Archive for April, 2015

The real beauty of owning rental property when the seller will allow you to pay them directly every month allows you to collect rent from each rental property you buy to pay for those properties.

The key to make this strategy work is to buy each income property so a tenant who will be renting the property will pay enough rent each month to cover 1/12th of the annual property taxes, 1/12th of the annual property insurance cost and at least 10% to 15% of the monthly rental income to cover the cost of the maintenance for that property when needed. This money for maintenance is set aside to pay for making the property look new when a tenant moves out such as new carpet, paint and any other damage to the property the tenant did during their stay. Also money for when the roof on that property eventually wears out, when the water heater eventually goes bad or the furnace or air conditioner breaks down and also enough money remaining each month to make the monthly payment to the seller and hopefully provide extra money each month for the owner to put into their pocket. Here is an example to show what I am talking about.

For this example each rental property brings in $1,000 in rent each month. This is the formula I use to determine if enough rent collected for each potential rental property to support itself and also provide extra income for the owner each month. Read More→

Thurs, May 14th at 6PM @ Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay
Tampa REIA – May 14th
at the Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay
What to Say to a Seller & How to Make a Written Offer
with Special Guest Speaker, Bill Cook

Tampa REIA Members Can Attend at No Charge.
Guests Can RSVP Online Now for $15 or Pay $20 at the Door.

RSVP on Meetup.com
Tampa REIA Members Please RSVP on Meetup.com
if you have a meetup account.

Bill CookMany people have been asking for it, and we are excited to announce that Bill Cook will be our special guest speaker this month at our main monthly meeting on Thursday, May 14th at 6PM at the Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay located at 3050 North Rocky Point Dr West in Tampa, FL. Bill will be teaching us how to talk with sellers and make profitable, written offers on the spot.

When you meet with a seller, do you know what to say? Do you know the most important questions to ask? Can you make a written offer right there on the spot?

Again: Do you know how to make a written offer right there on the spot?

The #1 reason most would-be real estate investors fail is because of F-E-A-R! The fear of not knowing what to say, and the fear of a seller’s reaction to a low offer. What if you could make a safe, full-price offer to every seller?

How can you tell if fear is holding YOU back? Here’s an easy test: 1) How many sellers have you met with this month? 2) This year? If YOUR numbers are less than YOU think they should be, why are they less? Are you even tracking these two most-important numbers?

Remember: The alpha and omega of successful real estate investing is getting face-to-face with sellers and making a lot of written offers!

Do you want to SEE how to do this in action? Do you want to SEE where the best deals are right now? At Tampa REIA’s meeting on May 14th, Bill Cook will explain what he says to a seller, and how he makes a written offer right there on the spot!

Sure Bill can talk the talk, but he also walks the walk!

But wait… there’s more…

Get ready for something VERY special…something almost no real estate investing teacher will do. On Saturday, May 16th, Bill will spend the day with a select group of investors in neighborhoods SHOWING YOU how he knocks on homeowners’ doors, gets 8 out of 10 sellers to invite him in, and how he makes written offers right there on the spot!

When was the last time you spent the day with an experienced dealmaker getting face-to-face with sellers and making written offers in the real world? Ever?

Will you learn something new at the May 14th and 16th events? You bet! Will you see things you’ve never seen before? Positively! Will you be able to take what you’ve learned and put it to use the next day? Absolutely!

Bill & Kim Cook have been investing in real estate for more than twenty years! They’ve built their business square on the back of knocking on sellers’ doors. They have tons of experience at creatively constructing and funding win-win deals. Their investing portfolio is made up of single-family rental homes, mobile homes, a small mobile home park, plus notes and options.

10 Things You’ll Learn At The Meeting:

  1. The #1 cause of investor failure
  2. The two most important things an investor must do to succeed
  3. How to conquer the fear of meeting with a seller
  4. The most important thing you see at a seller’s house
  5. What is an offer – how is it different from a purchase contract
  6. How to write a win-win offer
  7. The difference between a terms offer and a price offer
  8. The two most important tools that every real estate investor needs to carry
  9. Is it crazy to offer $1 million for a $125,000 house – bet the answer will shock you!
  10. Those attending get a FREE copy of Bill’s Offer Form

Several people missed out on hearing Bill speak the last time he was here and have been asking when he was coming back for over a year now. Do not miss the opportunity to learn from this amazing and successful real estate investor!

