Elix's 'Anti-Journal' Journal

Zion Properties wrote:

Good for you! That was extremely quick! Hope they all check out in the credit and background department so you can move on! Open houses for tenants always bring in a lot of prospects!

CHA-CHING!!!!

Waiting for the others later

yesterday. 90 degree weather all around

Had a few appointments, had two postponed, and took my son to the park and enjoyed the rest of the day.

Refused to take phone calls from clients for the first time in years, as well as some of my DG family.

Wasn't in the mood to cook dinner(I am the Brooklyn version of Emeril) so me and the Mrs enjoyed a large cheese pizza pie from Little Caesar's. You cannot beat the $5 cost, watched in disgust as my Boston Celtics(Jesus Shuttleworth fan) let the Magic back into the series.

Ended the evening with a nice stogie on the front stoop, got up this morning at 4am, worked out to P90X(the ultimate stress reliever), great breakfast, and about to work my magic today.

I wake up at my normal 4am-ish, check my e-mails, schedule my appointments for the day and make the decision to be done by 2pm. After that, no RE, just family and NBA tonight.

Afterwards, I get in a P90X 'Yoga X' workout; i'm in so much pain right now. But good pain. Make a great nutritious breakfast, then proceed to play a few games of solitaire.

This while I have my headphones on listening to some songs that I enjoyed in college. I then notice my wife looking at me with disgust

"What happened???"

"Must you be so loud singing and who are you listening to???"

(apprehensive to answer due to possible embarrassment)

"um,...Aida by Sara McLaughlin. I used to like this in college"

"i'm going back to bed and please shut up"

I really enjoy your input about your daily ups and downs. You make me laugh even though it is 1 am. Great info on deals too. I like a little sugar with my medicine. Keep it coming.

Being a certified cash flow consultant, a relentless RE investor and a public speaker ( Solely RE based of course) has opened up many doors for me professionally. Now that I have read every word of your anti-journal, I'm going to get my license too.

I'll be flashing my "badge" like I'm an FBI agent to keep the skeptics at bay. I'll still be putting up signs, flyers, handing out business cards like a blackjack dealer, setting up speaking engagements at hotels to bring in buyers and other investors, and I'll still continue to network network network.

Word of advice to all the DGers on here. Even if a deal is not a deal and you know it's not a deal, DON'T waste YOUR time with it BUT always FOLLOW up with your client because they will refer business back to your court TEN FOLD.

Okay, it's Sunday morning and I'm getting ready to go to a waterpark in NJ called "Land of Make Beleive."

I'll be back in Orange County, NY this evening. Tomorrow I'll stroll around my area to see how many of my 9 signs I put out at 5 am this morning throughout 5 towns ( New Windsor, Washingtonville, Cornwall, Woodbury, and Vails Gate) are still up and "running"

Time for sunblock and a whole lot of Fun under the SUN!!

This has been a very non-real estate weekend and it feels great

Well, I did have three open houses between yesterday and today

and I did have another client pre-qualified

and a possible client I met at Costco's called me about purchasing a house

but other than that it was a great non-real estate weekend

Tomorrow, i've got family coming over, but before that there is the all important 'Law & Order' marathon on TNT

and its name is 'NCIS'.

It didn't help that both had their all day marathons.

Other than that, helped my wife working the Brooklyn Academy of Music's (B.A.M.) Dance Africa Festival selling her handmade denim handbags and accessories(shameless plug).

Beautiful weather and people having a great time really was the best. Monday was a 100% non-real estate day.

But now i'm back on hustle mode.

for one of the properties I sold into the apartments yesterday late afternoon

Promised a friend in harlem I would attend her 'small' 'Michael Jackson v Prince' party last night.

Small for her is no less than 100 people. Keep in mind i'm in a tan summer suit, drink in hand, dancing my %$# off to 'Kiss', 'Rock with You', 'Purple Rain', etc when my I noticed my phone rings. One of the clients I met at the open house wants to see the place again. I asked when. She said now. I told her its 11:30pm. She gets off at 11pm. I explained my situation and that I am drenched from this party. She didn't mind. I told her to give me 30 minutes.

Got to Brooklyn from Harlem in 25 minutes. They proceeded to laugh at me but was cool with my disshelved appearance. Five minutes later they wanted the apartment. Spoke for another 30 minutes on the front stoop, and I went home, threw my suit in the bag for the cleaners, and got to work on the laptop.

Such is the life

I think getting a real estate license in order to locate deals for one's own portfolio is a waste of time.

I do not personally feel that there is any real benefit to it. You will be required to sell, for anything you buy, you will need to pay a commission to either the listing agent or the broker, you will need to divulge that your a licensed agent and some homes you would not be able to buy because they would possibly be HUD homes and you wouldn't want those anyway.

