Chattanooga REIA Blog

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This is probably the biggest tip I tell wholesalers all the time.  When you are interested in a property, make the offer!  That’s it!

It’s such a simple tip.  See property, have interest in it.  Make an offer.  Yet for reasons continually inexplicable to me, too many investors simply don’t make the offer!

I recently sold a deal that I got seven offers on within 24 hours.  The irony is I had it at a higher price in purpose for a test I was running and no one offered on it.  When I lowered the price, all of sudden everyone was interested.  When I sold it, several of the others said ‘that was a good deal!’  To which my response was, ‘it was but you could have had it sooner had you just made the offer.’  The look on their face was shocking as if to say ‘you mean we can offer a bit less than the asking price?’

Let’s clear this up right now…  Read More >>

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Sure, there are reasons – good reasons – to not own rental property: tenants, vacancies and repairs, to name three.  But have you ever spent time thinking why owning investment real estate might be a good idea?

Last year, my father-in-law was rushed to the hospital with what doctors thought was a massive stroke.  When the ambulance arrived, he was taken directly to ICU where a ventilator was inserted, and to prevent further injury, he was given medicine to induce a coma.

Kim and I had to live at the hospital for several weeks.  Gotta tell you, an ICU’s waiting room is full of interesting life lessons. Read More >>

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Not finding quite everything you need in QuickBooks Online? Here are some handy add-on apps available.

QuickBooks Online may work for you just fine as is. After all, it was designed to meet the needs of the millions of small businesses that want to manage and track their income and expenses, create records and transactions, and run reports to gauge their financial health.

QuickBooks Online was also designed to grow along with your business. But there’s no need for Intuit to add internal features to do so. In fact, that would make it too expensive and unwieldy for many companies.

Instead, Intuit has partnered with other small business websites to provide add-ons—applications that extend the usefulness of QuickBooks Online in one or more areas, like accounts receivable and payable, inventory, and expense-tracking. They integrate easily to share data and do the extra work you need. Here are some of them to consider.  Read More >>

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If you ask my investors, private lenders, contractors, buyers, sellers, friends etc. to describe me, which I did, they will all tell you that I am easy to work with, a nice guy, dependable, hardworking and focused/ determined. These were the most common replies. To be honest I was a bit surprised. I expected the hardworking, dependable and focused, I was happy to hear nice guy but easy to work with was not on my radar.

Easy to work with was not something I would have used to describe myself so I decided to investigate. When I partner with other investors and/or private lenders I try to include in the agreement that I will be the final decision maker when it comes to renovations. Obviously, this does not always happen but I try. I do not do this to be controlling. I like it this way because everyone gives their opinions to me or the assigned person and that person makes a decision and executes. This keeps the project moving along smoothly. I’m also the person who actually reads through agreements and lender documents so if there is something that does not add up I make sure it is corrected and/or honored. There have been many instances where I have called the private lender to correct the documents his/her attorney sent that contained terms that were not agreed upon. I would have thought they would have said I was picky or a difficult partner or borrower but it was quite the contrary. They appreciated the fact that I was detailed and understood that I was simply making sure I got what was agreed. One person said that this actually made them even more comfortable with lending me money.  Read More >>

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Let me ask you a question… Are you properly managing your prospects? Are you taking the time to follow up with the sellers who didn’t initially accept your offers, or the sellers you still need to make offers to? Did you know that you are leaving thousands of dollars in potential income behind if you aren’t following up with sellers? One of the easiest ways to make a fortune in the real estate business and gain the advantage over your competition is to take the time to follow up with motivated and semi-motivated sellers. You’ve already got the seller in your pipeline, you’ve already done the marketing and spent the money to find this person, and now all you need to do is to follow up with them until they either sell you their property or tell you to go away. How much simpler could it be?

