Naked Lady Real Estate, The Bare Truth About Real Estate Investing

No Toilet? Can't sell a House Like This

Well - I am experiencing what seems to be a "normal" situation for rehabbers.  About 1 1/2 weeks ago my sub disappeared - right after I paid him $1000 cash.  He's been there on the job for a month straight, yes perhaps he works a little slow, nonetheless, he was dependable, and seemed to be loyal.  Now with only 5% of the job left to do - he walks....  what in the...?  Now my house sits "almost done", I need the new toilet and sink to be installed in the bathroom, along with base boards.  Door knobs through out the house, face plates, knobs on the kitchen counters, blinds on the windows and finally the subs junk needs to be gone out of the house!  That's all - perhaps a 1-2 days work!  As for the outside - we still need sprinklers and grass.  But only for an area of about 500 sf. 

I think I might be going up there myself this weekend to finish the work - does anyone want to come and help?

The Subs Ladders and junk!

No toliet and sink...can't sell a house like this...

NAR the Voice of Real Estate?

I just read this very interesting article that I got off http://piggington.com/ and excellent blog for So.Cal Bubble News.

It totally confirms what I have been ranting and raving about.  The Realtor world is vastly different than the investor world and for many months now (really - since the beginning of time), I have just been livid over the ridiculous advertisements that I see from CAR and NAR in the papers.  Full page ads that promote "It's great time to buy a home" and "the market is going to go up - so hurry and buy now" propaganda!  I say that if CAR and NAR did not promote this bull that many sellers that are still sitting on their homes after almost a year of being on the market would have sold - earlier in the year.  I know in my neighborhood it is true.  There are people in Woodland Hills who are asking more for their house now than they paid for it 2 years ago!  9 months later... still no sale.  It's a shame....

Piggington.com posts:

"If you thought that there was nothing else that the NAR could do to discredit themselves further, you were wrong"

http://efinancedirectory.com/articles/NAR_Admits_to_Initiating_Bush%27s_...

How can I be learning the hard way?

I wonder how it is possible that someone in my "position" can be learning how to flip a house the hard way?  We are down to the wire on my first flip and it is killing me.  A couple of my lessons are:

#1  No money, no credit buying.  This means none of your own money or credit.  It doesn't mean you will not need any money silly.  (Note to both Diane and Rosie:) If you don't have your own money then for christ sake make sure whoever you bring in to partner with you has plenty of it.  Or that you have a nice list of Private money folks who are just waiting to shower you with money to fund your deals. 

#2  Please oh please, remodel the front of your house FIRST!!!  This is not brain surgery here.  If you want to market your home from the get go - it better look good...OhKay?  A picture of a junky 'ol house in the paper isn't going to generate leads dodo head.

#3  Don't paint your house popcicle green and then "improve it" by painting it snikers brown.  Well - at least everyone says they like it....

#4  In this market 60-55% below market minus repairs.....  no more than that if you want to sleep at night.

But all in all - it's been a great learning experience.  I know that the "best" lessons learned are the hard ones.... blah blah blah.

Now we have to get rid of this puppy fast; My exit strategy is to flip it, but we decided that plan B back up exit is to refinanc it and stick it into a PAC Trust for a year with a "rent to own" type situation.  NO Bank Qualifying, etc....

Can't swing a dead cat around....

Without hitting another "deal"....  We're starting to get flooded...

Boy that is the word from the some of investors I've been talking to - including myself.  As you see from my last post, there are many deals to be had.  Now the trick is evaluating them and making sure they ARE deals. 

I was talking to Phyllis (for those who don't know her, she is my boss and the owner of the Real Estate Investors Club of LA that I manage), and we were going over all the various ways to potentially get rid of these properties.  It's funny because even the "deals" are not seeming to be so once you consider our ideal exit strategy - which is to sell it.  Because it boils down to "who the heck can buy it".  Even A paper is finding it tough.  For no other reason than who is interested in paying those rates?  Everyone is at a stand still.  Or as we call it "the Mexican stand off".   And even if you could sell it to a qualified buyer - how long will it take to find that buyer? 6 months?  Yeah right.  9 months?  Hold on I think we're into 12-14 months in many areas....  Yikes ola.  I don't think I want to carry those costs - especially if there is any hard money attached.  Forget it buddy.

