Weeell, I didn't do too great on my goals BUT I didn't do too bad either. We got out 6 offers (check), I worked out 2 times instead of 3 (pseudo check) and I called one rent to own in the paper. This guy was a total ass and made me very self concious to call anyone else! I know, I need to get over it and move on - make those calls!
Goals for this week:
Work out 3x
Meet with the new local bank (hopefully tonight)
Get ad in paper for rent-to-own on my new 2BR house
Find renters for my last pain in the ass set of condos
Re-assess my strategies
I am closing on the 2BR house tonight. Well, I'm actually pre-signing and the actual closing is tomorrow. I put the contract on this house with an exit strategy of Rent-to-Own. However I put an ad in the paper for a quick sale and am having dismal results. Usually when I put my "Owner Desperate" ads in the paper I get loads of calls but not with this property. Of course this is making me very nervous about my price and the 2BR thing. I knew this was a sort of 'test' to see how well 2BR's went over and it's not looking good. I have had about 7-8 calls on it but not one has wanted to go through it. This is in a very sought after lake community and is the cheapest house in the area that doesn't need any work. The closest priced home is $10k higher and has foundation issues. We'll see...
Still have not put in renters in my condos. These things are just going to give me a headache. We did get an offer on 1 late last week but I think it is going to fall through. We'll see how that goes too.
What else?!? I think I am offering too much for properties. My offers going forward are going to be much, much lower. I started last week with one... It was going to be $50k and I changed it to $35k.
I'm sure there is more but I need to get back to work.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Closings/Offers/40th BDay party
I should have 2 closings this week. The first is tonight for one set of condos. This is the 3rd set that I've bought/sold over the past 5 months. I am still holding the last set with no buyers lined up nor any rent-to-owners. I thought I had one lady who wanted it bad but we haven't heard from her in a while. At any rate, I will only be making about $3.5k tonight at closing on both units but I'm good with that. And, we will continue the search for rent-to-owners.
The second closing is tentatively scheduled for Friday. If it's not Friday it will be next week. This is for the HUD property that we closed on last week. We got the buyer from the HUD property we sold last month. He wanted that one but it was already sold. Michelle told him about this one and he put in an offer. We didn't even have to market. I wish they were all this easy. Again, we're not making a killing but it's paying the bills and I don't have to stress about holding too many properties.
We will be submitting more than 5 offers this week, I think. I will know for sure tonight when I talk to Michelle at the closing. I am participating in Steph's accountability Mondays and that is one of my goals. It is a great idea and one that I hope I stick with.
My husbands 40th birthday party was this past weekend and we all had a ball! It was such a good time. I didn't go to bed until about 4am and there were about 15 people up still dancing after that. I will try to post some pictures later. My home computer is so slow I hate posting anything... it takes forever and a day.
I think that's it for now.
The second closing is tentatively scheduled for Friday. If it's not Friday it will be next week. This is for the HUD property that we closed on last week. We got the buyer from the HUD property we sold last month. He wanted that one but it was already sold. Michelle told him about this one and he put in an offer. We didn't even have to market. I wish they were all this easy. Again, we're not making a killing but it's paying the bills and I don't have to stress about holding too many properties.
We will be submitting more than 5 offers this week, I think. I will know for sure tonight when I talk to Michelle at the closing. I am participating in Steph's accountability Mondays and that is one of my goals. It is a great idea and one that I hope I stick with.
My husbands 40th birthday party was this past weekend and we all had a ball! It was such a good time. I didn't go to bed until about 4am and there were about 15 people up still dancing after that. I will try to post some pictures later. My home computer is so slow I hate posting anything... it takes forever and a day.
