All Forum Posts by: Troy DeLong

@Ariana Grace 

For help passing the exam, I HIGHLY recommend listening to the 'Pass the Real Estate Exam with PrepAgent' podcast. He does a fantastic job of giving you tips and tricks to remember all of the vocabulary you'll need to memorize. 

For help succeeding in the business...
1) Be an EXPERT when it comes to real estate knowledge. Take every con-ed class you can and sit in on every sales meeting your brokerage holds. 
2) Be available whenever your client is available. If your client is only available to see a house on Saturday at 8am, you better be waiting at the house for them at 7:55am. 
3) Do what you say you're gonna do. Clients will remember every little thing you say. 
4) Be professional. Dress nice, don't swear and have a nice business card. 
5) Network. Go to the local meetups for business professionals. Go to the luncheon that the local lender invited everyone to. Don't be embarrassed to leave your business card with your hair stylist. 

Now, in a couple of years when you're established and have a good book of business, you could loosen up on the schedule and networking part, but these are good starting steps that helped me get to where I am. 

Best of luck! 

@Calvin Hayward It totally depends on the client. How good were they to work with? Are they repeat clients? Have they referred you a bunch? What was the commission on the sale? 

I've spent anywhere from $30 to $250 and it all depended on the things listed above. Take some time to make it personal though! 

I helped a young kid purchase a 4-unit he was going to house hack and manage, so I got him a nice Dewalt drill set. 

I helped a lady purchase her first home, and every house we saw that needed some work she would respond, "Mike can fix that" (her boyfriend). So, I had a local shop make her several home decor items, and one of them was a nice mug that read, "Mike can fix that". I know, cheesy, BUT personal.

Hope this helps. 

In the grand scheme of things, yes, you should eventually replace the windows so 

1) They operate properly. 
2) It doesn't turn away potential tenants or cause maintenance hassles when a new one moves in.
3) Tenants have proper egress in case of an emergency (like fire).

Now, windows are expensive, so you'll have to decide how much you're willing to spend, based on how much income the property is bringing in. Windows are also a nice value-add to the property once it comes time to sell. 

- Troy 

@Craig Jones 

Reach out to Lima One Capital. This sounds like a pretty unique project, but they're pretty flexible and builders are their main clientele. I believe they go up to a couple million on loan amounts. Can't hurt to do a call with them. 

Contact there is Greg Huegel /  (864) 249-7020  /  [email protected]

- Troy 

@Nathaniel Dean Morrison 

Hey Nathaniel, welcome! I'm a local REI myself in the Lansing area. I'll send you two wholesalers who are GREAT.

- Troy 

@Alexander Rodriguez

Looks / sounds like the main issue is behind the wall / trim. Check outside to see if water is getting in behind the wall / window from the exterior. 

Also, wood trim in a shower window is a terrible idea. Rip that off, treat the wall with mold killer, dry out, then replace the window trim with Azek (or similar) and caulk with 100% silicone. Maybe even slope your window sill to promote proper drainage. 

I would classify this as a Landlord issue, in my opinion. 

- Troy 

@Jon Martin  

IMO, as a renter of AirBnBs and Hotels, I think dressers are a waste of space. Everyone travels with their own luggage and tends to keep their clean clothes in the luggage or hang clothing in a closet. It would be nice to have a large shelf / rack to store your suitcases and bags vertically. Maybe even a nice 'Dirty Clothes bin / basket for guests to use (that is also washable for your cleaning crews. That's what myself and all my friends use the dressers for, dirty laundry storage until it's time to go. 

Nightstands are a must for phones / charging, wallets, lamps, books, etc. BUT, I would keep them simple and cheap. A 3-drawer nightstand won't offer much. 

Hope this helps! 

@David Thomasma Hey David, pleasure to meet you. Sounds like you two were busting butt last year! 

I'm an agent / investor / contractor out of the Lansing area. You should tag along to the monthly REI meetups in Lansing. I'll shoot you the details.

- Troy 

Hey Sonny, 

The Waverly area has a Lansing address, but is under the jurisdiction of Delta Township. Also, Delta Township is within EATON County, whereas the City of Lansing is within INGHAM County. Eaton County is a little nicer to landlords. 

Delta Township does have a Rental Code Compliance department and does inspections every three (3) years with fees to go with it. As far as 'Landlord Friendly', I would say that you would have no problem here as long as your properties are kept up and in working order. 

I'm a local investor / agent in the area so let me know if there is anything else you may need help with. 

- Troy 

@Jay Scott It's good that you've got the gears turning in your head. Without putting too much thought into this, my 'thousand foot aerial view' is this....

It sounds like you are in an expensive / higher end location outside of Seattle. What is keeping you there? Jobs? Family? Schools? 

For that size house for just four people (Wife, two younger kids and you), it sounds like a lot and could be a good opportunity to downsize. Are there more reasonably priced areas in your region that you and the family could downsize too? 

I believe HELOCs are great when...
A) Rates are decent 
B) You have plenty of equity to get you a decent pile of cash to play with 
C) You would like to stay in your house / keep the property long term. 

For your situation, I would lean toward selling your house on-market, cashing out, moving to another region where the housing is more affordable than +$1million dollar appraised homes, pay cash for your new home, then with the leftover cash, buy one rental and see how it works out for you. 

Paying cash allows you to negotiate better on the property and is more enticing to sellers. But you need to make sure you and your agent are confident you're not overpaying.

Now, all that being said, I also think it would be a great idea to do some value add projects to the properties (Personal residence and rental property) and do cash-out-refinances on the buildings when rates become more favorable and you're up and running with the rental. Rinse, repeat for another property. 

All that said, this is just my OPINION without diving too deep into your situation. Best of luck! 

- Troy