There are two types of sellers we are going to follow up with, those we’ve already made offers to who haven’t accepted our offer and those who have not made any decision after our initial contact with them. Quite often, you will need to make multiple contacts with sellers before their situation changes and dictates that they sell their property to you. When you stay in touch with these sellers, you build credibility with them. When it comes time to sell their home they will contact you first, even if they have been contacted by someone else in the meantime.  Read More >>

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Decade after decade, it seems like real estate keeps coming through. While any asset class can have a down year – or even several down years in a row, as the real estate investment community saw between 2008 and 2010 – real estate remains a proven long term wealth generator year after year, decade after decade, and generation after generation.

That’s what makes real estate an ideal investment for your retirement portfolio – and even in a special kind of IRA, called a self-directed IRA.

Some people still believe the myth that IRAs don’t allow you to own real estate. This is because Wall Street companies that only sell stocks, bonds, funds, annuities and other kinds of paper assets. They aren’t compensated to sell real estate, and so they don’t pitch it, other than to sell real estate investment trusts, or REITs, which are still securities, rather than direct real estate assets themselves.

But it is very easy for you to own real estate assets of all kinds within a self-directed IRA – even direct ownership of rental properties.  Read More >>

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The Residential Market in Atlanta is HOT! This is evidenced by the rapid quantity of homes that are flying off the market in a matter of days, providing they are in proper condition and priced correctly. A Seller's Market occurs when the number of properties available for sale divided by average monthly sales to calculate how long it would take to sell the current inventory if no other properties were listed – when that number equals 6 months or less, a Seller's Market exists. Our metro Atlanta market became a Seller's Market during 2012 resulting in several changes benefitting sellers, as illustrated here using the peak of the Buyer's Market compared to where we were in 4Q 2016.  Read More >>

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“Blah, blah, blah!”

That’s what we hear when most people talk. And sometimes that’s what other people hear when WE talk, too.

Have you ever noticed that most people think of what they’re going to say, rather than listen to the person who is talking? But when it comes to negotiating, that can be a HUGE mistake! Here’s why...

Let’s say you’re talking to a seller about their house, and when you ask them to describe their situation, they just seem to go on & on about how wonderful the house is, the gossip about the neighbor, how their health is failing, etc.

A lot of people will be thinking how boring or irrelevant that is, and just want to get to the numbers, or instead - talk about themselves. Am I right??

But if you do that, you might just miss out on a very important detail you need when it's time to negotiate a decent deal with them.  Read More >>

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I have heard it 100 times over…

That wholesaler, fill in the name, totally ripped me off.  False rehab costs, false appraisals, false inspection reports, false ARV…and on and on.

Last month we talked about experienced wholesalers.  This month, let’s flip it over to the new Buyers.  They are new, excited and hungry.  And they are prime targets to get taken advantage of by some wholesalers.  Unfortunate as it is, there are wholesalers that are less than credible.  I have seen quite a bit of less than ideal advertisements.  Some examples:  Read More >>

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One of the Questions I am frequently asked by students wanting to implement a direct mail campaign is where to get the lists of sellers to mail to. While there are several resources available, I find they vary greatly in price and in quality of the lists. It is important for you to find a good, reliable source for your lists. When doing direct mail campaigns, their success is going to be based 70% on the list and 30% on the direct mail piece you are using to contact these motivated sellers.

There are a couple of resources for lists that I find to be especially reasonable in price and the quality of the lists is excellent for your use. One of those resources is very easy to find and simple to use use. Just go to your property appraiser, auditor, or assessors’ office and ask them to put the lists together for you. You will need to target specific types of sellers you want to do deals with. If your county is online preparing this list is usually pretty simple for them to do. I will suggest to you that you go down to their office and ask them for their help in person to customize these lists for you. If you just call them, you may get “blown off” by someone who doesn’t want to do the extra work, or you may get someone on the phone who doesn’t understand what it is that you need. I know all of this from personal experience with counties I have worked with. In addition, if you live in a particularly large county, they have plat maps you can look at to subdivide your lists by specific areas you want to mail to. This is just another way for you to hone in on the area and type of seller you want to work with.  Read More >>

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People from all over the world have a common trait. No matter what the product, the word SALE always draws our attention.

