Archive
I got a call from a newer investor recently, and he was about to do his first subject-to deal. That’s where you buy a house and leave the seller’s mortgage in place after closing. You then make payments on that mortgage until you either pay it off, refinance the house or sell the property. The investor was looking for some guidance on how to set up and properly use a land trust,...
I had an opportunity this week to evaluate some qualities one needs in order to be successful as a full-time investor or real estate professional. It started Monday morning as I was heading to the office for our weekly staff meeting. The project at forefront of my mind was completion of the rehab on a flip that was about to sell. We were running behind on it and needed all hands on...
Ashley and I had a first recently. We bought a house with an in-ground pool in the backyard. Now we’ve bought houses with above-grounds pools many times. But that’s an easy situation to remedy. Depending on the style of pool, you can either take a razor knife to the side or post a picture of the pool on social media with a line that reads, “Free — come and get it.” Both scenarios are...
I went to pull my iPhone out of my pocket at a house the other day. My phone tumbled out of my fingers and began to topple toward the floor. I have pretty good reflexes, though, so I brought my right foot up and caught the phone in the same manner one would stall a soccer ball or hacky sack. That particular action may sound odd for this situation, but I grew up playing both soccer...
Have you ever started on a property just knowing it was going to be a homerun? I know we have. One that sticks out in my memory was a 2,000-square-foot, three bedroom, three full bath, brick ranch on eight acres. We purchased this house for $40,000 and did a jam up rehab, including custom tile, hardwoods and new counter tops. We put a new roof on it, installed a new HVAC system,...