Just my opinion.

However, I may add, that

1. If you or anyone is buying a property off of the MLS they're going to pay a commission one way or the other; when you buy a property and you have a license you're essentially paying yourself. Most of the homes I have bought and sold over the last year were not on the MLS due to my contacts as a licensed agent

2. I seem to put sellers more at ease when I let them know I am a licensed agent and I have access to buyers for their properties even when they chose not to list with me

3. HUD homes are actually very popular and having my license and acquiring relationships has gotten me an inside track on homes about to be put out on the market.

Not trying to change your mind and as I said before, if you're finding success without one, congrats to you. For me, its an invaluable tool that has allowed me a nice living and do what I love.

So I went to an open house with a client and to say that apartment was hot was an understatement(she didn't take it)

The rest of saturday was with the family in downtown Brooklyn enjoying the festivities. Ended the evening sitting on the front stoop enjoying a Nicaraguan,......cigar and some Chivas Regal

Sunday spoke with a client who is closing on tuesday and very nervous; put her at ease with the thought she will soon be a homeowner and added in some of my comedic genuis to calm her nerves

Ended the evening watching Rondo and Jesus even up the series.

For the record, I am not either a Lakers or Celtics fan per se; I am a Kobe Bryant, KG and Jesus Shuttlesworth fan. I am and will always be a Knicks fan.

Yes, this is partly why I love real estate; i'm used to pain and suffering and have lots of patience. From being a diehard Knicks fan. And I have no delusions that we will be getting LeBron because there is no way he's coming

which one are you in the picture? i want to ask for your advice here: i have a possible short sale i've found. it is listed on the MLS and i have talked to the listing agent, who listed it for her Dad. it is way over-leveraged and he's been in the hole since he bought it. anyway, without going on and on, should i just look for a buyer as a realtor, or should i also see if i can do it as an investor/realtor? if i do it as only a realtor, can i strongly suggest that the buyer use me as the agent if i give them the information? what are your thoughts? thanks.

I am Linda. On the far right is my broker and in the middle is the legendary Melvin Van Peebles

Both are good ideas because you'll be getting a commission either way

Ultimately depends if you want to hold onto it or not

Two CLASSIC teams, in the 80's I'd root for the Celtics (even being here in So Cal). Kobe's grown up boy, I remember him when he thought the game revolved around him and its been great seeing him mature in his game and teamwork. Right now I could care less, but I'll route for the Lakers just because my hubby hates them! Mwaahahaahahhahahaha!

It makes it exciting when the family is all revved up and watching a game cheering for different teams. I guess I have an unusual definition of the term 'fun'. LOL

We don't watch many sports; just the playoffs and hockey once in a while. It used to be we use to PLAY the sports, but nowadays, that hasn't happened in some time. I need a sitter so we can get out there on the courts and kick some arse (doubtful as rusty as we are.) Me and my hubby used to play 2 on 2 and it would make the guys SOOOO mad when they were beat by a team with a girl! Bwahahaha!

I have 3 appointments today, all in the late afternoon so I am just relaxing today; watch tv, dust off the playstation, clean up the house some and just relax.

I may inquire about some condo's a few clients I have are looking for but mostly just chillin; I can't completely do nothing.

i thought that was you. i hope i don't sound stupid, but who is Melvin Van Peebles? i have heard of Mario Van Peebles, if i have that right.

i have decided to act as a realtor concerning the short sale and see if i can find a buyer for it. if not, i'm okay with that.

Friend of mine saw he was in town and we asked him to come to our networking party

Two $50 cigars and cognac later, our normally 6-10pm event lasted until 2am with Mr Van Peebles closing down the spot with us

I cannot get this song out of my head. Been humming it all day since this morninghearing it on the radio.....DAMN!!!!!

5pm appt got postponed til 6:30. Lets me enjoy two episodes of 'Law & Order'

....I want a house for my children

That was the response I got when I asked a new client if she was disappointed in not getting her house in time. She told me she stuck with another agent for over 8 months and saw only 5 houses. All of which did not match what she wanted.

Most of my appointments are in the evening since most of my clients have full time jobs, so i'm normally home during the day cooking, cleaning, watching Sportscenter and SyFy. Oh and looking for homes for my clients.

When i'm on here i'm either on my cell phone in the streets or on my laptop in bed but i'm also working towards my evening appts. Steadily busy even though the tax credit expired, mostly from previously happy clients whom I found homes. Back to the story.....

Like my last 5 clients, she also wants a condo and since Brooklyn has built up all these condo's that aren't getting filled, great price deals plus the long term abatements can't be beat. Showed her four. She loved all four. Asked when she wants to look more, she told me no need she's going to decide by friday. "Why didn't Muriel tell me about you last year when I decided to start looking???" Hearing that made me smile and feel like Kobe making the winning basket.

