All Forum Posts by: Andy M.

You definitely can. Just put the property under contract and close instead of selling it. I think this is a common practice for every investor. I've done it with every property I have ever occupied.

I just bought a Nikon 5100 and it comes with a stock 18-55 mm lens. I have an interior design friend who uses a 10-22 mm lens to capture more of the room.

Anyone have suggestions before I go buy a Nikon 10-22 mm lens?

Nate, congrats on getting your first rental! What part of town is it in? Curious about the deal. :wink:

Welcome aboard, always good to have another experienced person to throw in their two cents.

28% tax on precious metals gains? I live in Utah so this is foreign to me. Can't you just sell in small in portions to individuals off the grid? I don't think I would go sell 10k + in precious metals to a dealer, just me.

Sam - I really like your thinking. I'm 30 as well and I try to have balance to my portfolio. You just can't beat the consistent returns you can get with real estate and hard money loans.

I agree with Matty, gold still has a way to go. That said, you still need to have balance. Gold doesn't cash flow or give you a tax break but it is important to preserve wealth. If you are at the stage in your life when you are looking for asset preservation then I would be heavy in precious metals. If you are starting out or early in your career then you need to be more leveraged. I do think it is prudent to have at least 5-10% of your savings in precious metals though.

Dave-

Let me second what Marc just said. I do respect the fact that your here talking about the show. I know there needs to be drama so people will watch it. I also would rather see more in-depth stuff but that is probably just because I'm in the business. No disrespect to you or the show, you seem like a talented professional.

Mike's lack of courtesy rubbed me the wrong way that day. Maybe he is just trying to keep up his tough guy poker face for the new faces at the auction. Maybe he was just having a bad day. We had a deal that we collaborated on years back and I just expected a little more respect. Obviously no reflection on you or your show.

Dave-

I don't dispute the fact that it was trashed when they bought it. I was just speaking to the drama of the episode. Salt Lake does have real gangs, no doubt. But Doug telling Mike on the phone, "you better get out of there before you get shot"? TV drama.

They really have Tyrone watch their rehabs? That might be true, but I've been actively investing in their market for 8 years now and I don't know anyone who does that. In fact, I have 4-5 other close friends in my business, who do a lot of rehabs as well and none of them have "street security" either. It just seemed dramatic to me. But I guess it should be, it's TV right?

As I mentioned earlier, these guys are in my market so I'm familiar with them (we have bumped into each other 3-4 times in the last 5 years). They have been part of the regular Salt Lake County "good ol' boys" auction crew for a few years now. I'll give everyone a quick run down from an unbiased real world perspective.

-They are actually the ones at the auction. I don't go much, but when I do they (mostly Mike) are there. No errand boys on cell phones.
-They might use their own money for the properties purchased ON THE SHOW but I know they use OPM as well (i met a guy who had loaned their company money). Most experienced investors do. This drama about, "we could lose everything!" is totally bogus.
-From what I can tell they don't really branch out into other methods of finding. This always surprises me but it seems like most trustee sales buyers don't seem to branch out. I buy REO, from private sellers, short sales, etc. They seem to be strictly auction buyers.
-I seriously doubt they ever do any actual work on their projects, that is TV only stuff. Should be fairly obvious. They are not the grunts, makes for better TV though so I'm sure they did a little work on some for the cameras.
-trespassing or not, I'm sure they try to get into every property before they buy it. They might not while the cameras are rolling but these guys are not above it. Anyone who buys at trustees sales tries to get in if they can tell the property is vacant.
-Last weeks show in Rose Park was laughable. They portrayed Rose Park as this horrible gang infested neighborhood but it really isn't that bad. Yes, there are gangs there, but it is NOT comparable to South Central. This episode had way to much drama about them vs. the gang. Comedy. And having their "street security" sleep there at night? Drama, drama, drama.

Since I'm taking the time to type this post anyway I'll share a funny experience I had regarding it. My friend and I showed up to the Salt Lake County auction earlier this year and all the cameras and boom mikes were there. I asked a regular what was going on and he told me it was for Mike's show. I didn't think much of it at the time. We ended up buying two properties that day which is extremely rare because of the CRAZY prices people always seem to pay. After the auction my friend and I had to sign a release allowing us to be on the show (I doubt they will ever use the footage). As we were walking back to our car after the auction I bumped into Mike and I asked him about his new show and generally just tried to make a little small talk. I said, "so, you guys buying a lot these days?" and he gave me a smug, "yeah, but not like those." implying that we had bought bad deals. I'll be honest, his attitude pissed me off a bit and increased my distaste for smug auction "regulars". Can't show a little respect for a fellow investor? He knows I've been in the game for as long as he has. I'm not just some idiot newbie who doesn't know what he is doing.

Mike- let me tell you how those two deals worked out. One was sold that day to the guy (another "regular") who bid against us, he paid 2k. The other was a light rehab (8k) and was sold within 90 days to a end user for a NET profit of 20k. That is a solid base hit in my market all day long for a house purchased for 100k.

So there you have it. Any other questions from the peanut gallery for a guy actually in their market? :)

Nate, I did account for thatva little. That is the main reason I hate condos, lack of ultimate control. I don't like the idea of ever being subject to someone else's mismanagement. Given the circumstances I was okay with it though.