I think that's it for now.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
So I'm trying Rent-to-own on my last set of condos. It's not going great... I've only had the ad in the paper since Friday but I only got 2 calls. The 1 guy is interested but I think I have him thoroughly confused. I'm not very good at explaining things and tend to scare people away, I think. This is one reason why I was never very good at short sales. I just called my mortgage gal and she is going to touch base with him tomorrow and see how good/bad his credit actually is. It sounds like he wants to get both units so he can live in 1 and rent out the other. I'm just not sure that is going to work for him doing a rent to own. I'll have to think about that and if anyone has any ideas, I'm all ears! These things are a pain in my ass and I just want them GONE! Unfortunately for me I think I will have them forever...
We lost out on the other 2 properties I wanted. I really thought I had a chance with the one that had a super low starting price but apparently someone wanted it more than me. Personally I think there is something "weird" with the RE agency. You know, maybe they do not play by the rules?! Hmmm. I'm going to watch that one and see where the buyers came in on price.
I did go look at the property where the bank came down $10k. I thought it would be a total dump but it was actually pretty nice. Of course it needs the obligatory carpet/paint/windows/roof but that is about it. I'm sure there are some other minor things but nothing major (at least that I know of prior to my contractor looking at it). The bank came down to $55k, I was at $42k and came up to $50k. I'm just waiting on them to respond now. This is a huge house with lake views but no garage. What's up with the no garages?!?!
Nothing else happenin' - ate like a pig on Easter. It was wonderful!! ha, ha.
We lost out on the other 2 properties I wanted. I really thought I had a chance with the one that had a super low starting price but apparently someone wanted it more than me. Personally I think there is something "weird" with the RE agency. You know, maybe they do not play by the rules?! Hmmm. I'm going to watch that one and see where the buyers came in on price.
I did go look at the property where the bank came down $10k. I thought it would be a total dump but it was actually pretty nice. Of course it needs the obligatory carpet/paint/windows/roof but that is about it. I'm sure there are some other minor things but nothing major (at least that I know of prior to my contractor looking at it). The bank came down to $55k, I was at $42k and came up to $50k. I'm just waiting on them to respond now. This is a huge house with lake views but no garage. What's up with the no garages?!?!
Nothing else happenin' - ate like a pig on Easter. It was wonderful!! ha, ha.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Accepted contract/Called Bank!
We got one of our offers accepted! This is the 2/1 with no garage in a sought after town (Lake Geneva, WI). Again I have not bought a 2/1 until now so it will be interesting to see how this plays out. I am going to forward the info to my buyers list and maybe call a couple "For Rents" in the paper and feel it out. This is NOT a grand slam by any means but I'll be surprised if I have trouble unloading it (famous last words).
I finally called the local bank I've been meaning to call. In fact I just hung up with her. I am going to give her a call and meet with her next week, hopefully. She mentioned their "in house" products could have no downpayment, depending on our working relationship (of course), and she does the underwriting for those. And, it would also include no payments for the first 6 months... sweet. I want to take this contract to her so we can start building the relationship. If I could get no downpayment and no pay for 6 months I would be REALLY happy and I would be able to accomplish a lot more deals. I wish I could meet with her Monday but this damn J.O.B. is holding me back. I'm taking off early Thursday (for a closing - maybe - I'll get into that in another blog) and Friday. We're having a 40th birthday party for my husband on Saturday. It should be lots of fun - adult fun. heehee.
I'll keep you posted on everything. I'm goin' home!
I finally called the local bank I've been meaning to call. In fact I just hung up with her. I am going to give her a call and meet with her next week, hopefully. She mentioned their "in house" products could have no downpayment, depending on our working relationship (of course), and she does the underwriting for those. And, it would also include no payments for the first 6 months... sweet. I want to take this contract to her so we can start building the relationship. If I could get no downpayment and no pay for 6 months I would be REALLY happy and I would be able to accomplish a lot more deals. I wish I could meet with her Monday but this damn J.O.B. is holding me back. I'm taking off early Thursday (for a closing - maybe - I'll get into that in another blog) and Friday. We're having a 40th birthday party for my husband on Saturday. It should be lots of fun - adult fun. heehee.
