OfflineFriday, November, 27, 2009
OK, I should have started this earlier, so I have some catching up to do.
Saw Dean's infomercial on TV on Nov. 1, order his book the next day. Received his book about a week later, completed both of his books and the "success secrets" booklet on November 23rd.
November 24th, set up my voice mail, posted some adds on Craiglist & Kijiji, set up a new e-mail account, started website. Some of my add got removed?? Maybe I posted too many?
November 25th, opps realized I forgot to leave my phone number on the voice mail. Figured out how to add a closing without re-recording the whole message...whew! Got a few hang-up voice mails, someone listened to the whole message, but didn't leave a message. It's nice to get notification of calls. Ordered AFF, ran a few of the reports, not too many properties came up, all of them were from Craigslist. Have to come up with a script to e-mail the few prospects that did come up. The form generators, and webpage generators that came with AFF are great!! I couldn't get the webpage name that I wanted to generate correctly, I need to come back to that. Need to read up on how to set up the website promotions, the Dan Hollings information was great!! Need to print out some flyers and post them in the local area (grocery stores, library...). Starting to build a contact list of realtors and mortgage brokers that I can begin to contact. Didn't win the scholarship, called to inquire about the academy, I think I waited too late, left a message.
November 26th - Happy Thanksgiving!!! - No work on the business today.
November 27th - Didn't get in as much time as I would have liked today working on my real estate business. Car was in for service, so I didn't make it to the store for printing supplies, will have to do that tomorrow. Set up my home phone to go to voice mail instead of answering machine so I don't have to worry about the boys deleting an important message, plus I now get notified via e-mail if I get a message. Haven't heard back in the academy, will have to call again tomorrow.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Well I finally posted bandit signs last night. I made up my own signs using the tips I learned from Greg Murphy at the EDGE. I picked up the cardstock from Walmart and a good permanent marker. I have a hammer tacker (http://www.amazon.com/Arrow-Fastener-HT50P-Hammer-Tacker/dp/B00004Z2K0) that makes it quick and easy to put up. I had the whole family with me and the kids were amazed at how quick I could put up a sign! I drove up Rt 95 and pulled off each exit till I came to a good intersection with a stop sign or a traffic light. I was a little nervous at first but once I got going it became a game. How many signs can I get up at this intersection?
I had my wife drive so I could jump out an put up the signs quickly. Going to make this a weekly event as well as putting up flyers.
Lot's to do today and I want to take advantage of as much time as I can since the time I have is limited during the week.
My top priorities today are:
1. Call success academy to make sure I have all my bases covered for my upcoming closing.
2. Follow up on the hard money loan.
3. Call a couple of banks to see about funding. One of the small banks is very investor friendly.
4. Get some quotes on insurance (my son also got his drivers permit yesterday so I need to line him up with insurance also).
5. Make a video for Dean's contest.
6. Call sellers on properties that my new bird dog (my son) came up with.
That's a good start!
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Your doing pretty good yourself! The great thing about this race we are in is we can help pull each other over the finish line! and we both WIN!!!
Your welcome on the property manager, I don't think they work out of Jacksonville, but if not they may know of someone.
#1. Do they already manage property in the area where your house is located and manage the type of home you own?
If the management company has rentals under management in your specific area already(I’m talking the same neighborhood or close by not just the same city or town) they are much more likely to perform. If they don’t, I would suggest you move on. And make sure they manage your type of home. You don’t want a “high end” specialist managing a 1200 sq foot home in a “regular Joe” neighborhood or vice versa.
#2. Do they own their own investment property?
Property Managers who have “skin in the game” have a better knowledge and almost always do a better job. Period.
The broker/ owner of the property management company we work with owns several rental properties and it shows in the company’s performance.
#3. How many houses does the company have under management?
If a property management company manages less than 100 properties and is in a market with a population of over 100,000 people, I consider them a very under developed management company. I suggest you move on to the next.
#4. What is their rent collection & eviction policy/process?
If they can’t give you a direct response on this part of their job……
RUN AWAY!!!!!!!!!!! It will save you a lot of pain in the future.
