And the house yesterday I was asked to sign the contract which said I will forfeit my earnest money if I cannot close within a certain # of days for any reason.

If they choose after 3 years not to buy it they will forfeit their 20% down and any update costsWhat's your thoughts?

Since the buyer removes the financing contingency, if he cannot close on the closing date, you can forfeit his EM, put it into your pocket, and walk away.

To Mr John Jackson,,,John you really "hit the nail on the head" and crystalized the issue Ive have tried to clarify and emphasize to my investor colleagues in So Cal,,,,,If you take on any poor soul that can "fog a mirror" for a Lease Option Buyer candidate,,,,you're making a "Fool's Error" and buyin' a ticket on the Titanic,,,,,It blows my mind when guys that are "cheerleaders" for Lease Option /Rent to Own get up and pitch the strategy ,,often times they say 'Honestly 85% of the people that get into a lease option aren't able to- qualify at the end of the option period anyway ,,so we're not really concerned about /who signs on with us/whether we can help them qualify for refinancing or not/whether we should extend their contract/whether they forfeit their Option Consideration money,,,you get the picture,,,,Wouldn't we investors be better off (fortifying our reputations in the first place,,,,) be carefully screening and qualifying LO candidates in the first place?"

And your contract should be pretty explicit on what instances cause you to forfeit your earnest money.

Say I can buy another multifamily with less than 20% down, and I need to occupy that home, I will forfeit my $8,000 grant, which will require my to pay $500 / year until the remainder is paid off, therefore my Cash on Cash return drops to 23.7%Your inputs are greatly appreciated!

Not much risk, because if they default I have the title not them, they forfeit their payments upon default.Thanks for the welcome!

Instead of refinancing to remove my PMI, could I simply get my home reappraised and use that to show PMI is no longer needed without losing my current interest rate on my mortgage? My current rate is too good to refin...

But the reality is that the OP would be forfeiting a number of advantages by investing in TX, especially when there are markets within an hour or two drive that will likely allow her to still make a solid first investment.

It also stated that if the time expires before the list of items is finished and a building permit is obtained, the developer forfeits its rights to develop the properties.