vballdarin

New question for the forum....... Just got an email from a gentleman who would consider selling on a LO. The rent per month would be $1200. He purchased it January 2006 at 200,000 and is asking that. Comps tell me that the home AT BEST is valued at 176,000. Has anyone created a good spread by agreeing to buy......at say....190,000 but insist on mega rent credits (50% to 100% over 3-4 years) so that if/when I exercise my option via my tenant/buyer with their option price.........at say.....180,000 you can still have a decent profit on the back end? Hopefully i made enough sense while giving (ya'll) enough information/numbers. Thanks, Darin

Well....I was referred to another Broker by an agent in our office who had heard that this other Broker was more of an investor and had investor/agents working with/for him. I sent him an email asking if we could meet sometime, and he replied that he would love to have coffee sometime and tell me some of his experiences. He also was disappointed that my Broker was not more forward thinking. I'll be meeting him this week along with another Investor from Charlotte who frequently travels between Jacksonville, Savannah, and Charlotte to do some RE deals and is familiar with Lease Options. Also just found out that Wendy Patton will be visiting Charleston, SC and speaking. Has anyone been to one of her engagements? Darin

I've decided to write a book in my free time. I can take advanced orders as well.

My broker just sent me this email: Darin, I may not have time to go into all the issues relative toward your request not do I have time to understand what you are trying to at this time. I am concerned about potential liability to Weichert. If you do something on your own such as rentals etc, you will need your own corporation, insurance, etc. I am conerned about using Weichert resources to do your own business; this is not something that we can allow. If you are buying or selling property, then you are using Weichert resources etc. and should pay commissions etc. as you are a Weichert agent. If you buy or sell something on your own outside Weichert, then you should be using all your own resources; what I mean by that, is that you hire your own attorney or whatever to write contracts etc.. and in this case you should not be using any Weichert resources, including our contracts, escrow... and I am not sure how the real estate commission views this either as your license is under us. This is all the time I have right now. Thanks Are you kidding me?

As I was jumping over my first hurdle (making offers/Fear) I have come upon a large brick wall. I had tried to speak with my Broker and his wife once before but they pretty much blew me off. Upon attending our weekly office meeting, my office manager (remember that i'm a RE agent) told me that I needed to contact our Broker. This is the email I received this morning: Darin, I spoke with (Broker) today and you need to talk with him regarding your business venture. Since he is going on vacation he might be tied up until he returns. The main issues are liability and commissions. You are using your real estate license as a sub agent to run your investing company. If you were a Broker yourself that would be no problem but you are hanging your license with (Broker) and Weichert,Realtors. I want to make sure that (Broker) knows all the details before you proceed. Regards, (Office Manager) Does anyone else have any experience dealing with their Broker?

I guess finding a girlfriend is kinda like finding a "ok" tenant/buyer who has barely 2% option money versus a motivated tenant/buyer who has 5% option money. Man.......the market isn't what it used to be.

Well.....i'm actually looking for one of those girlfriend/wife/bosses too. So, if you know of any good ones....send them my way.

True story.... A Waiter (((who will remain nameless))) who has been doing this for 7 years, is the lead server, trains all incoming staff, is told by management that he "does a great job with all the guests that come in to eat", has the second highest monthly check average per guest, goes out of his way to help the rest of the staff by staying late, rarely makes mistakes ringing in food or forgetting things, jokes around and is liked by the front & back of house staff, gets told that because he doesn't smile enough with the owner, that they are going to have to let him go. And people wonder why i'm sacrificing day and night to work for myself. Well.........no excuses about not having enough time to work on investing. LOL (((Clicking heels together))) "There's no place like working from home.....There's no place like working from home......There's no place like working from home................." Sorry.....I just needed to vent a little.LOL

Wow....that's pretty bad. When I was doing open houses I wouldn't let the people going through the house without keeping 1 eye on them, 1 eye on the house. (not because i was hawking them....lol.....but because I didn't want them to take small valuables from the owners) I think that's pure laziness and it's putting their clients home at risk. $2.99 a gallon or $5.99 a gallon......It doesn't matter. It's the cost of making a commission and providing a service for a client!

Sorry to keep everyone on the edge of their investor chairs........(I was down & out being sick for a week) I have contacted 3 FRBO/FSBO's asking them if they would entertain the possibility of renting their home to me for a while and then possibly buying it when the lease expires. I also contacted 6 Realtor listings where I had a decent chance of doing a SLO and the public listing remarks said "really motivated to sell" or "bring all offers". I basically said I would be interested in buying if I could rent it first. Now I get to wait for those Realtors to decide to tell their clients about my interest. In the mean time I'm full steam ahead finding some DECENTLY QUALIFIED tenant/buyers and finding some more homes for offers. And..... I finally found some other RE Investors who liked the way I presented my Lease Option Program. (Used the whole Win~Win~Win speech) Score! Thanks to all those who read my post and rooted me on! Hi-Ho Silver..........and away!!!!!!