RSVP Now!

RSVP on Meetup.com
Tampa REIA Members Please RSVP on Meetup.com
if you have a meetup account.

*Meeting Agenda
6:00 pm: Tampa REIA Meeting in Tampa
6:15 pm: Announcements, Introductions, Haves & Wants
7:30 pm: Main Presentation with Bill Cook
9:30 pm: Late Night Networking at Whiskey Joe’s Bar & Grill

*Please Note: Meeting agenda is subject to change.

5 Days & 4 Nights in CancunWIN A 4 NIGHT STAY IN CANCUN: All participants who attend the Tampa REIA Meeting will entered into a drawing for a chance to win a *Complimentary 5 Day, 4 Night Stay in Cancun! *You must be present at the meeting to win. Giveaway does not include dining, transportation, transfers, taxes, upgrades, etc.

Late Night Networking at Whiskey Joe’s Bar & Grill

Whiskey Joe's Bar & Grill Tampa FloridaAfter the conclusion of the Tampa REIA Main Meeting (around 9:30PM), we will be reconvening at Whiskey Joe’s Bar & Grill located at 7720 West Courtney Campbell Causeway in Tampa for the “Meeting after the Meeting”. Come eat, drink, network and have fun with us as hang out late into the night on Tampa Bay!

See Tampa REIA Events Calendar for More Events!
Saturday, May 16th at 9AM in Tampa, FL

Join us for a REAL, LIVE, HANDS-ON…
Door Knocking Field Trip
Meeting Sellers and Making Written Offers
With Bill Cook
Saturday, May 16th from 9AM-4PM
Meet at McDonald’s at 8214 N Florida Ave, Tampa, FL

Do you want to SEE the fastest, cheapest, most effective way to get face-to-face with motivated sellers?

Bill CookThen join me, Bill Cook, for a day full of door knocking with real sellers on Saturday, May 16th from 9AM – 4PM. We’ll meet at McDonald’s located at 8214 N Florida Ave in Tampa near Old Seminole Heights at 9AM and spend the day out talking to sellers and constructing win-win deals at their kitchen tables. Arrive early if you want to have breakfast with us at McDonald’s.

Have you ever spent the day with a seasoned investor getting face-to-face with homeowners and sellers and making written offers? Do you want to?

Door Knocking with Bill CookOn Saturday, May 16th, Bill Cook will take a select group of real estate investors from Tampa into local neighborhoods and show them:

  • What to say to a seller!
  • Where to stand after knocking on a homeowner’s door!
  • How to get 8 out of 10 sellers to invite you in!
  • How to make a written offer right there on the spot!

This isn’t classroom theory stuff. It’s a 100% real-world experience!

Door Knocking with Bill CookMost real estate investing teachers can talk-the-talk, but how many have you watched walk-the-walk? This will be a one-of-a-kind event. No other investing teacher does what Bill does!

Bill and Kim built their real estate investing business square on the back of knocking on sellers’ doors. They’ve been doing this for more than 20 years!

The 10 Most Important Things You’ll SEE Door-knocking with Bill on May 16th:

  • What’s the fastest, cheapest and most effective way to build your investing business
  • What to say to a seller…and the most important questions to ask
  • How to get 8 out of 10 sellers to invite you in
  • How to write a win-win offer right there on the spot
  • Why you should never look for deals
  • Why it’s critical to be curious
  • Why the rainmaker is king
  • The best way to find a property’s FMV (fair market value)
  • The best way to find a neighborhood’s FMR (fair market rent)
  • The best way to learn things about a vacant property
Register Now!

Will you learn something new? You bet! Will you see things you’ve never seen before? Positively! Will you be able to take what you’ve learned and put it to use the next day? Absolutely!

Bill and Kim have tons of experience at creatively constructing and funding win-win deals. Their investing portfolio is made up of single-family rental homes, mobile homes, a small mobile home park, plus notes and options.

Contact us now if you want to go out and watch Bill talk to homeowners and sellers, learn how he gets 8 out of 10 sellers to invite him in, and how he makes written offers right there on the spot!

We promise that you’ll see things you’ve never seen before – or will ever see again!

