Laura J's Journal

What can we say, Your unbelievable!!! I am so happy for you my friend, I do hope that lead works out for you. It seemed like a no brainer for someone who can handleit, but look into the end of it as far as the buyer/tenants go.
Let me know how it turns out, im curious
I hope the flip goes fast, sounds like it will going by what you told me over the phone. I am really excited for you!!

good luck Laura, talk soon.

Richie.

I'm happy to hear about the rehab blowing away your expectations and looking forward to hearing the details later! I'm glad that all is great in your REI world.

Lea

I am going to make time this weekend to read through your journal. I just haven't had a chance in such a long time.

The last thing I know for sure is that you had sold your house (right before the never ending rain and crazy flooding of NJ began) and were getting ready to move into Rina's neighborhood around Easter time. So, you know I have a lot to catch up on.

I am excited to find out what you have been up to exactly.

I am so proud of you for being The Quintessential Action Woman!

Man, have you come a long way or what!

Angela

Amazing story Laura, traveling the country wherever REI takes you. I may have to follow you just to pick your brain like Shane said. It's just fantastic! You may not have that million yet but you have the millionaire mind and it won't be long for you. REI is crazy; crazy fun!
Cathy L

Congrats to you my friend on Deal #2 coming right after closing on deal #1!! How cool is that?!?! I will keep you updated on the possible leads you gave me. Looks like one is going to a highest and best situation, and the other online auction house I am watching. Depends on how high the bidding goes if the numbers will work. Rent for it will only be 350-400 according to your realtor so that doesnt leave that much cash flow profit if the cost goes too high.
Love having all these things in the works!
Talk to you soon

It was so nice to put a voice to your name! Now all we need is a pic haha. You and Denny are so generous in offering to be my eyes down there...I really appreciate it! You guys are great! The realtor actually got into the house and took a whole bunch of current pics of the interior so I didnt need you to go through for me. But I'm keepin you on call lol

OMG it is so good to hear from you! I've been thinking of you lately and wondering how things are going for you! So needless to say I hope all is well with you and yours! If you last read when my journal before I was moving from Jersey, well - if seems like a few lifetimes has happened since then lol! I am so blessed with all that has gone on for me since I took the great leap of faith in moving to Wisc....all I can say is I wake up each day and pinch myself to know its real And if you dont read soon by the next time you check I'll probably be living in Kansas City Mo! All the best to you my friend!

HOw are you girlfriend?! Thanks for you kind words...you guys all give me far more credit than i deserve! Wish we could travel around together - how fun would that be? And thanks for you encouragement - I do believe I will reach millionaire status and am really enjoying the journey to get there! Every day is a gift!

Hey Laura, I will talk to you about that deal. I think you were mis lead. I will explain when we talk. But good luck on the other deal! I like that whole set up as long as the tenants are on the up&up. but then again at that price it will pay off in a few yrs anyway on a resale. I have an idea on something like that, but its risky. Sometimes things just pop into my head while I am writing while I think. lol. never mind
I am heading to your old neck of the woods after next week. We are planning on going to the Jersey shore for the day when im on vac. Never been there but hear its nice.

talk soon
Richie

Give me a call when you have a chance in the next few days....the auction on that other deal isnt up until the 10th. So i'm watching it. Will be interested to hear what you know And write down those ideas that pop into your head!!!! You have a brilliant creative mind my friend! Love it

Laura,
I have been laid up with a back problem for the last 3 weeks or so. I have only been able to crawl to get around the house. Molly has done all the shopping for food etc. and that has kept us going. I think it is piriformis muscle trouble and on a scale of 1 to 10, it is a solid 15! I think it is on the mend tonight. The only thing the VA could offer was Oxycoten which I take 4 times every day. I have not been able to keep up on your journal or anyone else's journals until now. I am not allowed to sit, just lay down or stand up. This is a real bugger. I am sure you are doing well and I will get caught up on your journal asap. I just listened to Dean's video's and I am ready to burst.