Just finished off a session of 'Ken-Po X' and eating breakfast in bed getting my two appts this evening in order.

I love this business.

So after watching my normal must have fix of 'Law & Order' I headed out to my three appts, one of which was a waste. The rental is for $1800 for a 3BR. Not $1700, not $1750 and definitely not minus my brokers fee or at a discount which this woman asked if I could give her.

Rule #4 of being a licensed RE agent: Be professional to the client no matter beligirent or ignorant they are. I calmly let her know as I did over the phone that the price is firm, three months rent will be required at signing of lease, which includes my brokers fee. She said thats not a problem. The apartment is perfect if there were ever a word; newly renovated, hardwood floors, larger bedrooms and bathroom and stainless steel appliances. IN A RENTAL!!!! She also asked if I could waive my fee to make it easier for her to rent and she could pay me later. I asked her a question in reply "If I a total stranger asked you to work for free for a week, would you???". That shuts them up alllllllll the time. Suffice to say she didn't take the apartment.

After my last two, I headed to harlem to meet my friends and business associates at my favorite cigar bar to enjoy the NBA Finals.

(Shameless plug)
Madison Cigar Lounge, 1825 Madison Ave, Harlem NY, where I will be hosting my second 'Women & Power--Real Estate & Cigars' event
on June 24 from 6-10pm. Last event was same time, but didn't finish until 2am.

Very little talk of work, but about kids, showing pics and stories, World Cup, and the main attraction.....KOBE!!!!
Great game, lots of screaming and yelling and arguing about LeBron. Bunch of women in the mix as well who talked sports. Nothing sexier than a woman who knows about sports. Add some liquor to the mix with her talking about sports and.college football in particular....but anyway, great game and fun throughout the night.

Afterwards went to Kennedys Fried Chicken to soak up some of the liquor and because I was straight hungry, got home around 1:30am, showered, kissed the wife and kid, went downstairs played a game of NCAA Football 2010,....lost, then went to bed. Woke up at 5am, jumped on laptop to start the day off good.

One appt at 10am and then I am done for the day

So last night filled up the remaining apartments I had for the houses I had listed needing tenants

Note to all present and aspiring real estate agents; Never discount rentals. They can sometimes be a hassle, but they are a quick payday, and can hold you over until a residential sales deal comes through

So got home, watched the ending of the first quarter of the NBA Finals and saw Boston getting pimped slapped. Decided to check e-mails while listening to some Culture Club and Black Moon with one eye on the game here and there.

Noticed I had about 30 emails from people looking for section 8 apartments. And I so now happen to have 6 clients who would rent to sect 8. 2-6pm tonight meeting with possible clients, checking their packages to see eligibility and by thursday and friday will be doing my 'Section 8 Open House'allllllllllllll day

Greed is Good

I just caught up on your journal entries and also sent you a pm. I have been in and out of the site intermittently. Just so fatigued these days after work. Freshman orientation begun two weeks ago, great business for CUNY. Got in after 7 tonight and decided to fiddle around on site. As also Elix, there is always something new the I take away from your post. Keep them coming. Thanks as always.

Sandra

Elix you are a good dude and I appreciate all the advice you have given to me over the past 3 months. Happy that you got your units rented.

Russ

So I had a mini 'Open House' for two section 8 apartments that i'm working on and out of the 15 people that called to request a viewing, only 6 showed up.

Of those, two loved, three hated, one wasn't interested in locale

The others I called to see if they were coming were only "5 minutes away". I think that's the section 8 way of saying "i'm not coming". Oh well they're off the list.

Saw 'There Will Be Blood' last night and that movie is absolutely amazing. If you have not seen it, you really need to.

Two of those that blew me off called like nothing ever happened.
One said "Mr Brown i'm calling about &^%$$# and would like to see the 4br apartment for $1800"
Now I take my job and time very serious so when you waste my time, the gloves are off and I don't care anymore since they were off my list
'Is this Peggy???' To say she was shocked is an understatement "Um,..uh yeah"

'Peggy I spoke with you last night; you were supposed to meet me at 7pm. spoke with you when you said you were a few blocks away. I then called you again and you said you were parking. 15 minutes later, no answer and voicemail. I'll make this very quick if you didn't like the place you could have just told me but to lie to me is not cool so I suggest you find someone else to help you move'

She hung up on me. She's off thelist anyway so no problemo

What do you get when you mix celebrating Kobe's fifth ring win with two great tasting cigars and free Remy???