See Tampa REIA Events Calendar for More Events!
Sat & Sun, April 25th & 26th @ 9:00 AM in Tampa, FL
Peter Fortunato & John Schaub
Advanced Strategies & Tactics for Buying, Selling, Financing & Exchanging
Sat & Sun, April 25th & 26th in Tampa, FL
Tampa Airport Holiday Inn, 700 N Westshore Blvd
Networking & Brainstorming on Sat After Class

John SchaubBuying

  • How many do you need? Why? Getting there faster
  • Different houses, different benefits + different times
  • Cash flow vs capital gains – Activity + Net Income
  • Controlling the benefits that you need today
  • Distributing benefits and responsibilities
  • Lease Options
  • Short Sales
  • Buying bad title for a profit
  • Using partial interest – Title vs Partnerships

Selling

  • Strategies for when the financing falls through
  • Owner financing with Dodd Frank and Safe Act
  • Discounting the financing
  • Bifurcating financing to create more saleable notes
  • Section 121 (see publication 523)

Financing

  • Subject to, Portfolio Loans, Pretender Lenders
  • Owner financing
  • Single payment notes – Performance based notes
  • When paying interest is cheaper than 0%
  • Equity participation – Equity financing
  • Options
  • Installment sales (see publication 537

Exchanging

  • Present Position vs Potential Position
  • When it’s better to pay the taxes and buy
  • Tax deferred
  • Just for a profit
  • Exchanging as financing
  • Non real estate, notes, options
  • Overtrading to generate cash today

Putting it all Together

  • The Best Tactics & Strategies for Going Forward Pursuing Your Estate Building and Business Goals

Class Registration Fee: $595 per person
Class Time: 9-5 both days. Networking & brainstorming session
after class on Saturday.

Register Now for Peter & John’s
Advanced Strategies & Tactics Seminar

Sat, April 11th at 10AM @ Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay
Tampa REIA – April 11th
at the Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay
How To Become a #1 Best Selling Author, Be Seen on the Hottest Media Outlets & Get the Instant Celebrity Status You Deserve!

FREE Meeting with Expert Marketer, T.C. Bradley

RSVP Now!

T.C. BradleyThis Saturday, April 11th from 10AM to Noon at the Doubletree Suites Tampa Bay located at 3050 North Rocky Point Dr West in Tampa, FL, come hear how you can become a Best Selling Author partnering with T.C. Bradley. There is NO CHARGE for this meeting and seating is very limited, so show up a few minutes early to secure a seat.

On this Saturday Morning, T.C. Bradley, Founder of InstantCelebrityStatus.com, will be sharing the details on how you become a Co-Author of a Best Selling Book within the next 60 days! That’s right, 60 days!

A Co-Author book is where you supply 1 chapter of a book and still enjoy the benefits of being a Co-Author of a Best Selling book, and ALL the benefits that come with that.

Best Selling AuthorBecoming a Published Author not only separates you from the “competition”, but becoming a Best Selling Author puts you in another Universe…

  • Clearly establishes your AUTHORITY and LEADERSHIP
  • Never compete on pricing again with your competition!
  • Charge higher fees!
  • Opens up speaking opportunities
  • Clients and prospective clients view you differently.
  • Media exposure possibilities increase.

“My media clients NEVER compete on price and always charge premium pricing for their services…people today want to do business with the LEADER the EXPERT AUTHORITY and that is what I deliver” ~ T.C. Bradley

Best Selling BookUse the Best Selling Book that you are a Co-Author of as the coolest business card on the planet! TC’s clients send their books to prospective clients for a HUGE impact! TC will also share how a ghost write can interview you and write your own chapter for you!

Please Note: Book space is limited and already filling up, and we have already had serval express an interest in participating, so you do not want to miss this meeting!

TC will also address how to be seen on ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX and other big name authority media websites to further enhance your Leadership Credibility.