Tim

I am SO sorry to hear about your trouble! Your daughter is an angel and loves you so much! I hope that you have other family and friends that are helping as well, and I will certainly pray that you heal soon. Wish I was closer my friend. Whenever you are able please keep me up on how you are doing, ok? Thank you so much for making DG one of your stops when you were able to get online to let us know how you're doing.

Guess I'll list by state haha...pretty amazing

Wisconsin
Mine:
One now complete and on the market. Having showings but no offers yet. Will revisit listing price next week.
Have another waiting for rehab, but holding off on starting that right now. Actually going to put it on craigs list and see if i can sell to another investor instead. Have all rehab costs and crew in place as well as management. If anyone is interested when rehabbed total investment will be 59k (35k price with 24k rehab), 40k in equity and rental income of 850-875.
Mine and Rinas:
Near completion - one done tomorrow or next day and will get on market, other done by end of the week and also to hit the market.
Of course hoping for quick sales to pull money back out plus profits

KC:
Rehabbers did crappy work and are having to redo. Bummer. Dont understand why, if they were hoping to do alot of future deals with us they would produce work of this poor quality - but we wont be using them again! So a bit of a setback there but still on track to finish properly, get rented and flip to an investor as good income property with management in place too.

Florida:
Thanks to Richie I am closing tomorrow on an investment property he alerted me to. Renter in place, who is also signing a purchase option for one year. So I get rental income for the year, and then nearly double my investment on the end sale. They are still getting a great deal on price too and they know it so its a win/win for all of us. Cool stuff!

That is cool stuff. Your like a sailor with a property in every state! Sorry to hear KC didn't go as well as planned. Always enjoy reading your posts. Did you find a place to live in KC?

Wow.... You are really rocking, 4 States down already I think you need to put pins on a map for each State you deal in. You are doing amazin things Laura and I am enjoying watching you each step of the way. Glad to hear you will have two props on the market and the deals you and Rina are in on too. KC will come around now that you straightened them contractors out! what a dumb move on their part.
Good luck and I will talk to you soon my friend. Say hello to Rina for me when you see her. and watch out for that Randy guy lol, me thinks he's a little crazy :0

Richie

Wonderful!!!! I love that you still share with us your goods and bads.. Good luck with everything and continued success

Laura,

A. Did you guys still have to wind up paying in full on the shoddy contract work?

B. Are You guys being compensated, suing or going through any redtape along that line?

C. How did you come by these contractors?

D. Any insight or advice to third party contractors and screening them?

JJD

You are amazing and I love hearing about everything you have going on. Thanks for sharing all of it with us, the good, the bad and the ugly. I'm sorry to hear about the rehabbers shoddy work. Here is a recent post from sistreat about working with contractors and rehabbers that may be helpful to you for future reference. http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/property-rehab-fixer-uppe...

Congrats on all the good things you have going on

Take care my friend,

Lea

Cathy, Richie, Gorgeous, JJD and Lea....thanks for all the comments my friends! Yes, there is always some bad and rocky times mixed in with RE - its part of the deal...just have to figure out solutions and keep moving on! I'm having to evict a tenant here in Wisc as of yesterday too....first time on that! But I find as far as income properties - the more you have the less these things affect you, because you have the others to cover expenses when things like this happen. Anyway - about the KC contractors...my main man King Randy is on top of all that thank goodness! He knows it inside and out and so they have now discovered they cant pull anything fast over on him(us). I admit we made the mistake of not inspecting other work they had done. Thats a big one people - either get references or ask to see other completed jobs. I guess because they presented themselves as a rehab/management company package quite professionally (including lunch for all of us at a nice restaurant haha) we went forward with them. The good thing is that they are making everything the way it should be - at their expense. So the end result is that we learned a good lesson about long distance rehabbing, and lost some time in the flip process which will cost us a bit more to our PML. But it will still work out in the end. And in the meantime we are preparing to find new mgmt and crew to work with on the future deals.
JJD- when I did my flips in Jersey I was my own contractor - and I always got three estimates on each phase of the job, and references. So to anyone flipping in their local area that is the best advice I can give. Also, recommendations from people you know and can see finsihed work is also a great way to know what you get. And always get estimates written and very specific so there is no confusion as to what you are paying for.
Onward and upward! Gotta run....have a great day everyone!

