Posted by Newbe on October 18, 2003 at 07:06:32:
Thx a lot for your advice. Im tired of selling thses deal to ppl. I just want some passive income of my own and was searching for a way to aquire the property for my self. I ve left a number on there answering machine an i mailed a letter. I will keep you informed on the matter. Thx again for your help.
Creative investing? - Posted by Newbe
Posted by Newbe on October 17, 2003 at 10:17:09:
I saw a 4 unit multi family empty not boarded up. the owner is paying taxes $1,731.92. Paid up. has been empty for years in good neighboor hood and the market value is
$ 84,000. My question is… IS there a way to contact the owner ( I have the number ) and make and offer based on future progress like i know i can get tenants in the building? I dont have money for a land contract so i want to get the property and make a deal with them to make payments. I know the price can be droped considering the long term vacancy and taxes being paid. Can some one direct me in the best way if one at all to persue this investment?
Re: Creative investing? - Posted by Julia (NJ)
Posted by Julia (NJ) on October 17, 2003 at 12:16:44:
Newbe-
I am just curious- where is the property located (just city- you don’t have to get too specific). It seems very odd that someone would have 4 units in good shape just sitting empty at all, much less for several years?
Re: Creative investing? - Posted by js-Indianapolis
Posted by js-Indianapolis on October 17, 2003 at 10:46:31:
If you could provide more info, someone might be able to provide a little better plan of action. First off, you said, “the owner is paying taxes $1,731.92. Paid up.” You sure the OWNER paid them? When there is a foreclosure around here, the very first thing the bank does is pay all back taxes, as they are a senior lien. Or, perhaps the taxes were sold at a tax sale, and now show paid via court records, but have really become another lien against the property. You can dig around your courthouse to find out what might be the case. However, that’s not step one.
Now, as far as your ideas for somehow getting a contingent contract on this place, let’s back up. You’re WAY, WAY, AWAY from finding tenants. How might you go about getting this place in order, up to code, advertised, etc, etc, and getting tenants without any money? Sure, hard money might be an option, but that isn’t going to be a solution with any contingency on finding tenants.
A better idea is to get this one under contract via an assignable purchase and sale agreement (with proper cancellation clauses), or a straight option. Then, you can either flip it to another investor, which I think would be your smartest move being that you say you are “Newbe”. Least risk, quickest way to payday.
Now, back to step one on this. You’ve got the number, give the owner a call. What to say? I’m going to share with you a amazing and powerful script, that I learned from Joe Kaiser, many moons ago. Joe, I hope you don’t get mad at me for sharing this ultra top secret script. Here it is:
“Hi, I came across your place at 123 Main ST. What’s going on with it?”
As much as I?m being sarcastic, that is the way to start. I used to learn every little detail about a property I had found, before contacting the owner. Guess what? Over half the time the owner shoots you down, immediately, OR, you find out you can?t find the owner at all. You THINK you have his number, but that may be the wrong person, disconnected, his father or son with the same name, or he’s dead, etc, etc, etc. All sorts of things MIGHT be. You may find out he just sold it last week, and it?s not for sale. OR, he may say, ?Heck yeah I want this thing gone!!!? or all things in between.
In that latter situation, just get as much detail as possible, and talk as little as possible. Really, if you don?t know how to structure an offer just yet, it?s no problem. If he asks what you can do, just tell him you?ll have to check the numbers on the place, and consult with the boss, and get back to him. Then, come back here, and figure out how to structure the thing. If it?s a deal, there will be NO shortage of free advice here, and most likely an investor in your local area willing to pay you cash for the deal.
Man, am I long winded. What I was wanting to say, to sum this up, is call the owner, say “what’s up?” and then figure it out. It’s really not as complicated as my rambling.
Best of luck, tell us what you can come up with.