What some of T.C’s clients are saying:

“TC Bradley is a man of his word. When he says he will do something you, can mark his word, it will be done and done with the utmost highest level of integrity and professionalism. Working with TC during our most recent #1 Amazon Best Selling Book Campaign was an awesome experience. TC definitely operates on a very high level and expects every book he publishes to be a Best Seller because he is playing on the highest levels of perfection and really would not settle for less. There is no doubt that we will be doing many more books with TC and we have absolutely no hesitation in referring his services to anyone that wants to work with the best! Without a doubt, TC is a man of greatness that will bring out the greatness in all that work with him.” ~ Stephanie & Jon Iannotti, 2 time – Amazon #1 Best Selling Authors

“3 Words: This Guy Delivers. Whether it is creating a business website, promotional video, or making his client a best-selling author, T.C. Bradley will tell you what he is going to do for you and then he does it. I would recommend T.C.’s marketing services for any serious entrepreneur or business.” ~ Matthew Fitzharris, Attorney at The Law Offices of Matthew J. Fitzharris

“I have since traveled around the world doing seminars and billing 10 Million + per year average. In one seminar, attended by 240 people, I closed 1 Million Dollars in sales in one day, truly, earning the title, “The Million Dollar Closer!” This simply was not going to happen without T.C. Bradley’s intervention in my life. He single handedly put me on the map, I listened to him and ran with it, to the bank. T.C. is impeccable with his work, his word, and his being.” ~ Stephen J. Young, Million Dollar Closer

You won’t want to miss your chance to hear T.C. speak about this exciting opportunity!

RSVP Now!

See Tampa REIA Events Calendar for More Events!

T.C. BradleyWe recently sat down with publishing and media expert TC Bradley. TC is the CEO and President of InstantCelebrityStatus.com and is the upcoming author of the soon-to-be-published book Instant Celebrity Status!: Establish Your DOMINANCE in Your Local Market by Using Major Media and Becoming a Best-Selling Author!

Lisa: Welcome TC. Please tell us a little about your background.

TC: Thanks Lisa, I have a pretty diverse background but will give you a brief overview. After relocating to Florida from Chicago, my wife and I started a national direct sales company, which we grew to 1.6 million dollars in sales within the first 6 months, only to lose that company to a bad partnership. At the time of losing that company, the company was averaging 100k in sales a day, so that was a very tough experience to recover from. Instead of wallowing in my sorrows, I started investing in real estate, successfully, and in 2003, I launched my first website and successfully sold over a million dollars of product from my first product.

Lisa: Losing a multi-million dollar company must have been hard to overcome.

TC: It was, Lisa. Betrayal is hard for anyone to overcome, especially at that scale, but I knew a man like my ex-partner would never succeed long term, and I was right. Within 2 years, my ex-partner closed the business. Meanwhile, I invested in over a million dollars in real estate and developed my first product and website, which sold over a million dollars of product, and really, I have never looked back from that devastating moment.

Lisa: I have heard that success is the best form of revenge. Is that true?

TC: No Lisa it is not. Massive success is the best revenge. In business and in life, sometimes you must make a statement, especially to the ones that doubt you or that take advantage of you, and nothing speaks louder than massive success.

Lisa: How did you transition into media and publishing?

TC: Internet marketing has changed dramatically since I went online in 2003. Back then, if you had a halfway decent website and product and could drive traffic to the website, you could make money. That is not the case today. It is no longer good enough to be found on Google, because your competitors are there too. People will research until they can find a leader or expert to do business with. Today, when a buyer lands on your website, you have 10 seconds to establish yourself as the leader or authority that they are looking to do business with. Read More→

The Profit April 2015 Edition

Posted on April 7, 2015 by
The Profit Newsletter for Tampa REIA April 2015
Download the April 2015 Edition of The Profit Newsletter Now!

The Profit - April 2015 - High Quality PDFThe April 2015 edition of The Profit Newsletter is now available for download as a High Quality PDF (print quality) or Low Res PDF for mobile devices. The Profit Newsletter is the official newsletter of the Tampa Real Estate Investors Alliance and is a digital, interactive newsletter for serious real estate investors delivered as an Adobe PDF file to read on your computer, tablet, or smart phone with a PDF reader. Many of the articles and ads in The Profit contain hyperlinks you can click to get more information online. The high res version of The Profit is “print ready”while the low res version may load faster on your mobile device. Also, be sure to Subscribe to The Profit so you don’t miss a single monthly issue.

Download Now!
High Quality PDF / Low Res PDF
See The Profit Archives for our past editions.

Read More→

T.C. BradleyI first went online in 2003 and my first website sold over a million dollars of product. At one time, we were one of the most top ranked websites in the world. We actually had more traffic going to our website than Oprah had going to her website. (For you internet geeks out there, our Alexa ranking was a hair under 10,000 at the time)

Marketing has changed dramatically since those days. It is no longer good enough to be “found on Google.” Your competitors are there too. Today, more than ever, people have a choice of who they choose to do business with and they want to do business with the LEADER or Authority in their field.