so glad to see you posting. you are doing an amazing job and you just keep on going. i love that you are investing with fellow dger's too. how exciting for all of you! best wishes always!

just got caught up on your journal!! yes it is amazing all you are doing now!! how cool to see you do deals in many states!! I def want to do some deals in other states so i will keep up with your progress and i am sure learn what and what not to do !!!thanks for sharing the journey and i know you will be reach that million sooner than you think!!

ps: are any of the deals in kc ready to flip ? are any going to be sold on a lease option with down payment ??? if so what is selling price? or if lease opt how much down and per mnth ? thanks
jay

I've been MIA for a while, but i'm back now and things should be back to normal. I'm heading out of town again this weekend and after that, i should be home for good or at least for the next month or two. So, that should give me some time to get a few deals in before the year is over. I'm so happy for you and all your success. Thanks for sharing your success stories with us. The good, the bad and the ugly...hehe. I'm so proud of you and continue success my friend!

Lloyd

Thanks for your encouragaement! Yes - it is really exciting all the directions RE is taking me - and I love doing things with other DGers too! This site is amazing

Thanks for stopping by my journal I love doing deals all over the place - honestly I would never have believed where real estate has taken me in just two years. Its so exciting and I love continuing to learn and grow and do all kinds of different deals, with so many great people
First KC house is just nearing completion. Randy will be heading there to inspect final rehab early next week. Not sure of numbers yet, but plan on putting renter in place before selling. Have an interested investor waiting in the wings which is cool! I will be happy to post numbers once things are set more. I'm looking forward to getting down there once I sell a few things here in Wisc. so I can be hands-on with finding deals and moving forward with our future deals there.

Soooo good to hear from you my friend! Glad you had awesome travels and an amazing time at the Hall of Fame inductions! You are doing so much in RE and your 'regular' life haha, I'm jealous But seriously - you are such a great person you deserve all the best and more! Nice to see you back on the site - not the same without you! So go find yourself a deal or two while you're home for a bit

Laura,
I read your post about the eviction and rehabing contractors. I understand and I am impressed at how well you handle these small set backs. I don't know how you keep up with it all especially investing in multiple states. I will be satisfied to get several properties here in my own state and it had better be soon. I am expecting to do at least 3 deals by September 30. I want to join the group of investors making things happen. I have taken time to get caught up on many journals this morning because my daughter is at Cocoa Beach with the church youth group. Please keep us up to date on your progress. Thank you for being you.

Tim

Hey Laura!! Man, I still can't believe where your at in such a short period of time. It keeps me excited about REI when I look at your accomplishments.
I will tell you what, If I do get somwhere with that building you may not have an option, I may drag you into that one That would be a blockbuster and I definately could use help on a walk through of that place!! there is alot of rooms to cover and I think 3- 4 floors. I will know soon enough on that.
I spent last night finding homes going to auction that I know are worth more than is owed on them. Just have to put my letters together and send them out. One looks like a probate that the spouse cant afford. I circled that as the first one to work on. I want to make it a win /win to give her a new start if I can.
anyway, keep up the hard work and I will talk to you soon.

Richie

It's always great to read your journal and I thank you for posting about all of it. I can never be too thankful to you for your encouragement. Can't wait to hear more about all of these rehabs and deals.

Blessings to you, my friend,
Cathy L

It is nice to read about all of your adventures. And like everyone else has said it is impressive of what you have accomplished in 2 years. You are an inspiration to all of us here.. Keep Telling us about your deals.

How nice to see you back online. I am guessing you are healed well as you seem to be back on track with investing and setting goals again. That makes me really happy Stay focused on your success for yourself and your wonderful daughter!