All Forum Posts by: Rick Villamil

@Walter Aaron Poling Thank you for your reply. I did some additional digging looking for answers from various remediation specialist. A few if them identified higher risk of mold due to the humidity from hydroponics. Other items being odor removal, illegal tapping into power, and out if code re-routing of plumbing. Most of these item I would think I can catch pretty quickly, but definitely will test for mold and ensure that state/local health departments (specifically environmental health) certify clean.

Like you, i would have just thought it a natural plant, but it’s more than that. I will adjust any offers accordingly.

As a newbie I understand making the numbers work really is about buying right. Buying houses that nobody wants to touch and getting them for a really low price.

With that said I have been looking at some houses that are seized as being drug houses, specifically a house that was used for marijuana grow operations.

Two questions come to mind.

1) what if any title issues do I need to watch out for? Could I potentially still be responsible for any mortgage liens?

2) What type of remediation needs to be done? I know with mold you have to contact a mold remediation specialist, with meth you have a hazmat remediation, but what about marijuana?

I know I’m not the only one that has ever considered this ,and I am sure there are those of you in the BiggerPockets forum that actually has this experience. Anything that you can provide in the form of insight and recommendations would be immensely appreciated before I go and make any offers.

@Mike McCarthy Thanks for your insight. The rates issue is quite important. As far as the liability protection, as long as we maintain separation in transactions we provide no basis for “piercing the corporate veil”. We maintain separate bank accounts already and do not co-mingle funds. Its also easier to see where we are at a glance without running reports on different ledger accounts.

WA Secretary of State fees for the LLC registration is only about $100/year so acceptable.

@Jack Medford Thanks for your response Jack. The biggest thing for us is the separation of our personal assets from our business assets. It has really been the idea of the separation from a legal perspective. From a tax perspective, our CPA told us that until such a time we decide to structure as a c- corp the IRS doesn't really differentiate the LLC from personal (unless there was more than just my wife and I as the members). From the legal perspective, the LLC protects one from the other. For example if someone were to trip and fall and break their neck in our store, they couldn't come after our personal assets they would only be limited to the assets of the business, of course after insurance. I would hate for one business entity to adversely affect the other. But then again that is why we are reaching out here.

My wife and I own a frozen yogurt shop through an LLC. Time for us to expand our business. Our options as we them are:

1) we set up an umbrella LLC as a holding company and a separate LLC for each business unit(one for froyo, one for REI)

2) we set an LLC for REI only

3) we start our RE purchases through the existing LLC

4) we start our RE purchases privately (don’t like this idea, but lets y’all know we are thinking this through)

All thought and experiences welcome.

Rick and Raylene Villamil

Lacey, WA