When it comes to real estate, that same line of thinking stands.  The phrase "you make money when you buy, you realize that money when you sell" continues to ring true. The challenge is being able to spot that awesome deal amongst many poor or inadequate deals.  I cannot stress enough proper real estate investing education should be your goal. Using REIA comps to analyze every new deal you do is the avenue that will help you make such a distinction.

There are many people venturing out and searching for additional ways to make additional income.   Investing requires knowledge of different techniques which can be used when trying to buy, sell, negotiate or repair a house.  Having proper investing education to stand on can mean the difference between success and failure.  Read More >>

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After beefing up its film incentive program in 2008, Georgia has emerged among the top places in the world for film production.  In less than a decade, Georgia has quickly become the “Hollywood of the South” with more movies and TV shows filming in the Peach state than most places around the world. A recent study has put Georgia as the third largest film industry in the world only behind the United Kingdom. However, with the recent BREXIT issues, Georgia’s film industry is expected to exponentially grow and possibly become the number #1 filmmaking location in the world.

For those that don’t know, Georgia gives film, television and digital entertainment a tax credit of up to 30 percent. Georgia’s Entertainment Industry Investment Act provides a 20 percent tax credit for companies that spend $500,000 or more on production and post-production in Georgia, either in a single production or on multiple projects with no caps on amount spent. Then, the state grants an additional 10 percent tax credit if the finished project includes a promotional logo provided by the state. If a company has little or no Georgia tax liability, it can transfer or sell its tax credits as well. These credits create significant cost savings for the production companies producing feature films, television series, music videos and commercials, as well as interactive games and animation.  Read More >>

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This year will be different.  Has it happened?  Has the flame gone out? Is the passion gone away? Have you followed through?  One way that I keep the passion alive, is to have access to more money than I can use to produce great investments. Raising capital is not very hard. Getting over the psychological parts of making “the ask” seems to be the difficult part for most people. I have been approached over the past year by a number of people who want me to fund their projects. I can get excited about this because I can see they have a project which will work and make us a lot of money. 

I was at a networking event recently. There where people in the room who wanted to invest in real estate projects and earn a great rate of return. There were people who did not have a clue as to what lending is all about, that there are multiple alternative investments, other than the traditional ways Wall Street gets your money. There were individuals who were reluctant to dip their toes into the pool of lending to investors. There were people there who had projects, which they wanted to get funded. So the environment was ripe for synergy to happen.  Read More >>

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“If time be of all things the most precious, wasting time must be the greatest prodigality.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

I didn’t think Timyo was going to be a game changer for me. I already felt like I had great management tools using Gmail in the first place. A friend recommended that I check out this new app so I tinkered with it for a while. It is an email inbox management system that works best with Gmail, Office 365, Outlook.com and Hotmail. I have tried other inbox zero apps but I’ve felt like it’s a waste of time for me to go through all my emails weeding out the junk. I have used Gmail options before but it still seemed like I was getting a lot of emails that were not a priority first. My time is valuable since I’m running multiple projects, what I focus on needs to be what moves me along to the next step in line.  Read More >>

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Having met with numerous new investors and/or wholesalers, I am always asked, “How do I get more properties? Where can I find more deals? What kind of marketing do you do to get leads?” The questions continue with the same idea in mind. I understand that you are eager to start and begin marketing in order to get your first deal done, but are you truly ready? In most cases I would say, NO.