If you have a serious legal issue, you want the BEST Attorney that money can buy. If you are selling your home, you do not want just anybody selling your home.

The Million Dollar question is this:

If I were to visit your website or social media pages, how obvious would it be that YOU are the Number 1 choice? Read More→

Would You Break Into A Vacant House?

Posted on April 7, 2015 by

You’re out working foreclosures and see an obviously vacant house. There is a sign in the window saying the home has been abandoned and winterized. You look through the window and confirm that it is vacant. Do you open the door with your “investor key” (a credit card) and go inside to look around?

Over the years, real estate investors have hotly debated this topic. Some investors would never go in the home, while others think nothing of slipping the lock so they can inspect the interior before bidding on the property.

I know investors who regularly go into vacant homes. The popular thought is that there’s nothing wrong with that. The investor is not there to steal or vandalize anything, he’s there to estimate the rehab cost so he can accurately determine his maximum purchase price. What can possibly be wrong with this?

There are a lot of funny stories told by seasoned investors about things they found in abandoned properties; things you can’t believe a homeowner would leave behind – like artificial limbs, stuffed (taxidermy) animals, porno magazines, etc. After hearing these stories, many new investors come away thinking that it’s OK to break into vacant homes. But I’m here to tell you – think again! Read More→

As an active investor, I get a ton of deals regularly from other wholesalers especially with springtime rolling in. They come in all sorts of shapes, forms, fonts, graphics and so forth. While they all have a variety of information, it is rare that ads come with enough information to make a decision on whether it is worth spending time on them. So as a Buyer as well as a wholesaler, I thought I would share some do’s and don’ts to apply when you put ads out to your Buyers to set yourself up for success.

DO’S

DO put the address – I am amazed at why anyone would think I would look at a deal without an address but it happens.

DO think like a homeowner wanting a perfect house to describe repairs – This is what your Buyer is going to be aiming for. As an example, you may be ‘ok’ with the minor carpet stain however that won’t cut it when your Buyer’s Buyer will want new carpet. Description trumps number estimates since each Buyer has their own contractor with their own pricing.

DO give comparable sales that make sense – radically mixing styles of homes, comps that are too far away for the geographic area, large square footage differences, ignoring unique features such as lakefront, acreage and many more considerations can radically affect what are the best comps. Read More→

From Paper to (Almost) Paperless

Posted on April 7, 2015 by

“Americans spend 3 billion hours per year filling out tax forms and keeping tax records.” ~ Jim Ramstad

There are two things I’ll never do again: first, teach one of my own kids how to drive; and second, help my Aunt May file her tax returns. I’m pretty sure you know Aunt May, or someone just like her. She’s a really sweet lady whose house looks spotlessly organized until you open a drawer or a closet. When she hints that she needs help with her taxes, you volunteer. I mean, she needs you, and she’s so nice! How hard could it be?

Anyway, that’s what I thought. But a day before taxes were due, Aunt May came over with six boxes full of paper. Six boxes! Each contained every manner of paper from receipts to bank statements to movie tickets to Christmas cards. Everything under the sun – except the things I needed. It took sixteen hours, eight aspirins, and three pots of coffee to figure out that she was getting a refund of $1.47. Nope. I adore my Aunt May, but I’m not going through that again.

I’ve never been quite as disorganized as Aunt May, but I’ve certainly had my moments. I discovered pretty quickly that I had better organize my business so I could find what I needed, when I needed it. When you’re trying to convince a potential seller that you run an organized, professional operation, it’s best if you can find the contract they signed. Read More→

Welcome back! In our last article, we talked about how trends come & go in all things, but we specifically discussed the fact that there are two tried & true strategies that have seemed to stand the test of time in Real Estate Investing. Those strategies are: Wholesaling and Lease Options.

Wholesaling was discussed last time – it’s mainly done in the “Ugly” house business (houses that need a lot of work). And Lease Options are typically understood to be done in the “Pretty” house business (houses that don’t need much work).

Thanks for hanging in with me so far, veteran investors. Keep reading. It gets better.

