All Forum Posts by: Pete Harper

@Giulio Brandi

This unit keeps showing up on my Zillow search. I've watched them walk the price down on the property for a while now. Over 90 days on the market, originally listed at $105k, went pending in June, deal fell through, and back on the market. The story I see from the listing, you have a very motivated seller, buyer backed out in June. My guess is buyer found something in the inspection. See if you can get a copy of the report through your agent.

First the positives; It's cheap, Temple is growing, to the south you have Austin, and to the North Waco with the Chip and Johanna factor. Close to I35 corridor.

Negatives; It needs a lot of work. Someone tried to slap lipstick on a pig with some paint. Potential for undisclosed issues, asbestos, lead paint, and ...... Figure out what is wrong and how much it costs to fix. Not a great neighborhood, old town Temple, many similar homes, many in worse condition. The West side of I35 is better.

@Maciej G.

Just a thought. $20,000 is the limit for small claims court in my state. Your tenant is likely smart enough to know he can file a claim for under $150. Additionally you don’t need to hire a lawyer in small claims. He can represent himself further reducing his costs. By the same virtue you don’t need a lawyer either. You can represent yourself. If you loose in small claims you have the right to appeal. He is likely bluffing anyway.

Best option is the get rid of him. He’s going to be more trouble in the future. Offer to break his lease, cash for keys or last months rent free.

@Vicky Liu

One more thing to consider in Houston/Sugar Land is flooding. Being close to the gulf you are exposed to the threat of Hurricanes. Because of this Houston frequently has flooding in unpredictable patterns. A neighborhood that has never experienced flooding can get buried in the next storm. Many rental homes may have a history of flooding with undisclosed flood damage. Post hurricane Houston is a flippers paradise. Some just slap lipstick on a pig. FEMA flood insurance is expensive, often more than your normal homeowners policy that you still need to have.

With first had experience with tropical storm and hurricane flooding on rental property this is not something you want to have to deal with remotely. All the good contractors get snapped up quickly leaving you with the less desired crews. I ended up with a guy with a drinking problem. He frequently slept on the job site because he was too drunk to drive home. Good times!

Ok, I have a Creative idea for a 1031 exchange.

I own property in CA that I would like to sell on a lease-option basis. The buyer is willing to lease the property for a period of time. At the end of the lease they would like the option to purchase the property at a predetermined price. We haven’t discussed if the lease payments would be applied to the principal or not. I assume yes.

On my end I plan to 1031 exchange out of CA and purchase rental property in Texas. We did this on another property where I sold in CA in my personal name, did 1031 exchange and purchased property In TX in my personal name then transferred the property into an LLC. I understand this process.

The part I’m stuck on is the selling part with lease option. For 1031 will the IRS see the lease payments as income and therefore trigger the clock on 1031 exchange ?

@Hana Moorscaudle

Do not use Homespec out of Temple. They showed up to a 2-story inspection in Killeen without a ladder. Couldn’t inspect the roof. They had to come back the next day to finish.

@Jay Shuler

Last March I was having trouble finding a commercial lender willing to do a cash out refinance on a BRRRR. All the big banks were not lending. No luck with BoA, Wells Fargo or etc. Finally I made a list of 20 smaller regional banks and CU and started calling. I found two; Vera Bank and CBTX. I was able to close with CBTX. 80%, 4.25% 15yr.

@Jason Howell Something else to consider. The tax sale does not clear all liens against the property. There could be other liens that need to be resolved. For example I purchased a city building lot at the tax auction only to find it had city weed abatement liens that were higher than the purchase price. Seller may have had a similar “surprise” and wants to unload the liability.

@Ty Ottaberry

Fairfield and Palestine here. I Just sent you a PM.

@Jon Greer Just pointing out the dubious news sources from the left and right sighted in this thread. If you don’t like my comment then use better sources.

@Nicholas L. Know your news sources. https://www.allsides.com/news-source/vox-news-media-bias