All Forum Posts by: Theodore B.

@Jabari  Believe it or not, this is why I started this post, I had been using that attorney and because of his professionalism, well lack thereof, I had to switch.  I even wrote a yelp review or either it was a yellowpages review on the guy.  VERY VERY unprofessional!!!!  however I will say they do quality work, but if I pay my money I want to be treated correctly.  I get enough slack and flack from my tenants.

Thank you for the referral, 

For anyone looking for an attorney that is reasonable on price and so far so good with efficency you can try Gary Segatti  (248) 423-9700

Wow the number 1 thing...that is a tough one, how  about I give you the number 3 things as far as due diligence when buying property, probably not just in Detroit but anywhere

1. Clean Title- U want to check for back taxes owed as well as liens on the property, i.e. water liens

2. What are the taxes- My rule of thumb right now is not to exceed $2,000 annually in property taxes for Detroit properties. I want to keep more of my money than give it to the taxman/lady

3. Does your investment property have a good neighbor- I can't even count the times where I have had problems and could not get someone over to check out something on a property of mine and because I knew the neighbor of my property and they knew I lived out of state they were willing to help me out. I don't take advantage of it, I pay them for their time, but their eyes and assistance here and there is worth its weight in goal.

I think if you can tackle those things on the front end, you may be off to a pretty prosperous investing career.

@ Mike, Peter and Otis, 

Thank you for the information, I actually found one thanks to @ Cierra, however one thing I have learned in this business, it is always good to have alternatives, i.e. trying to find some decent workers for properties.  

I do have a question for those out there that have done evictions, how many of you have had to go all the way and contact the bailiff?  

I believe the cost can get pretty steep. I am aware of cash for keys and I will try that one if my tenants try and wait me out.  Wish me luck me and my pockets need it!

Hello Brenda,

Let me be the first to respond and say Detroit has it all and like any market, if you do your do diligence you can be on the better side of good vs ugly.  I am actually from Detroit and I reside in Los Angeles as well. So being a distant landlord is absolutely possible.

I started investing in 2006 off and on and now I am looking to rev things up and get back to investing in the market. Feel free to send me a colleague request and we can discuss more.

Hey Bryon sorry I missed your call today, lets talk try me again tomorrow.

I am actually heading back to Detroit at the end of September.  I am from Detroit originally, not a suburb, but the city itself and there are still nice areas that are worth looking at. Like  almost anywhere it has its bad pockets. But if you have a really well put together team, it will mitigate a lot of your losses. 

Talk with you later

Hey Curtis,

Thanks for the reply, I am past all that, I am sorry, I forgot to mention that I live out of state and that is why I need an attorney to carry out the eviction, otherwise I would GLADLY be there to get my judgement.  You know it kills me that when I used to go, some tenants would not pay their rent and would have the nerve to actually show up to the court.  All I can say is WOW!!!

Hello Landlords and Investors,

Would any of you know of any attorneys that deal with the Metro Detroit Area that can see an eviction through to the point where I get the judgement in court for the tenant to move out?  

I have already served the tenant with a 7 day notice.  

Thanks,

I take it you don't have an LLC for your investments? I hear so many people go back and forth between the LLC and Trust debate, but never in your own name. Do you know of any places out there that will place my properties in an umbrella policy as they sit now under just my name?

Hello Bigger Pocket community,

I am an investor in the Detroit, MI area. I have 13 properties, 11 in Detroit, 1 in GA and 1 in AZ, The 11 in Detroit are free and clear and the other two have mortgages. Right now they are all in my name except one and I just formed my LLC. I am looking to place the ones in my name in the LLC, but not sure about the one with the mortgage????

Anyways, once in the LLC, I am looking to get an umbrella policy for the LLC, however from what I have read an umbrella policy kicks in when the regular insurance runs out. Of my 11 properties I only have insurance on maybe half. Once properties are in the LLC, will I have insurance on them all at this point?

Basically just looking for some guidance on how to be protected and not spend a boat load of money.

Thanks for the feedback community.

Hey Jon W, I use a CPA by the name of Milbrun Pearson, the name of his company is tax professionals and his website is

http://www.taxprofessionalscpa.com/

If you do call him, let him know that Theodore referred you, but great guy knows his stuff, he is also a real estate investor as well.