Lease Options have been around for a good, long time. Certainly as long as any of the well-known, current ‘Gurus’ have been teaching. The way they work is basically like this:

A homeowner/seller wants to sell their house, but a typical wholesale-style deal (usually with a lowball price offer) doesn’t work, or they just don’t like the offer… or the offer doesn’t make sense. I mean, why would any sane seller sell their house that doesn’t need much work that they have a ton of equity in for a deeply-discounted price? Read More→

Because money has been easy to get over the past 15 years I wanted to show you how leverage can truly maximize your profits regardless of your credit history. If you can think about the conservation of cash idea borrowing money from banks can definitely be a thing of the past. Leverage is one way how you can use the limited money you have in the most effective way to maximize your profit potential on every property you buy. If you have less than good credit or if you simply don’t want to use your credit you may want to learn how to use less money and with leverage maximize your profits. If you already have limited money you can use what money you currently have to buy one house but you will only profit or grow your money from that one house and nothing more when you rent or sell the property you bought. Leverage can accelerate how you build wealth if done correctly.

Here is a simple example of what I am talking about. For this example let’s say you have $100,000 you have worked hard to acquire over several months or years or you have the ability to borrow $100,000. One day you decide to buy a rental property. You quickly find a house you believe will be a good rental. The sellers of that house are asking $100,000 for their property. During your face-to-face discussions with the sellers you find they would be willing to allow you to make payments to them every month until the property is eventually paid for over the longest period of time you can get the sellers to agree to. Read More→

Think BIG

Posted on April 7, 2015 by

How can you get not only what you want but MORE than what you have ever wished for?

Nothing is Unreachable

Your success depends on your vision.

  • Do you want to work independently, or do you want to work independently and be wealthy?
  • Do you want to pay off your credit cards, or do you want to be completely debt free?
  • Do you want to take a vacation, or do you want to travel the world?

When you expand your thinking, you can expand your success. Expect more and work knowing that you can have it. From the start, know how big you want your business to be and work as though it is already there.

Big business owners keep good analytical data on sales, acquisitions, expenses, and growth. With good analytical data, you can prove that you are a good business person, and people will want to loan/give you money. Read More→

There are times when we are going to purchase a short sale and then rehab the property for a higher profit. During the rehab on the property, I take my partners shopping. We go to Home Depot and look at all the items I normally put in my cookie cutter houses and I show them why I have chosen each and every product. Then they get to pick their own products and we discuss the price differences to analyze the affect on our profit. It is really fun shopping for an entire house in Home Depot, but the bottom line is to save money. After our trip to Home Depot, we will head over to the cabinet shop if it is a higher end property and we will pick the cabinets and handles. Then we are off to the granite company with a piece of floor tile and a cabinet door so that we can match our granite throughout the house. I call this program my Mentor Program as I bring everything I have learned and taught through my Real Estate Junkie course to my students. By the time we are done, it’s been a “power-shoppin’ day!”

I always recommend that you have a Pro Account at Home Depot which gives me an automatic 10% off everything and if you are a member of a REIA group, you can save another 2% so … working with me already has saved you the cost of a new kitchen on the rehab or more. Read More→

So now your tenant is all moved into your unit. When a tenant moves into one of my units, I provide them an inspection sheet that goes over the condition of all parts of the unit (paint, doors, appliances, etc) which they sign off on stating that they agree to the condition of the unit when they moved in. We give our tenants fifteen days to go through the unit to see if there are any repairs needed that may have been missed by my rehab crew. These repairs are done at no charge to the tenant. After fifteen days, the tenant is charged the first sixty five dollars of all repairs. This keeps the tenant from calling us to repair small items like toilet guts for instance.

I actually added this to our lease after a tenant called us at 6:30 one evening to tell us her kitchen sink was stopped up. It turned out that her small child had stuck a cup down into the garbage disposal. It just needed to be removed. The way my lease reads now, that tenant would be charged a fee of $65.00 to have my repair guy go out for something that wasn’t a repair. This one clause will save you from a lot of unnecessary trips to your units for repairs.