How is this for a basic non-binding letter of intent to send to a Realtor? (I don't want to fill out endless contracts and option agreements if they aren't really interested)....... Dear Mr. Realtor Person: I would like to see if your clients would be interested in an offer to sell the property located at 123 Street, Anywhereville, SC. The terms and conditions, under which Buyer would enter into a Purchase and Sale Agreement (Contract), are as follows: Name of Buyer or Entity: Darin Ray, and or assigns ***Buyer is licensed agent in the State of South Carolina and buys/sells properties for a profit*** Purchase Price: Negotiable based on Terms Terms: Lease with the Option to Purchase Review Period: Buyer shall have fourteen (14) days from the Effective Date of a Written Contract of Sale – Offer And Acceptance to complete its due diligence. Sincerely, Darin

Translation, dad is a difficult pain-in-the-ass who thinks he is smarter than he really is. My advice: move on. The father's reply to the question of "what's your motivation from 1-10?"....MY SON IS VERY MOTIVATED FOR THE RIGHT PRICE IN RENT, TIME PERIOD, AND SECURITY DEPOSITS, FAIR SALES PRICE, REASONABLE TIME TO PURCHASE, AND CREDIT WORTHINESS OF TENANT. IF ALL THOSE VARIABLES ARE HIGH, THEN JASON'S MOTIVATION IS A 10; IF THOSE VARIABLES ARE LOW (I.E., LOW RENT, LOW CREDITWORTHINESS OF TENANTS, LOW SECURITY DEPOSITS ETC., ), THEN HIS MOTIVATOIN IS ZERO. Translation for me....................... Thank you for your time.

Just a quick update from your friendly neighborhood NewbieInvestor/Realtor living on the "Planet of the Apes".... House #1: Called on a FRBO....emailed back and forth till I found out it was listed on MLS at $489,900 in an area which is difficult to sell or rent a house. (upside down) Told her I would prefer not to deal with MLS listed homes. House #2: Slightly higher priced newer home($350,000-400,000); owner would rather me talk to his dad who's email states that "I have a great deal of experience in this field and so will understand exactly what it is you are proposing". Once again...rents ($1700max)are not in line with mortgage payments($2250). House #3: Newer home-owner moving;Appx mkt value is $330,000 3100sq ft; wants $1750 rent......i'm getting more info on asking price, mortgage payments, & what length of term he is comfortable with/works for me. House #4: Owner has bridge loan which has been extended one year already and comes due next April. Asking $259,900;appraised in April 2007 at $282,000. Built in 2001 ~ 3/3 ~ 1850sq ft ~ $1300 monthly mortgage payment & $1000/year POA fees; renters with no intentions to buy in place ($1200) on month to month basis. **I think home #4 would make a great Purchase then Lease Option but my investor friend who talks a big game, keeps waffling and avoiding whether he wants to do a deal.

For those who have taken the time to visit this topic, thank you. I'm making myself accountable to all of you looking at this topic. I've grown tired of working 5-6nights a week at a restaurant and caddying 3-4days a week at a golf course. I'm taking ACTION! By Monday May 12, I WILL have had a Birthday, competed in a open division Beach Volleyball tourney, and I pledege to make 5 offers to motivated sellers. I'm sorry if this seems like a childish way to accomplish my goal but I need to be held accountable by someone. I don't have too many supportive people around me right now. <---I'm afflicted by Anaylsis Paraylsis. Any positive words of encouragement or words of wisdom would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Darin

MC..... The angle of my tray/bottle/wine glasses in that pic was because of the shear speed and nimbleness of my weaving in and out of the barrels (<----has never used HGH nor do I know Roger Clemens). I finished 2nd in the Waiters Race that year.($200) Dustin...... Trust me....you wouldn't have wanted that wine. It was from El Cheapo Winery and it was sitting out in 90degree heat all afternoon. I'll find you a nice 2005 Jordan Cab after I get my first deal done. Speaking of Realtors........ I had a Realtor(#1) call me today and ask me if I(#2) could help him and his buyer/clients work a Lease Option deal with home listed by another Realtor(#3)! Talk about too many Chickens in the Hen House!!! I told him he has 2 possible scenerios: 1) I could give him some quick tips on structuring the deal and playing on each party's motivation.........(Me being a helpful, upstanding pillar of the community, and overall nice guy) or 2) I could find him and his buyer/clients a comparable house (that I would lease option from a FSBO myself) and let them lease option it from me.(His buyer/clients would then have to pay his 3% commission at the time they exercise the option because I cannot legally pay him a fee for bringing me a buyer) Any other suggestions other than wishing him good luck and going about my merry way?

