All Forum Posts by: Simon Campbell

Corey Dutton:

I don't want to bad mouth any particular company. But, you have to ask yourself about the morality of a company that wants to be paid upfront fees to help someone in a financial crisis.

You also have to question the 50% success rate. In terms of test scores, 50% is an "F", no matter how you look at it. It's as if they simply lucked up on the ones that worked.

The US government has been warning consumers for quite a while now not to work with these companies. The government has put non-profit programs in place so consumers can deal with trustworthy, skilled, trained, HUD-certified housing counselors. These HUD-certified counselors charge no upfront fees for loan modification services to stop foreclosures. They are also regulated by the government, so they must abide by a much stricter set of standards.

Christian Yepez:

In many cases, long term owners have already become accustomed to the passive income that's been created by these rental properties. Most are also hoping to pass the property down to future generations. If they've had the property for 10-20 years, there are very little threats, such as risk of foreclosure of property management issues.

Newer owners, however, are another story. You'll find that many purchased these properties when the prices were low hoping to sell them one day when the values increased. Now that prices are increasing a bit, they may be ready to go ahead and dump them to make a profit. These rental property owners may be a better bet.

Nate Smith:

There doesn't seem to be any bad reports about them online. But, there aren't any good ones either. Everything online is them tooting their own horn.

According to their website, they're supposedly located in the UK. But, when you go to the Companies House, which is one of the UK's official sites for checking for registered company information, no such company seems to exist.

Check it out: http://wck2.companieshouse.gov.uk/176861c5660d76f8b648ee6d4472c282/companysearch?disp=1&frfsh=1350677026&#result

Kou min Tan Remember that the HOA boards function pretty much like a branch of the government. As a homeowner, your role in the board is essentially like a tax paying voter in the US. You have the right to call meetings, work to get board members ejected and persuade your homeowner neighbors to take action.

You should also check your HOA rules. There may be some information in there about an arbitration process. If so, start the process. This will cause them to take your complaints more seriously because the next step after that is legal action in court. And, that's what they don't want. It will cost them time and money.

Nicholas Dagnillo Since RI does require a license, I assume you already have one. Also, I would take some courses in property management, aside from those related to getting a license. Since you're talking about a start-up business, you probably don't have any references yet to boast about your great customer service. One way to get that first client to trust you may be educational credentials. These will let potential clients know that you're serious about providing quality property management.

Taking as many courses as your time will allow would be a good idea. There are online courses you can take for general courses. But, since you have questions that related directly to your local market, I'd look into some live courses in the local area. That way, you can get those questions answered by RI experts, while building your credibility with potential RI clients.

There are many books and ebooks on the subjects of investing in foreclosures, REO properties and HUD homes. But, if you've never done it before, I would advise you to work with a realtor the first time around. Today, there are real estate agents that specialize in those industries and can help you get the experience you need to do it right the first time. REO agents and HUD certified brokers can ensure that you do things accordingly. Lenders and HUD are very strict about their procedures. So, don't try to go it alone the first time. Take notes and pay attention to every step they take. Once you get the hang of it, you'll be able to move forward on your own with confidence.

Lokesh W. Just like with your personal FICO scores, you can establish a Paydex score for free. The trick is finding vendors that report to D&B. The vendors you've already spent money with may or may not do this. I would simply call them and ask them. Also, it's all about credit. If you paid cash for these services and products, there's nothing to report to D&B. You have to establish credit with them for them to have something to report.

I'm not sure why you were told that you have to purchase a package. Maybe they have some inside way to report established credit with companies that don't report to them. That may be what you would be paying for. If you find companies that report on their own, this would be free. Here's a D&B blog post for you to refer to: How to Get a PAYDEX® Score in a Few Simple Steps http://businesscredit.dnb.com/business-credit/how-to-get-a-paydex-score-in-a-few-simple-steps/

Nicholas Dagnillo One of the best ways to find new clients for your property management business is networking. Your target market in the beginning should be real estate investors. Investors are usually too busy locating and buying multi-family housing and foreclosures to maintain the properties themselves. So, I would advise you to join some investor networks in your local area.

You can also network with local real estate agents whose specialty is investment properties. They can refer clients to you who just want to invest, not manage the real estate. Lastly, look into hard money lenders in your area. Many times, they end up stuck with foreclosures and rental properties. They specialize in making loans to buyers, not property management. They usually hire property management companies to deal with their rentals and foreclosures for them.

Braden Souder Another good idea would be to market the real estate as investment property. Nowadays, it's so hard for many buyers to get financing. So, many of the sales are being made to those with cash, or real estate investors. As you know, most investors have no intentions to live in the properties they invest in anyway. So, marketing it as rental property with a tenant may actually help you sell it faster.

Just be sure to get a copy of the rental agreement or lease from the owner. That way, you can answer any questions potential buyers may have as far as the monthly rental amount, when the lease ends, etc... Also, make sure the seller and buyer are both clear about who will be responsible for returning the security deposit when the tenant does move.