All Forum Posts by: Winston Covington

I live and work in Orange County, Ca. Orange County is the county between Los Angeles and San Diego. Just picture the areas around Disneyland and you will know where I'm talking about. The median price for a free standing single family home here is apprx. $ 825,000. Here's a personal example of appreciation in the OC...I bought a nice 4 Br - 2bth SFR ( apprx 1,600 sq. ft. ) close to a park with great schools for $ 93,000 back in late 1979. Today, after 40 years and several real estate cycles, it's worth right about $ 825,000. Wished I would have purchased a dozen of them ! It's why I'm a buy and hold kind of guy.

I agree with Kevin. Isolate the problem so that you can identify the best solution. Normally, we would postpone the closing until the Seller can get the tenant out.  Cash for keys works pretty well too and may be your easiest choice of action. In Southern California, the Courts are very pro tenant and can be quite time consuming.  Talk to the tenant in a helpful manner and hopefully you can negotiate a way to solve the problem. 

Joe, there’s and old saying that I heard some wealthy long term hold investors say many years ago. “ Don’t wait to buy real estate, buy real estate...then wait “.   My experience over the last 40 years has proven them right.

New construction contracts always favor the Builder. Review the fine print to see if there is any escalation clause which would allow the Builder to increase the purchase price during the construction / escrow period. If so, then it's your call to continue or cancel. In my opinion, the Builder should honor the original contract purchase price but I haven't reviewed your contract.  To play it safe, have your Real Estate Attorney review the contract to see what your options are.

You may want to reconsider buying in an area with a history of flooding and insurance claims. Check with your local insurance agents and lenders and you will find that they may have serious concerns. I have seen insurance companies pull out of what they felt were high risk areas  and the same with lenders.

Not sure what you’re asking but as a general rule...you should respect the terms of the contract.  If a problem or change of terms is in the works, you should have an amendment agreed upon and signed by all parties.

Check into the Huntsville / Madison County area in Alabama. It’s apprx  a 2 hour drive South of Nashville and offers a lot of opportunity.

Being that you are new to rehabbing old properties and the amount of work that needs to be done on this house, I would advise you to pass. Knowing when to walk away is a good lesson to learn.

FHA financing is a great way finance the purchase of a 2 to 4 unit property with a small down payment. * Note * These type of loans require the purchaser to occupy one of the units.

Do your research ahead of time as 1031 Exchanges have strict time guidelines. Once you’ve sold your investment condo, you have a maximum of 45 days from the closing date to identify the property or properties that you want to buy. You need to close these purchases within 180 days from the close of your condo.  Check with your CPA to get all the rules.

Focus your new investments in affordable housing in areas that have a diverse economy with a growing population. Check BP’s Insight report as well as the Real Wealth Network for their research into potential markets. Good luck.