i've heard of deals where you put, ie, $5000 down towards the future purchase. if you don't buy, landlord keeps the money.Now if I were the renter, & lost that much coin, cuz I didn't like the place or (more likely) didn't qualify for a loan, I'd be pissed & trash the place.Plus, as a landlord, I wouldn't want to treat people that way.

First, I'd discuss with your broker...But, that said, what's generally customary is that you disclose that you're licensed, and you treat the buyer as an unrepresented customer (not a client).

Do you treat it as investment expenses required to "cash out" the investor?

It really depends on the rules the brokers put in place -- many of them won't allow their agents to get cash bonuses or commissions directly from selling agents anymore.Also, we have our favorite listing agents and brokerages and we'll make an effort to send bagels, chocolate, etc to the whole office every once in a while just to keep our names top-of-mind for the agents.

A multi-member LLC is treated as a partnership.

you're correct Dina Harleth ..in my multifamilies, i always paid for exterminating service a few times a year..single families i treat differently..i pay for a spray before they move in, and then once a year after that..if they have any problems, it's up to them after that...here's the risk though...even if the tenants are to blame, and technically 'responsible', what happens when they get pissed and move?

:Typically I have 1 rehab going at a time and I only like to hold them until the IRS won't tax me for income.If your intention is to rehab and resell, and if you're not renting them out for any period of time, the IRS is going to treat the property as inventory and you'll be on the hook for ordinary income taxes at your marginal rate.

You have no idea how your tenant will treat them.

It can be for their own safety, as a friend of mine came home to find his chocolate lab chewing through a lamp cord (luckily, unplugged).

Win-WinIf they can not close on the purchase, I still get my monthly cash flow, I still get my write offs, and I have tenants who want to own the place and treat it like their own.