All Forum Posts by: Joshua Malik

I'm also curious about whether there are good deals to be found at these sites.  So far the houses that I have looked at that were listed on Hubzu have all been in pretty rough shape.  Like - you might not be able to get a loan at all - kind of rough shape.  

Hey Cody, I can't seem to get your link to work.  If it is fully occupied and more than $50k per unit in Racine... I'd raise an eyebrow with regard to whether you could do much to improve the cap rate (and hence value).  I'll look closer if you can double-check the link.  Disclaimer - I don't claim to be an expert.

I can't say if it is a good deal for you, but I am impressed by the deal for your seller.  It appears that they have it under contract now (for no more than the $47,500 list price I would assume) and they'll have it sold immediately for a nice profit and not even have to pay for the rehab.  

Hi Katie,

My first thought is that if you are looking to buy 3 bedroom single family houses... then so are all of the potential homeowners.  That means that there is no reason for a seller to accept a low-ball offer because they know that they will eventually get a market-value offer.  Are you looking at foreclosures or otherwise finding deals that might have a motivated seller?  If not, you can either expect to pay retail or maybe should think about investing in properties that were meant to be rentals - such as duplexes.  

ps - Bay View may already have appreciated too much, so I'd be a little wary.  I'm really liking South Milwaukee, but there just isn't inventory at the moment.

Josh

Hey Cody,

I can't claim to know for sure, but my understanding also is that there is a $20 limit.  I'm not super-experienced either... but here's what I do so far.  I identify the applicant that is my first choice.  I charge them the $20 and just make up the difference myself.  And if they fail (which hasn't happened yet) then I would move to the next choice and repeat.  If they pass, then the $20 fee comes off the first month's rent.  Essentially I pay the whole thing, but only for the applicant that is chosen.

Nice.  I do my day-to-day banking at Chase... mostly in Racine.  I don't specifically recall seeing you either at 4 Mile or 21st... but I'll bet we've crossed paths in real life.  We'll have to do lunch one of these days.

Looks like it's not cheap... but I suppose even just 1 transaction per year should pretty much cover it.

Just thought I'd share!  I passed the Wisconsin Real Estate Salesperson exam today.  I imagine that getting a license will help with my investing.  Probably around June I will be looking for a small multi-family in the Milwaukee area.  

Hi Michael.  Listen to the Bigger Pockets Podcast!!  It's the best educational tool on real estate investing that you could possibly find.  

Hi Brett.

You and the seller can agree to pretty much any terms you want!  Having the seller contribute to closing costs is totally reasonable.  I might suggest that you put a fixed amount in your offer so they don't have to guess what it will cost them.  For example, just ask for seller to pay $3,000 towards buyer's closing costs.  Then see if they accept or counter.  

FHA may limit this amount... I seem to recall you can't get more than 6%, but don't quote me on that.

Also realize that the seller will just take the selling price and subtract the concession to evaluate your offer.  So if someone else offers a little less than you, but doesn't ask for the concession, then their offer may actually be higher.

Still, in your position, a higher selling price isn't holding you back, but closing costs are.  So go for it!