I'll keep you posted on everything. I'm goin' home!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Complete gut rehab - Dump
The property where the bank came down $20k is a complete rehab/dump. Anything would be good at the right price I suppose but this house was downright scary. Not in the TampaSteph sort of way (at least that I know of) but just scary. It actually was a duplex, not a SF as I'd thought, 1/2 the windows were missing, tear off roof, new siding and gutting on the inside. The whole shabang. AND, there was a 1 bedroom house in the backyard. That was in OK shape but had water damage/mold. Whatever, I didn't counter back and will just watch it - maybe.
I looked at a couple other properties last night. One just came on the market 2 days ago at $55k (that is LOOW in my neck of the woods) so I had to see it. Of course I was expecting it to be a piece of shit but lo and behold it was in great shape. It has nice siding, new roof, HUGE yard, deck, french doors to deck, backs up to a school (could be good or bad), 1.5 car attached garage, minimal repair on the inside. I have no idea why they priced this puppy so low. It does only have 2 bedrooms/1 bath but there is a very large rec room in the basement. Someone could possibly use that for another bedroom. Anyhoo, they are taking offers through tomorrow so hopefully I'll know something by Friday?!
We also saw another property where they came down $20k. This one is also in decent shape but is a 2/1 with no garage. This is a great area with a great school district so I came up $8k and told them that was my highest and best. Apparently this is NOT a bank owned but an older couple that have moved out of state. We'll see if they are motivated enough to come down another $10k.
The last one I put an offer on was a 3/1 with no garage, GREAT yard, small deck, very little work. It's a small but cute house. Very nice, larger homes surround it but, directly across the street, there is a complete shithole. It sticks out like a sore thumb. It's really too bad for the neighborhood.
At any rate I'm hoping to have at least 1 if not 2 contracts for May! Wish me luck!
I looked at a couple other properties last night. One just came on the market 2 days ago at $55k (that is LOOW in my neck of the woods) so I had to see it. Of course I was expecting it to be a piece of shit but lo and behold it was in great shape. It has nice siding, new roof, HUGE yard, deck, french doors to deck, backs up to a school (could be good or bad), 1.5 car attached garage, minimal repair on the inside. I have no idea why they priced this puppy so low. It does only have 2 bedrooms/1 bath but there is a very large rec room in the basement. Someone could possibly use that for another bedroom. Anyhoo, they are taking offers through tomorrow so hopefully I'll know something by Friday?!
We also saw another property where they came down $20k. This one is also in decent shape but is a 2/1 with no garage. This is a great area with a great school district so I came up $8k and told them that was my highest and best. Apparently this is NOT a bank owned but an older couple that have moved out of state. We'll see if they are motivated enough to come down another $10k.
The last one I put an offer on was a 3/1 with no garage, GREAT yard, small deck, very little work. It's a small but cute house. Very nice, larger homes surround it but, directly across the street, there is a complete shithole. It sticks out like a sore thumb. It's really too bad for the neighborhood.
At any rate I'm hoping to have at least 1 if not 2 contracts for May! Wish me luck!
Monday, April 6, 2009
Counters
We got 2 more good counters Friday night. One was $10k below asking and the other was $20k below asking. We are still pretty far apart on numbers BUT at least they are coming down a reasonable number. Michelle and I are going to look at the properties either tonight or tomorrow. The property that came down $20k is a 2/1 with walk out basement. I have never purchased a 2/1 so I'm hoping the basement has room for a 3rd. The listing agent does not list the basement in its dimensions so I'm wondering whether she forgot OR if it is unusable. She mentions it in the description however. The one that came down $10k is in a town I have never purchased before. It is a great town and I do have a buyer out that way which is the reason for my offer. The house is a 4br/3ba listed at $65k with a tax value of $244k. The listed properties start at $178k and jump to $229k. I can't wait to see what's wrong with this house! ha, ha. Right now the bank is sitting at $55k and my offer is $35k.
