dpuzo's journal

Jakk09 wrote:
"Shane, what kind of fee are you charging the home owner to do this auction? Have you done any yet?"

I am doing three percent of the price they want to sell for. I am letting them keep whatever profit is made after that.

Funny you should ask. I wasnt going to say anything until I "officially" signed the agreement with the owner tomorrow, but I have a verbal commitment to do the deal. She even had our papers looked over by a lawyer. That in itself was an obstacle to overcome. But we overcame it.

My first auction will take place next weekend.

However, my partner and I are trying to "fine tune" the process in a way that will be more efficient on the paperwork, advertising, and showing ends.

There is a lot to it. And we are still hashing out details at this moment.

Tomorrow papers get signed. Next week my life in the RE biz really begins!

Best to you all!

-Shane

From all the people I'm dealing with in realestate and at the banks, they are all saying the same thing. That a huge number of forclosures are on the way.
Even in my own local paper on a daily basis there are a great number of legal notices of mortgage forclosures, more than I have ever seen before. So....my agents are telling me to be patient and to wait until the flood gates start to open up so we can pick the right place for the right price. In the meantime I will read Dean's new book I orderd from him at 50% off and learn as much as I can. I have also gotten preapproved by 4 different banks now and am prepared to start placing offers. Come on Baby!!!

My Becky told me the Govn'mt is slowing the number of foreclosures on the market. That bumms me out. Makes extra work finding out the value of the home v. amount owed. Our redemption perior is I think 1 year in MI. Sometimes it can be worth it. But that's a lot of work. At the REIA I went to the realtor there said a law was passed that all foreclosures need to be denied or approved 7 business day after an offer has been submitted. DO you think THEY are following that....If you said NO I place my money with you on that bet!! Hey man, I hope everything is going well for you. Glad to see ya back w/a little more freq!!

It's been a while sense I made my last entry. I have been keeping my eyes peeled for a good deal. It's not nearly as easy as I thought it might be. I have 4 agents looking out for me and I'm constantly looking at new listings and old one's that come back out with drops in price. I'm finding out that a lot of these bank owned properties are being bought up with pools of cash from investment groups which makes it harder for me, but I'm hoping that with an on slought of foreclosures starting to come around that I will eventually find something that I think is good. My goal here is to make 4-5 deals all with one property. The 1st deal would be to buy the property and the next 3-6 would be to rent out each unit with a yearly lease. I believe it will happen, but thought it would happen quicker. I'm poised and ready but the places I've been looking at need way to much work than I'm willing to deal with for renovations. Plumbing nightmares are my biggest fears. Over the winter pipes burst if not properly conditioned and that creates massive damage to floors and ceilings. Don't really want to deal with that kind of damage or extensive work.

Banks are mainly interested in REIs who are willing to buy in bulk with all cash deals. They don't seems to respond kindly to small time investors. Banks don't seem to have the slightest urgency to sell. I was also under the impression that they are willing to balance their books and cut a deal, but there is nothing further from the truth.

I understand the argument that banks are not in the business of managing properties, but I also know that they are not in the business of losing money either. Banks employ the best and the brightest MBAs and Phds to advise them on the art of making big money!

Look for the smaller banks. THEY are VERY interested in individual buyers and getting the few REOs they have off their books (I am speaking from experience). Look for the inconspicuous. Look where nobody else is looking.

These are some of my contacts for REOs that are not "visible" yet: contractors, police detective, friends of people losing their homes, agents who list REOs, people "in the know" at the local banks, attorneys, etc.

And don't be too afraid of the bigger jobs (frozen pipes, etc.). EVERYONE is afraid to buy these, so WHO's gonna get the great deal? The person who is brave enough to offer (ridiculously low), and have their numbers already run for how much it will take to HIRE OUT the work.

Hope you don't mind me adding my two cents. There are SO many opportunities out there.
btw, good job, Dave! your determination is awesome!!