Dustin, Thanks for your opinions and feedback. I'm always open to positive or negative ideas/comments. It will make me a better investor/person. My LLC should be up and running very soon and I'll be doing most of my deals through it so there is no "Co-mingling" and conflicts of interest. I also disclose, disclose, disclose when speaking to people from my investing advertising. I want to be totally upfront and honest with them and I expect the same in return. If they feel uncomfortable in any way and don't want to deal with me....I simply say "No problem. I understand you're concern. If you decide in the future that I may be of some assistance, feel free to contact me." It's been kinda weird to slowly back away from being a "Realtor" and entering the role of an Investor. Explaining to my office manager that i'm pretty much done sitting in Open Houses and manning the phones during Opportunity (Desk) Time has been liberating. But I KNOW that I don't want to be a slave to a JOB! P.S. I work 3-4days a week as a golf caddy and 5 nights as a waiter. <-----slowly backing out of these as well!

Here is my ad placed in the Craigslist "Real Estate Wanted" section.................... My partners and I own a local real estate consulting company called HHI Investing. We specialize in lease purchasing. The situation we are facing is that we have many more tenant/buyers than we have properties to offer them. So, we are looking for additional nice properties in good areas. WE ARE NOT WANTING TO LIST YOUR HOUSE....WE ARE WANTING TO BUY IT. If you would leave the existing financing in place, we could cover the payments & take care of the maintenance, until we can get someone who can buy the property at a future date. We like to create win~win situations. Don't hesitate to contact us. HHI Investing Darin - LSCREA xxx-xxxx ........................And here is my ad in the Craigslist "Apartments/Housing for Rent" section...................... Title: "Unique opportunities to Rent-to-Own" Are you tired of renting? Don't have 10-20% for a downpayment? We can help you find a great home or condo that you can rent to own with possible rent credits in a nice area! Low down payments, build up rent credits then purchase at the end of the lease term! And you don't have to sign with a Realtor! Our team will even help guide you on your quest to fix your credit. Everyone has had bumps in the road of life, don't let yours keep you stuck in the rent cycle. We are actively acquiring properties that need people to move in. We come across opportunities all the time, email/call us and describe what you are looking for and where you are looking and we'll try to match you up to one of the available opportunities. Call us for a free, no obligation consultation. HHI Investing Darin - LSCREA xxx-xxxx I'm focusing on SLO's. What do (ya'll) think? All comments welcome, positive or negative. Thanks in advance, Darin

"Act on this unique opportunity".......120% is way better than my "Rent to Own homes available" or "Why rent when you could own?" ~Me thinks there is need for change. Thanks to Dustin for digging up this topic. Thanks to Bev for the assist. Darin

In a related question........... Do you (ya'll) feel like the tenant/buyer leads you receive from Craigslist seem to be more qualified/knowledgeable than those leads received from typical wild card tenant/buyer ads in newspapers?

That's a pretty good way to put the relationship between the two. As long as we keep in mind that creating a win~win~win situation is the ultimate goal. An investor should try to use his/her knowledge in creating deals to assist people . Sometimes this may mean telling them what they might not want to hear. A Realtor/RE agent should remember that agency involves obedience, loyalty, disclosure, confidentiality, accounting, reasonable care and skill, as well as advice, councel/assistance in negotiations in the best interests of their client. This may mean telling them something which is not in the best interest of the Realtor/agent ($). It's a give and take.

I did notice the "advertising supplement" in the upper right. That's got to be bogus. I agree with Michael. Let us know how your attorney explains it. Darin

When you set up an escrow account for the funds coming in from the tenant buyer and going out to the mortgage company during a SLO, do you find it to be a good idea for the escrow company to send you regular emails letting you know that payments have been made/sent? Thanks, Darin

Just an update in my battle to escape from the "Planet of the Apes"........RIP Charlton Heston I asked my office manager for a written copy of my broker's commission policies. What he gave me was the division of commissions for traditional transactions (normal commission splits and inter-company referrals). I then asked him for my broker's written explanation of non-traditional deals (Lease Options, Lease Purchase, etc). He originally told me that my broker REQUIRED a one months "administrative fee" from the seller for every year of a lease purchase/lease option. He then began to explain to me the differences between traditional transactions and Lease option transactions and that agents should ATTEMPT to get the lease monies from the seller for our efforts of putting the transaction together. When I said that I'm not interested in getting that money if i'm personally buying the property....he had a disgruntled/annoyed look on his face. I finally ended the conversation with...."Is it required by the broker; Yes or No?"......"He said not really but you should try getting it if you can." And I wonder why i'm so tired at the end of the day. LOL

I posted two ads looking for tenant/buyers and didn't have any problems...in fact....had two more calls. horray!

I believe that picture of the alligator was taken right here in Hilton Head Island/Bluffton, South Carolina! (In Del Webb's Sun City ~ retirement community)