc. In your case you have a tiny loan amount but since the costs are standardized it appears that you are getting screwed. So $3,000 something in closing costs seems outrageous on a $24K loan.

But you would roughly pay the same $3,000 in closing costs for a $250K loan. Does that make sense? The "set closing costs" really stand out against a smaller loan than a larger one. The bottom line is that a loan is a loan is a loan and requires exactly the same amount of work regardless of the amount.

As for me, I won't do loans under $175K. It seems the hassel factor is higher for small loans versus the bigger ones, and of course, the bigger ones pay more money. Hope that helps,

Best,
Joel

That is awesome information. Thank you for sharing.

I got a phone call from my partner this morning, who excitedly told me that he just left an office where they have some kind of computer software program that allows them to type in almost any address and it spits out four separate screens of info (taxes, liens, mortgage owing, 2nds, and comps for the area along with a digital map etc) I told him to get the software program so we can start using it. It would be a life saver for someone who trades in real estate.

Would anyone else like to know what the software is should I get my hands on it?

Best,
Joel

This may be a bit extreme but Utah RE brokers report to the Utah Division of Real Estate. If I were to find out that I was dealing with a lazy broker I would imagine that a courtesy call to the Division of Real Estate would get his/her attention. I might also consider a courtesy call to the local Board of Realators. It's amazing how quickly some people will get to work when they know a Higher Power is looking over their shoulders.

Glad you got your deal done.

Best,

Joel

I am new to the REO game an was wondering if anyone used a software program to gather information about REO's. Often the tapes from the AM's are vauge.

We have been putting these properties in an exel spreadhseet and then hitting Zillow and the county records to fill in some of the missing information such as delinquent taxes, public utilities owing etc.

I have also thought about hitting the REO listing agents to do a lot of the ground work for us. Any other ideas?

Best,

Joel