A good management company has a very clear system and is no nonsense on rent collection and evictions. This might sound a little harsh but your mortgage payment is due every month no matter what happens.
Take it from a guy who lost a lot of money in the beginning of his investing career but letting his “heart get bigger than his head”. Unfortunately tenants can take advantage.
Charity is a great thing that I encourage but please don’t combine it with your rental portfolio! Keep the two completely separate.
#5. How will you get my property rented?
Make sure they have a strategy to fill your vacancies!
#6. Fees?????
This is a big one. How do they earn their money?
A good management good company usually gets a one time fee for filling the property initially and then a percentage of collected rents. If they are not collecting rents they shouldn’t be getting paid! In our area standard fees are 10-12% but can go as low as 8% and as high as 14%. I realize these fees can vary in different areas so again, do your homework on what is standard for your area.
Avoid a management company who uses maintenance or repairs as a profit center! They should take care of this as part of the job at par pricing, no add-on fees! Do not allow a management company to make a repair over $250 without your permission. Also, as far as marketing the property, they should not charge extra fees for marketing the property.
With all this said, I wouldn’t recommend just choosing whoever is the “cheapest” without weighing all of their skills! I made this mistake when first starting
out as well!
#7. How do I get my money/ statements?
A good management company should have auto-deposit available for you into whatever bank account you choose to receive your rental profits. They should have a specific date for depositing the rental profits and you should also receive a management statement every month to review the performance of the property. (we prefer email)
If you ask these 7 questions, you are taking the time to do what most people don’t take the time to do and they get hurt because of it.
Thanks again for the property managers #. I will call on Monday to see if they are in my area and to see what htye offer if they are.
best of luck
Richie.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
The one you want to make a video for? I wasn't aware of any contests...
Kristin
The annual take me away Dean contest, details should be out shortly.
Kristin
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
I got everything done I wanted to do on Saturday, it was a productive day. A lot of the places I called Saturday were not open so a lot of them called me back today.
I had a great Fathers Day, I hope the rest of you fathers did too!
I found out I sent the wrong video camera in for Joe's contest...DOHHHHHH
When I went to film and turned on the camera it had all the video I had done, which means I mailed back an empty camera...Sorry Joe & Megan! The video camera went out today with everything on it.
I have some follow up e-mail to get out tonight as well as reviewing the insurance quotes I have gotten so far.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Then I had better get moving on an idea for that. Got something up my sleeve for sure.
Kristin
I am on the fence on whether I should hold this property or flip it to one of my buyers. If I hold it, it may tie up the little cash I have and hold me back from anymore deals, if I flip it, it will be quick cash and will help me to do future deals.
Going to sleep on it and wait to hear what the hard money lenders have to say.
Working on another lesson tonight...Sandwich Lease Options...the Greg Murphy special.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
i hope you were able to sleep. Chuck said he was rehabbing in his sleep all night. i have done rehabs, lease/options, etc. all night in my sleep. then you wake up exhausted because you've done a full day's work at night.
Linda, Army EOD Mom
you can follow my journal at http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/investing-journals/45351/...
IT'S ALL GOOD AND EVERYTHING IS WORKING OUT PERFECTLY FOR ME!
Fear equals:
False
Evidence
Appearing
Real
Yessss....I think I rehabbed it twice!! LOL Tried out a few different options!
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Well...I did get a better offer on Hard Money..but after talking it over with my wife Lori, we decided to offer it up to our buyers list. I will do that with our first few deals, then I will have more options.
The good thing, I am learning so much from this one deal! Plus I am adding all kinds of people to my power team.
Still plenty more deals out there too!
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Well I advertised my property everywhere last night. No bites so far, we'll see what happens. While I was putting the ads together, I realized I didn't have any photos...could have sworn I took some, check both cameras, and two phones, no photos...oh no. Luckily the listing agent had some pretty good photos up that i could use! Whew!!
See the info on my deal.....got some news today....
Thinking about private money.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Right now is a waiting game on my latest deal (for more details see my deal #2).