I also have someone who checks my rental units every sixty days or so to make sure they are being cared for properly and that the tenant has not added animals that are not on the lease. We also make sure they have not moved in any more people who are not on the lease. This is grounds for immediate eviction. Within the body of our lease, we also cover how long visitors can stay as well so there is a clear definition as to what a visitor is and what an extra tenant is. You can also hire a property management company to handle your units, but I just feel like our units are better handled by my staff. I also send letters to the neighbors surrounding my rental units letting them know that we are interested in any input they may have about my units and my tenants. The neighbors become kind of a watchdog for me to let me know if there are any problems I should know about. Read More→

As investors we have to be mindful of some basic principles. While knowing the value of a property is extremely important, real estate investment itself can prove to be particularly challenging.

Knowing the true value of real estate is critical, try to do a deal without it and see. The guidance and data within REIAComps.com has consistently shown investors how to determine both solid acquisition value and after repair value to earn lasting profits.

Use the following six things to get a handle on your business before you start pouring money into a real estate investment.

1. You must be honest and realistic when working with others.

If you want to separate yourself from the competition, tell the truth.

There are a handful of opportunities where you can make a large amount of money in a relatively small amount of time. Real estate is one of them. However, it seems these types of businesses also tend to attract the less than desirable. Read More→

The Momentum Effect

Posted on April 7, 2015 by

One of my favorite business books is Good To Great by Jim Collins. In this book Mr. Collins gives a great example that I realized applied to me when I was building my real estate business and will apply to you too. The author gives us an example of a great big fly wheel. He describes this as a giant metal disk on a thin pole. Imagine this disk weighs thousands of pounds and is currently stationary. Your job is to get this disk spinning.

It is easy to imagine that it will take time and effort to get the giant, heavy wheel to spin. You will begin with a single shove on the wheel. Very little will occur with this initial input from you. The wheel may move very slightly. You will push and push and the wheel will slowly start to move. Your effort will be great and the results will be minimal. Shove and shove and shove…the giant wheel begins to spin slightly faster and faster.

At a certain magical point the wheel will become much easier to spin. The weight of the wheel is now working for you. Its own momentum will keep it spinning with very little effort on your part. You can now give small gentle pushes and the wheel will keep spinning on its own. Read More→

Picture this: a man purchases a house in 2007 with a loan from a major mortgage lender who then securitizes the loan. After 7 years of making payments, the homeowner loses his job and defaults on the loan. The lender sends a foreclosure notice to the homeowner, claiming the ability to foreclose on the loan. But does the lender actually have the right to foreclose? The answer is a bit complicated, and does not look good for the major banks. To understand why, let’s take a closer look at exactly what the banks did and what it means for homeowners and real estate investors.

When a loan was securitized it was lumped together with a massive pool of loans and then sold in parts to investors around the world. The investors were then paid from the principal and interest payments on the loans based on their percentage of ownership. It sounds simple enough. If it was that simple, why did mortgage lenders begin the process by selling each loan in the massive pool of loans through a sequence of sales? And why was the last sale almost invariably to a single-purpose entity, usually a trust with a major bank as the trustee? The point of this sequence of sales was to separate the pool of loans from the assets and liabilities of the originating lender. They did this in case the lender was to file for bankruptcy or go into receivership. If the loan had not been completely separated from the lender, the lender could then claim the loan by right of redemption, effectively leaving the investors with nothing.

If the homeowner continues to make their payments, this is the end of the process for them until they have paid off the loan. If the homeowner misses payments and the foreclosure process begins on their loan, that’s when things get hairy. Read More→

A New Way to Do Real Estate

Posted on April 7, 2015 by

Well, it’s been over three years now since ACTS came into the world, and so much has changed since its origination in October of 2011. If you’re not aware of what ACTS means, it stands for Assignments of Contracts and Terms System. It has changed the business of a lot of my students throughout the country and added a lot of additional revenue into their lives, including my own.

However, some people think ACTS is all about over leveraged houses, which is not correct. In fact, ACTS pertains to any kind of terms deals with the seller that can be assigned to an owner occupant tenant buyer, thus the term Assignments of Contracts and Terms System.

Today, I rarely do an overleveraged property because it seems like the number of them is continually declining. In fact, the last time I looked, about 17% of the properties in America were over leveraged according to USA Today. Today, I deal more with free and clear properties and those who have a mortgage with some equity on them. I buy these properties either through owner financing or on a lease purchase. Then, I either install a tenant buyer in them or sell them with owner financing. You will have to decide which one you should do, but I’ll show you how to determine what’s right for you in your area and your personal business objectives. Read More→