Keep making offers and something will happen. Hopefully something will pop soon and I'll have a May closing. I need to keeep on top of my goals - 10 properties this year. Right now I'm averaging 1/month.
On a more sour note, I'm still holding on to my last set of condos. I lowered the price b/c there is a lady out there who supposedly wants to buy both. She's been dragging her feet and I wanted to get her to move... still nothing. My absolute last resort is to rent-to-own these but I don't want to on these particular properties. I know I keep going back and forth on this but I just don't want these particular units, I'd rather sell at a loss. I do want to buy/hold at least 1 if not 2 properties this year (a new goal) but I want single families. At any rate I'm giving it another week and then the rent-to-own ads are coming out.
Non-REI:
Still working out. I mentioned we are doing a sprint triathlon so I'm focused on swimming and biking at the moment. I can do .5 mile in the pool and am doing 45 minute spinning classes. Damn they are hard! I haven't really done any running b/c I hate running! I'll need to do it eventually. STILL no weight loss. I guess I'm going to have to look long and hard at my eating habits to actually lose weight. Oh well, still getting stronger I suppose!
I guess the beer/pizza over the weekend is a no-no?!? heehee
Keep making offers and something will happen. Hopefully something will pop soon and I'll have a May closing. I need to keeep on top of my goals - 10 properties this year. Right now I'm averaging 1/month.
On a more sour note, I'm still holding on to my last set of condos. I lowered the price b/c there is a lady out there who supposedly wants to buy both. She's been dragging her feet and I wanted to get her to move... still nothing. My absolute last resort is to rent-to-own these but I don't want to on these particular properties. I know I keep going back and forth on this but I just don't want these particular units, I'd rather sell at a loss. I do want to buy/hold at least 1 if not 2 properties this year (a new goal) but I want single families. At any rate I'm giving it another week and then the rent-to-own ads are coming out.
Non-REI:
Still working out. I mentioned we are doing a sprint triathlon so I'm focused on swimming and biking at the moment. I can do .5 mile in the pool and am doing 45 minute spinning classes. Damn they are hard! I haven't really done any running b/c I hate running! I'll need to do it eventually. STILL no weight loss. I guess I'm going to have to look long and hard at my eating habits to actually lose weight. Oh well, still getting stronger I suppose!
I guess the beer/pizza over the weekend is a no-no?!? heehee
Friday, April 3, 2009
Offer making fool
Only have a minute... I've been submitting a TON of offers this week. There have been a couple of counters but nothing to write home about. The best counter was $8k below asking. The property is across the street from a very sought after lake which is great! But of course it needs a ton of work, has no garage, no driveway and is really kind of hard to get to. Can't be easy can it?! My offer was $30k and I'm going to take a look and see what I'll really pay.
Still haven't started reading my RE licensing course. And still haven't called the local bank. What the hell is wrong with me?!? Well I know why I haven't been reading my REL books, I've been finishing up the Harry Potter series. Has anyone read that?! I was against it for YEARS and was finally talked into reading it and loved, loved, loved it. I read the last one last night. It was awesome. I recommend it to anyone. So now no more excuses.
One more thing, a potential buyer went through the HUD I am closing later this month. Haven't heard if he is interested in buying but boy howdy would that be great. We have not had one of those in a while.
Gotta run... everyone have a great weekend!!
Still haven't started reading my RE licensing course. And still haven't called the local bank. What the hell is wrong with me?!? Well I know why I haven't been reading my REL books, I've been finishing up the Harry Potter series. Has anyone read that?! I was against it for YEARS and was finally talked into reading it and loved, loved, loved it. I read the last one last night. It was awesome. I recommend it to anyone. So now no more excuses.
One more thing, a potential buyer went through the HUD I am closing later this month. Haven't heard if he is interested in buying but boy howdy would that be great. We have not had one of those in a while.
Gotta run... everyone have a great weekend!!
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