Rina

Rina is right, look at some of those houses with broken pipes, they very well could be the diamond in the rough. If you are not sure on how to do the work find a good cintractor. Read Louisa's journal she is doing a remodel now and she didn't know anything about remodeling when she started. Remember you can do anything you set your mind to. There is all kinds of information on the internet if you want to learn how to do some of this work yourself. This site is full of people who will be glad to explain how to do projects if you ask them for the information. Don't let any stone go unturned. Once you get some rentals going you will hace to perform maintenance on them in the future, there will be emergency repairs come up, Leaky faucets, and even maybe frozen pipes, this is stuff you will eventually have to deal with. So now is the time to find a contractor to work with right now and maybe get some of these houses really cheap and still get the work done and end up with a great deal. A good contractor is an important member of your team, you might even need several contractors. Start putting that team togethr now.

Sorry if I'm coming off kind of strong here, but some of deals out there need alot of work. They can usually yield the greatest profits, Remember you don't make money when you sell a house you make it when you buy it. If you can buy some of these houses at ridicuously low prices and get the work done well below FMV, you will have a true GEM.

Check out some of these houses with a contractor, get an estimate, don't let any deals fall thrugh your hands.

Your friend Kolby

I'll be more open minded about those properties that need alot of work. I'm even seeing one tomorrow morning. It's a single family in the neighborhood I grew up in and is listed as bank owned for $80,000.00 I know it needs substancial work but once it's brought back to life it should yield a FMV of somewhere around $135,000.00 I won't be afraid to start placing some low bids out there. I need to get beyond this postion and "JUST DO IT". Even my wife told me that I need to get some balls. She shocked me. I couldn't believe she said that to me sense she never speaks that way at all. But I know she's right and so are you guys. Thanks for the pep talks.

Glad to see you move past that hurdle. Never short yourself on opportunities. And never limit your horizons. Good things coming your way, friend! Enjoy!!

Rina

Your last post made me laugh out loud! And I of course agree with everyone who says dont rule anything out! Just know your numbers and on the ones that scare everyone else away you can make out really well! I remember when I was on an REO bus tour we walked into this house where the animal smell took your breath away. Most everyone said 'no way' and turned around and walked out. The leader of the tour smiled and said "Ahhhhh...thats the smell of a great deal"

Hey Dave,
What is going on are you still looking at properties, making offers, what? I had to go back five pages to find you in the archives. I hope you are so busy that you haven't had time to keep us updated. Your journal is one I check on a regular basis. You seem to be a lot like myself.

This journey in real estate is not easy to get started on, but stay with it, it will turn around. Once you get your first deal another will follow. Remember its easy to get side tracked and lose sight of your goals and why you are doing this. So if you are not busy, then let me help get you back on track. Either way get back on the journal and let us know how you are doing.

Kolby

Hey Folks! Sorry to let you down by not entering anything in my journal for some time. I will be really blunt and tell all of you that I am an Alcoholic.
That's right...hard to believe...right? I've finally come to the conclusion that I need help and that I can't do it alone. So...I walked through the doors of my 1st AA meeting almost two weeks ago now and have discovered that many people have this problem and that I'm not alone by any means. I have been drinking alcohol for a long time; sometimes controllably and sometimes uncontrollably, but over the last year things have gotten much worst and I have been blacking out on many occasions wondering what happend the next morning. Even though I'm a functioning alcoholic, look presentable, and take my repsonsabilities seriously; I realize that I need help to achieve sobriety. Sense I decided to walk through those doors I have met and heard from many people who are willing to help me and for that I am greatly thankful. I never realized that so many people stugle with this same problem and I never realized how distructive this desease can become if you don't nip it in time. I chose not to let it get to the point of becoming totaly destructive to me and my family, so I went of my own free will and so far am happy I did. I can't tell you a whole lot more about that right now, but ask that you keep me in your thoughts and prayers as I continue toward focusing on getting my mind , heart and soul straight. I haven't given up by any means to do realestate deals, but this has set me back a bit because of the committment one must make to deal with this type of problem. I am attending at least one AA meeting per/day and am making countless connections with people who genuinely seem to care. The least I can do is try my best to help make myself better. Who knows...along the way I might just meet someone who I can do a deal with. I will try to keep you all posted with my progress and I am currently still looking on a daily basis for that big 1st deal as I continue to work with about 4-5 realestate agents. Thanks for listening. Dave

Hey Dave,
Man I am glad that you first trust us to share such a personal thing in your life. I was moved by you recent post. I said it before and I'll say it again we are all here to help one another out. Don't give up and don't give in. You are super courageous and you are a true warrior. Everything falls in to place for a reason. PM me if you need to chat more. Again, thank you for sharing at such a personal level. DON'T GIVE UP!!