Insomnia Man

My wife 'let' me as she put it go to the cigar lounge and enjoy the game with the fellas, but I think it was because I was getting on her nerves and she wanted me out of her face for an extended period of time.

I think it had to do with me proclaiming this week 'The Fathers Day Week Extravaganza'. I'm a new dad so i'm still in giddy mode.

Anyway, the lounge was having a viewing party and for $20 you get two brand new cigars they are selling and an until supplies last access to Remy cognac. Suffice to say, that game drove me to drink. Not sloppy in any way, but a good back and forth game makes you reload more often than not.

So after watching Kobe grab his fifth, hung out more, wife said take your time, no rush to come home(I love her) and hung out until 3:30am this morning. A rule is all clothing must be removed before I enter the house, so I then showered, played online solitaire for another hour and 'went to bed' about 5:15am, woke up at 6:20am which is late for me.

Got my son ready for daycare, gonna go over my schedule today which includes two mini open houses for rentals, two house sales showings, shopping at Costco's and tonight i'll Wolfgang Puck some dinner. Gonna play a few games of PS3, watch some Maury Povich and then start my day.

Hi Elix, it's been awhile since I emailed but things aren't going like I hoped. I got an email from a guy in New York saying he is uncertain about doing re deals out of state and asked me questions about this area I live in and I told him there were some deals he could probably do but I talked to a RE agent and she said that he probably would not make big profits here because the prices have been pretty steady and there have been no ups or downs.

I asked her about foreclosures amd she said the rehab would take a lot of the profit and he wouldn't get much so I asked her if there would be any that didn't require a lot of rehab and she said she thought there would be.

Am I giving up to soon? I haven't heard back from this guy to see if he is still interested but I don't have a good feeling about it.

I also am wondering about the re agent I was talking to, she owns the house that I rent an apartment from and I have known her for several years.

I also told the guy I was emailing to that I may try to go the the Des Moines area but that is 160 miles away but they do have an investment club I would like to get involved with.

I also have been reading on another thread about coastal funding and would like to see if they would be a good choice to fund some deals with.

I know I have said a lot in this email but I'm not real sure what step to take next if this guy bails out. Hope you can give me some insight.

The RE agent could be right; remind me what area you live in again, but in some areas home prices are firm and there isn't much or any room for lowball offers.

And as i've mentioned before, alot of brokers that truly know their area(s) don't like or won't present lowball offers for fear of not having a counter or being ignored or cut out of future deals. This is something I personally stand by, as i've dealt with clients who wanted to present 30-50% offers and I would know the owner, agent or bank and know the situation. I would tell them their offer won't go over. I've walked away or allowed them to present with another agent, and every single time I was right. Every. Time.

Oh, and don't even think about giving up.

Just assume the investor wasn't interested and move on. He has you should do the same.

I'd give your landlord/agent the benefit of the doubt fi this is her livelihood; i'm sure she'd have no problem with you making her money and her job easier if you can get her clients. Have you explained to her in detail what your plans are???

If not maybe you should since most agents like things to be structured and as great as assingments are, on face value, they don't appear guaranteed, but more of a roll of the dice in you getting an end buyer as opposed to someone who is the direct buyer and not dealing with the middleperson(you)

Not sure about coastal; if anything go with a funder that people on here have used and closed with

Oh, and don't even think about giving up.

My first Fathers Day I had no idea what to expect but being that I don't expect much, I really enjoyed it.

Started off the day going to Costco's, which I love doing by myself. My weakness is the meat section, which completely takes control of my checkbook. My wife was not happy when I come home with the $376 grocery bill

"YOU BOUGHT $50 STEAKS???"

After coming home, she and my son took me to breakfast. Afterwards, for some reason I can't explain, my wife got me to pull weeds from the backyard and clean the kitchen and bathroom. I honestly don't understand how or what she said to get me to do it.

After sweating in the humid sun, I showered and watched a few karate flicks with my son, we both dozing off every now and then. Later that evening, I was treated to a nice dinner out with the family.

I am truly blessed

This year has been a boon for me business wise; the tax credit and just the luck of great referrals coming my way has made 2010 a very fruitful half year for me to say the least

But I would love to get back to investing, but I just don't have the time and to put more time towards it would mean less time towards my family and that is soemthing, that if I can control, will not do.

Being able to spend time with my son during the day if I have no appointments is priceless and I don't want to miss out on that.

I've been getting offers on some of my rentals but they've been borderline insulting and i'm in no rush to sell unless I get a great offer; a few of them have been assignment offers which i'll give a chance for, but most of them once I said "yeah, find a buyer i'll work with you" the general concensus from them was "where do I start???" Time to move on from them.

I'll never say I hope things go slow because I want to ride this till the wheels fall off, but if it happens, back to investing for me.