I still have a few pending offers out there that I am waiting to hear back on. I signed up for a presentation being put on tomorrow by two local real estate investors about how they do "private money". It is a whole session, which should be invaluable. Unfortunately I have a graduation party for my nephew so I will have to leave early...ughhhh. Hope I get everything I need.
Been getting some calls to my 800#, most of them seem to be hang-ups. Not sure if they are coming from the signs I put up or my Craigslist ads.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Still waiting to hear on my deal.
Went to a private money presentation put on by two local investors. It was great information! I will put up a summary of it later this week.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Now that sounds very interesting. Can't what to get the particulars on that. Keep you the hard work. You are doing great and inspiring the rest of us to get off our A-- and make something happen for ourselves.
Erika, REI
Brownstone Investment Group
405.748.0734
www.facebook.com/Erika.Coleman
www.twitter.com/brownstoneREIgr
Job 22:21 Submit to God, and you will have peace; then things will go well for you.
Job 22:28 You will succeed in whatever you choose to do, and light will shine on the road ahead of you.
Deut 28:8 The Lord will guarantee a blessing on everything yo do and will fill your storehouses with grain. The Lord you God will bless you in the land he is giving you.
I hope to post some information later tonight. Just take action and don't stop!
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Dohhh....ended up with two speeding tickets within a week. Both times I was working on my business. Luckily I belong to the NMA and they have a great program for fighting tickets! PM me if you are interested. Spent most of last night working on that...don't want my insurance to go up!
Tonight I will be doing the lesson on Public Records, something I have yet to tackle! Also plan on posting some of the information on Private $.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
slow down Chris, I mean with your car ,not REI lol. good luck on those tickets. I was able to beat one because my cousin called the guy that gave me the ticket and when we went to court the Judge asked him if he had his notes and he said he didnt have time to prepare, The Judge instanly said case dismissed
Thanks for the idea's I plan on making more calls.
good luck on the deal, you will sell it soon enough.
Richie.
Can't believe we are into July!
We'll last night my wife & I got tickets to see the Pawtucket Red Sox play the Yankee Farm team. It was great and a rare opportunity for us to get out without the kids! Even stopped for ice cream on the way home! Weee funnn
Still no word on my deal, checked with my lawyer today and he is looking into it. I still do not have a buyer or the financing lined up yet, gotta get moving on this! Working on it tonight!
Oh, by the way here are a few sites to check out for networking or business advise:
Score.org
Meetup.com
virginmoney.com
gobignetwork.com
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Chris,
I am truly amazed by your progress and your dedication to keeping your journal up. I hope to get those bandit signs of mine posted this weekend. I got so many ideas from your journal that I cannot list them all here. I also read your other journals on the two sales you are working. I really appreciate your sharing those websites that you have found. I am sure I will be referring back to your journal frequently for ideas and methods to use.
Keep up the great work and thank you again for sharing with us all that you are doing.
Tim
Tim
Keep on Keeping On !!! Expect it, God has already given it to you. You just need to get out there and grab it!
If you want to follow my journal:
http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/investing-journals/33874
Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10
Glad I can help!
I sent you my contact info in a PM.
Now get out there and do it! I know your scared, do it anyways.
I am truly amazed by your progress and your dedication to keeping your journal up. I hope to get those bandit signs of mine posted this weekend. I got so many ideas from your journal that I cannot list them all here. I also read your other journals on the two sales you are working. I really appreciate your sharing those websites that you have found. I am sure I will be referring back to your journal frequently for ideas and methods to use.
Keep up the great work and thank you again for sharing with us all that you are doing.
Tim
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Happy 4th to all my fellow DGers!!
So much I want to do...so little time. Where do I begin?
Still waiting to hear on my deal, see have not completely lined up my exit strategy, I have 3 options 1. sell it to another investor via a double close 2. Buy it will hard money 3. buy it with private money Going to get one lined up as a backup plan, my preference would be to use private money, but I don't have any lined up yet, and not sure I can get it done in time. I can also use hard money but I need to put some skin in the game...I need to line up some skin.