I am touched by your honesty, and also encouraged by it. The fact that you are acknowledging your situation and taking action is AWESOME. I have had many family members hit rock bottom of the bottle and climb back up - and I know you can do it too! I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers, and please, if you feel like it - pop back in and let us know how you're doing! Stay strong....life is a great gift and you deserve the best of it. Much love, Laura

Dave,
It takes alot to admit you have a problem with alcohol, I quit drinking in 1995, the most positive thing you will notice is you will have more money. The money you were spending on drinking, now can be saved and spent on your future, in real estate investing, or your family. Only good things will come from quitting drinking. I know that good things are going to start happenning to you from this point forward. Stay positive and focussed on your real estate and you will be successful.
Your friend Kolby

Dave it takes a big heart to say,what you just admitted...Especially in a REI forum!

I am proud of you!!!

You would be surprised at how many people you just helped by making that statement.I too know Bill W.

Randy

P.S.I see you are giving in alittle to get that first deal done,Remember if it turns out to be what you do not want,you can pass it on if it has good/great equity.

I too am touched by your openess and honesty and will keep you in my thoughts and prayers. I know you will heal and be all the much better in your personal life and REI. You've got a lot of people here who care about you and want you to heal and to succeed in all that you do.

Take care,
Lea
SPR Property Solutions, LLC

Thanks so much for your support! I just got back from a weekend away with my wife. We celebrated our 21st anniversay this weekend at York Beach, Maine and had a beautiful time together walking the beach and re-visiting the places where we 1st fell in love. I was good to be reminded of the moments we shared at those places some 24 years ago and how we came to fall in love. My wife is one in a million and I'm very fortunate to have been blessed with her in my life. As far as my problem of Alcoholism; I have attended about 12 meeting to this point and have been sober for two weeks as of last thursday. This is quite an accomplishment from where I have been. I am meeting alot of people who are willing to help and have gotten a temperary sponsor who I talk with everyday. He has been a great source of strength when I'm most vulnarable and has made himself available at any moment when I feel weak. I thank the Lord for my sobriety to this point and believe that I can continue to stay sober as long as I'm willing to ask for help and use the abundant sources that are available. It's no different in Realestate; If you use the help and resources available then your chances of success to make deals will increase by leaps and bounds. I'm changing gears a little bit by starting to look at "short term vacation homes in the Orlando area" and am going down to that location at the end of the month on a vacation with my family. I will take a couple of days to look at properties and spend time with a few agents. If anyone knows of anyone on this forum who lives down there and who would wan't to work with me...[please let me or them know. Thanks again for all your support in many regards. Dave

So nice to hear from you - I've kept you in my thoughts and prayers. Glad you are doing well and that you have a fabulous wife to love and support you too! Awesome! I wish I had a referral for you in Orlando - my brother lives there but isnt into real estate. I'm really proud of you - keep at it my friend...one day at a time

Yup! I placed an offer on a 3 family in Worcester, MA about 30 minutes from my residence. The listed bank owned price is at $146,900 and I placed an offer at $134,500.00. It wasn't long before I heard back from the realestate agent working with me. She told me that the bank had 8 offers on the listing and that they are looking for final and best by tomorrow morning. The agent said that she felt the property would go for at least list price and probably more than list. It's tough to know exactly what to do now. But I know I can't do anything that makes me feel to uncomfortable. If anyone would like to suggest something to me, please do so quickly!

Looks like you have a nice start on things! I've read about half of your journal so far, and know you will find your niche! Can't wait to read more to see how far you've come. Keep on with what you're doing. I may try that big white board idea of yours! I have a million things going on and it always seems like I don't get anything done, and it sounds like that would show me that I've made progress. My kids are running amok, so I best be heading off the computer! LOL

You are doing great!