OK so now - I have been learning about putting properties into a Title-Holding Land Trust, from Bill Gatten’s NARS, Inc. His way of “doing the deals that no one wants” is to take the properties over "subject to" and do a triple net lease (rent to own on steroids) with a new tenant and simply hold the property for 5-7 years.  This is it in a nut shell.  Believe me - it's a nut shell because so much more is involved and the benefits are extraordinary for all parties.  Sellers get to get out of their over encumbered houses or no equity homes.  How are they going to sell in this market and with no equity? 

Now we can do something with these properties that many investors are not willing to touch - unless they can do a short sale.  What if the property is not in Default (yet), but the owner just wants to get rid of it before he goes into NOD or Foreclosure but has no equity or is over encumbered.  Then what?  We tell that poor bastard to call us when he is behind in payments AND THEN we’ll help.   Phooey on that.

Take the property over in a Title Holding Trust, and then “rent” to future buyer.  Give them 5-7 years to cash out (once the market goes back up and they fix their credit). It truly is like “rent to own” or “lease option”, but on Steroids!!

It’s a no brainer!!  Piece of cake.  Done deal…  

Well not a No Brainer… you have to have some brains or this would just be too hard to learn…..  or if you’re like me – I say : Thank God we have Bret over there at NARS who will walk us through, step by step, on our first 10 or 50 deals J 

PACrat Group scheduling

First of all, I am realizing that as I get busier with real estate investing, meaning the more leads I get and have to negotiate, the more that I have to get organized.  I have the online system MyRealtyData that helps me a lot for "normal" leads, however I am discovering that the LandTrust leads that I am working on are a whole nother (is that a word?) ball of wax.  There are the calls I am making, calls that are coming in, different seller information forms than the "norm".  Scheduling of phone calls with Brett, etc, etc. Ey Curumba... I need some serious help here. 

I think it's time for me to talk to Michael at MyRealtyData and ask them to add some more bells and whistles so that I - and we - can fully use MyRealtydata with all our leads and deals.....  Michael if you're reading this - don't hide when you see my number come up on your cell phone...

After all, It's good for everyone if all the Guru's systems work together.  Because if we're happy you're happy, yes? ("We" - meaning your fan base :)

One more thing: I am getting ready to schedule the next PACRat Group for those who are using the PACtrust and NEHTtrust system for buying their properties. (And even those who are not yet.)

I really havent figured out the best "venue" for all us investors to be able to network and share information without doing some sort of Myspace or Yahoo Group. They dont quite fit the mustard. Or is it meet the mustard?...cut the mold?... Got it! Cut the mustard. (You knew what I meant!)

Anyway - I am trying to find the perfect online venue to create a great networking environment but havent found "the one".  I have been looking into different Social Networking sites however we need more than what they offer, as far as I can tell.  If anyone has some good ideas, please bring it on!

In the meantime, I will continue to send emails to everyone as well as post information here on my blog regarding upcoming events. 

Bill Gatten Event this weekend

A very important Bill Gatten weekend seminar is coming again this weekend

http://www.landtrust.net/listings/mods.php?mod=Calendar

Click the link above for more information.  It is important for all you PacRats and anyone else needing to become fluent in learning how to buy properties, with keeping the loan in the sellers name legally and then do a rent "to own" on steroids for the next 5-7 years until the market bounces back.

I will be there on Saturday late.

See you there!

No Labor Labor Day

Well I've only taken 3 days "off" from working so that I can go to Minneapolis to be with my best friend for her 40th birthday (see pictures below).  Even though I had a gale 'ol time, I am glad to be home getting back on track with work.  I know that sounds a little Loco in la cavesa, but it is true.  I am in the trenches of getting a lot accomplished in my real estate business and I am having a lot more fun doing my business right now then hanging out partying... (hey it had to happen some time!)

I will say there are several pending realizations that I have on my mind and how this journey unfolds over the next couple of months will be interesting.  One thing is for certain, if you are not doing what you love and living a relatively peaceful and joyous life, then what the hell?  I'm not interested in being around situations that cause unneccessary melodrama.  It seems I have some changes a brewing.... 

It's all so exciting to not know exactly where I am headed - but just knowing I am going is good enough for me.  It's all good.

Here are a few photo's from my trip to "Minnasowda".... 

Partying at The Dell - to see The Kurt Jorgensen Band - which is The Best Band around.  #1 Fan.

Saturday, Sep 1st 2007, Kim's 40th birthday.  We spent the day on Lake Minnatonka!  What a gorgeous place...

ey..matie!

All's well that ends well....