All Forum Posts by: William F.

So BP, I need your help. I've gone to two meetings with sellers lately that have ended in potentially-spectacular deals falling apart. Both sellers wanted to sell in a general way, but needed time to 'think over' the offer specifically. Then they discuss with an advisor and the deal falls apart. One of these deals was worth about $400k in PROFIT. Here's what I've decided to try: 1. Confirm up front that their goal is to make a deal in this meeting. If not, tell them why it should be and ask if they want to make a deal today or to call you when they're ready. 2. Put a time limit in place (ex: "I have another meeting in an hour and a half"). 3. Make an initial offer based on your understanding of their goals. If the initial offer isn't compelling enough to make a deal right there, ask what is missing for them to make a deal right now. Then negotiate as able. 4. When the contract doesn't get signed, don't let them walk with a written offer. Tell them that the market and situations change, and if they're interested in selling you'll be glad to meet them again. Do you guys have some tips from your years of experience? I could use it...

Bob Green Thanks for the offer and I'll keep it in mind! I'm working with a lender now, and things are going smoothly.

I'm eligible and qualified for a VA loan. I'd like it to cover the $90k rehab too. Anyone do these loans? Get in touch!

Any lending experts? I'm talking to a lender this evening so I'm trying to get smarter.

Hey guys - good problems to have and I need your help. I am in the middle of doing a couple deals in Phoenix, 1 SFR and one duplex. Each is around $200k purchase price, and (believe it or not) I can finance them. Both involve some rehab ($135k total rehab costs). I NEED to have as much capital on hand as possible to jump on other deals that might come up, so I'd like to finance the rehab with the property. What kind of options do you see for me? Here's what I was thinking: 1. 203k - low capital total limit, so not very useful for me. 2. Conventional rehab loan - nice but very inflexible when contractor specs need to change (I understand that even the tile's serial # goes into the spec). 3. VA loan - doesn't provide for rehab, as far as I know, but very low money down. Only good for one deal since it has to be primary residence. 4. FHA or conventional loan - different flavors the number 3 option. So what would you do if you were me? How can I keep my capital in my own hands as much as possible

@Jaime Ruiz

I don't think The Commission has set out any rules on direct mail.

What I'm trying to say is, just do it. I'm doing it now to find a new house in a really upscale area.

First thoughts: Would the LLC float you the money for the down payment itself? Loan from associates based on past performance? Sell a car? Credit card w/intro offer and refi? Retirement account self-loan? Find a partner with unique terms (has equity and collects 100% of net proceeds until paid off plus interest)?

This is a great thought experiment! Let's see... What are your interests? Maximize NOI Minimize property damage/repairs No headaches So how can we get those effects? How would we do that if WE were managing the property? -Minimize vacancy/maximize rent ---Lease timeframe awareness ---Solid marketing systems ---Quick response times ---Tenant screening systems or outsource ---3-day, prescheduled turnover game plan ---Move out confirmation at 30-, 7-days -Property upkeep ---Pre-lease walk through with tenant ---Education on security deposit req's ---Scheduled inspections ---Repairs by tenant pre-move out ---Post-lease walk through with tenant -No headaches ---No lawsuits ---No midnight calls ---Structured communication So now we tie each bullet above to a clear set of expectations, criteria for evaluation, and bonuses. Base rate: X% Bonus for $X rent increase over prior lease Bonus for occupancy rate above X% Bonus for no complaints via comment portal $X/photographed line item on inspections Bonus for every documented $ of tenant-paid repairs Bonus for each day under X-days turnover And so on. In doing that, you also set the stage for when you grow enough to hire a full-time manager. What do you think?

Robert Syfert It makes me wonder - if I'm going to pay $1200 a year plus development costs, why not just hire a developer to make what I want in the first place? It would be nice to use something like Insightly and it's API, a custom front end, and then meld your specific business needs into that. Which is, I think, where this ultimately takes us. Unless you're setting up and maintaining Podio on your own, you're paying the developer anyway. Not a hot item for me now, but it will be!

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Xero after Brandon Hall's podcast. I joined. I'm checking it out. Seems pretty neat.