Marketing is not cheap and you may be throwing away money if you do not have a good foundation in sales, or better yet problem solving. Over the years, I have made more money solving problems than “selling” a person on selling me their property. In fact, I am rarely the highest bidder. I attribute this to being able to come up with the best solution to the seller’s problems. Most would assume that the property for sale is the problem but many times that is only the start. Usually a person is selling a property to get rid of a headache and/or to realize a profit in order to solve another lingering problem. Problems can be as small as not being able to repair the property to as big as being behind a year or more on mortgage payments. Let me give some examples to demonstrate what it is I am referring to.  Read More >>

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I am writing this article because I mentor so many people who desire to become successful in real estate; however, their life gets in the way of educating themselves.  Making offers on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is a great way to find Sellers, yet, when you submit an offer to the Seller, the Realtor really doesn’t know the answers to the following questions.  Is there a mortgage on the property?  Are the Sellers in foreclosure (unless it is a short sale)?  Is it a probate matter and how many heirs are in the estate?  What permits have been pulled for the property and what dates were items like the roof or A/C installed (this information is sometimes provided in a Sellers Disclosure)?

After talking with a Seller and/or finding a Vacant Home, the research you do is a vital part of your business success.  I provide students with over 43 ways to find motivated sellers without using the MLS.  Knowing in-depth information about the Seller’s situation, ownership and mortgage balance allows me to negotiate and close more deals than just listening to what a Seller has told me.  In fact, Sellers normally tell you what they want and not what they NEED.  In order to make a deal work for all parties, we need to find out what they NEED, not what they want, then see how/if we can create a win-win situation.  Read More >>

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Are your property taxes too high?  If they are, in the past three years, how often have you attended your county commissioners’ meetings to voice your outrage? 

My mother taught me early on that silence is a form of acceptance.  Most times at these county commissioners’ meetings the silence was deafening!

If your property taxes are too high and if you don’t speak out at the public government hearings, then you lose your right to complain.  Instead, just step up to the window and pay the nice lady what you owe without one complaint!

Since 2006, Kim and I have fought our property taxes 142 times.  We’ve won 122 times – that’s an 86% success rate.  I don’t say this to brag; I say this to let you know that you can fight your property taxes and win!  Just know that it’s a learned thing, not a born-knowing-how-to-do-it thing, and it begins with standing up and speaking out!  Read More >>

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2017 is here. Now’s the time to do your end-of-year QuickBooks tasks.

Since early January of this year, you’ve been faithfully creating new records, entering transactions, and recording payments. You’ve run basic reports. You’ve done your collection duties. You may have paid employees and submitted payroll taxes.

Now the end of the year is rapidly approaching. In the midst of holiday get-togethers, gift shopping, and perhaps preparing for travel, you probably have a list of work tasks that must be completed by December 31.

Is your annual QuickBooks wrap-up on that list? It should be. Here are some of the things we suggest you fit into your busy schedule sometime this month.  Read More >>

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The recent series of wildfires here in our own Smokey Mountain region of North Carolina and Tennessee has been devastating. The fires around Gatlinburg, Tennessee late last month resulted in at least 2,460 structures that were damaged or destroyed, and the death toll has reached at least seven.

Lots of people have lost their homes and businesses – and surely many of them were uninsured for wildfire damage, or will find that they were woefully underinsured.

The real estate investment community, including real estate IRA owners, can and should be active in this environment. By offering a fair price for fire damaged properties that we have the capital to repair and resell or rent, investors will be vital players in helping a traumatized community get back on its feet and rebuild.  Read More >>

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Quick question for you: Are you talented? Or do you have skills? THAT is the question of the day.

And before you answer that, let me define what they each mean, because it’s vitally important to know the difference between the two. :)

Then after we define the difference, we’re going to help you leverage one in order to maximize the other so that you’ll be able to get whatever you want with minimal effort.  Sound good? Let’s get started...

What is TALENT? Simply put, it’s what you’re born with. Your God-given gifts. Your natural tools. For example, the ability to run really fast or sing extremely well. Other examples would include being mathematically-inclined, naturally charismatic, graceful & coordinated, or naturally artistic.  Read More >>

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