All Forum Posts by: Fern Bacungan

Great points, everyone, especially about making deals happen and justifying your price. 

If it helps, below is an offer that I made and the seller accepted it today with no issues. 

It's a house in Tacoma, Wash. They accepted $190k for a house worth $280k and $15k of fixup. They were motivated to sell so that helps also.

Here's our offer and financial analysis behind our number.
We intend to fix, update and renovate the property for resale.

I agree with everyone. As a real estate agent, investor and wholesaler,

1. It's overpriced. That's why it hasnt sold, even with 2 failed inspections.

2. Even with a $25k drop, it's not a good deal if you're an investor. The broker and seller are looking for suckers to buy the house. Dont be that sucker. Do the numbers pan out? What's your buying criteria?  If you dont have one, I'd suggest creating one before you make any investment. Message me if you need help.

3.  Make an offer at your price where you know you can make money. Then make the offer. You'll know how motivated they are. Btw, offending the broker is the first good step to a good deal. NEVER be afraid to offend a broker or seller. If they say no, move on. 

One of the best investments is to not make one, especially during these uncertain times. Losing money is not fun. Ask me how i know. 
:-)

Hi Vic

If you're super stressed about it now,  imagine how stressful you'll be if you're actually in that situation and are regretting the purchase. My motto is "if you have ANY doubt,  stay out!"  

But,  if you're adventurous soul decides to make a purchase, here are some additional thoughts. 

1. Any thoughts on the permitting cost of an ADU? A call into the city permiting or planning division will ease your mind on the cost and feasability. If they allow it, don't be surprised if it takes months to get it approved, and a few more weeks to get the work done. Will you be ok with paying the mortgage for 6 months or more until you get the additional income?

2. Go to rentometer.com to get comparable rents for a 1bed/1 bath for that area. Enter the address and number of bedrooms. I think you can 1 report for free if you dont have a paying account. I have an account so if you need a report of it, let me know.

3. You may want to consider Airbnb income. I manage properties with Airbnb income. Kirkland is a nice area and might be a good fit for that kind of income. You'll have to compare this type of income with a traditional long term tenant. If you need help with that, i can help you with that also. Pm me directly.

Good luck in your decision.

Try rentometer.com.  You can enter the address and number of bedrooms and get comparable rents at no cost.

As far as getting leads and other useful PM (property management) services, other successful investors have suggested  cozy.co (advertise for free and they automatically advertise in their partner sites like realtor.com, etc.)  Also advertise in Zillow.  With CL, be prepared to get a lot of people that will waste your time.  How do I know?

With a few properties, you can likely handle it yourself instead of paying a PM 8%-10% a month to a PM. You can always use the extra cash flow. By using simple criteria, like making sure they make 3x your asking rent, reasonable credit score, no evictions in past 2 years, etc., you can do the tenant screening yourself also. 

The NWMLS has a standard lease agreement that I can give you.  If it's approved by them, it's good for most of Washington State. Send me a pm and I can shoot that over to you.

I have a dear friend that purchased 3 condo's in the 2008-2009 market downturn.  She's looking like a smart cookie right now.

Condo's are like any other real estate investment and you have to analyze it as such. There is nothing wrong with condo's IMHO. But like anything else, when prices drop, condo's will likely fall steeper than a SFR. In this low inventory market, one simply has to stay patient and disciplined with your own investing strategy. If 70% of ARV is your strategy, stick with it! Be patient and disciplined! It's better to not buy anything if it doesn't meet your criteria rather than regret the purchase.

When the market softens and turns (we don't know if it's this year or next year), you'll be glad that you waited!

Andrew,

I've worked with Chicago Title on my last wholesale deal (I purchased a property from a wholesaler) and they worked out fine for me.  Keep in mind, escrow agents exist to fulfill the contractual agreement for all parties.  You may have talked to someone in the front office who may not know or understand the wholesaling process.  Once it gets to the final closer's desk, that person will know exactly what to do as long as you have all the paperwork is in order. If not, a simple explanation wil

I'd suggest using NWMLS forms so that the escrow agent knows it's official documentation -  Form 21, (Residential PS Agreement) and Form 32 (Assignment of Buyer's Interest). Most real estate agents have ready access to this form. If you need a black form, let me know.