I was able to download all the home sales this year from the local paper website (did you know you can do this with excel). I matched it up with the list of cash buyers that I had, so I now have a list of all the properties that they have bought in the last 6 months, along with the seller and sales price. I have been researching the corporate records site, so i now also have the names of all the owners of the private companies. All I need now is some phone numbers! I could get one of three things from these calls: a. a new cash buyer b. a private lender or c. a seller!!
I received a call from a local DGer today. She is just starting out and wanted to pick my brain a little. Also has a property that she wants me to look at.
I am meeting with my new mentor tomorrow! His goal is to have me retired from my job my the end of the summer. That is a tall order, but definitely doable!!
Well off to catch up on all my doings!
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
I hope that everyone is enjoying their 4th of July weekend. I know we are! Getting a lot of family time in, enjoying the fireworks and the parade (which is today, Bristol Parade is the oldest continuously running parade in the county!! http://www.july4thbristolri.com/).
Today I have one major goal, to get my deal either sold or financed! I have two avenues that I am going to pursue. I am going to call one of my buyers and make them an offer and I have a hard money lender that I am going to talk to.
Saturday I met with me "Millionaire Mentor" (that's what I am going to call you, you know who you are). He expands my mind an helps to channel me in the right direction. Time flies when we meet, I met for 2 1/2 hours and it seemed like an hour.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Just keep taking action like you are and it will all fall into place. Have a great day.
Randy
www.adeptpropertiesllc.com
Chris,
That's the way it should be! I like the relationships where things just click. If you have someone you enjoy working with... You respect their capabilities... AND they are interested in what YOU are doing as well... where there's nothing better than that! Congratulations on finding someone like that.
Roger
The Jaguar Investment Group
URL for Journal : http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/investing-journals/43293/...
All things are possible to him who believes! ----- Mark 9:23
In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity ------ Albert Einstein
finally had a chance to go through your journal and WOW! great reading and notes and may I say great find on the bank w/no seas.. to answer your question, I think we may have or at least crossed paths at the live event but dont think we actually bumped into each other, I guess we will meet next year though. Keep up the good work! Talk to you soon.
Dream and the future takes form, Believe and your halfway there, Work and climb to fulfillment!
Hey Chris. I like the option of selling that deal to another investor to gain capital for your next one. But if you are able to find private money then go that wayif the numbers are solid.
Thanks again for the management co, but i am going to give the one i found a try for now.
Keep up the good work.
Richie.
Congrats on finding your 'Millionaire Mentor'. I'm looking forward to hearing about how your deal progresses.
Glad to hear you and your family had a happy 4th and enjoyed the parade.
Lea
Thanks for all the kind words!
Going to post the details on the deal on my other blog so check there:
http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/my-deals/50448/deal-2
Going to work on my last lesson tonight...Tax Liens...it has taken my way too long to get through these lessons, and I can't say that I have been the best student as far as doing all the action items. But the lessons are certainly a great reference, I find myself going back to them all the time. The one I need to work on is the Marketing Lesson...I am going back to them to improve on what I am doing.
Got a call from the head of my local REI club, I offered to help him. He needs help lining up speakers. So he gave me some ideas to follow up on. GULP! Got my work cut out for me.
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
Got a great tip on a insurance company that deals with investors.
Also got an e-mail on my deal. Still trying to get in touch with one of my buyers to see if they are interested in the property.
My lawyers says the paperwork is in order now, but not sure if we are closing next week or not.
Finished my last lesson last night! Time to get some deals under my belt!!!
... Verses: 35 "but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; They will run and not grow weary, They will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 ...
i know what you are saying about the lessons. i'm a big-time student/studier, but sometimes you have to try and fit those lessons in. i'm working on it.
i hope you enjoy working with your REI club. once you start volunteering you have more access to information, speakers, etc. i love it and can't get enough of it. every month i have to have my "fix". hope you have a great time.
Linda, Army EOD Mom
you can follow my journal at http://www.deangraziosi.com/real-estate-forums/investing-journals/45351/...
IT'S ALL GOOD AND EVERYTHING IS WORKING OUT PERFECTLY FOR ME!
Fear equals:
False
Evidence
Appearing
Real