Finding a new Property Manager

There are two main and very obvious ways. Google and word of mouth.
Google can be very useful when finding information on property managers. I took 15-30 minutes per firm researching before I even called them.
-check out their Better Business Bureau rating and see if there are any logged complaints.
-do a search for reviews on the company. While this is all subject to reading another persons opinion, check for complaints stemming from the same problem.
-check out their website.   Some smaller companies may not have a website, I actually hold this against them. In this day in age, there is no excuse for a customer oriented company to not have a place for their client owner and tenants to gather information. Read all you can. Many of the questions you can ask are already listed. Many companies will go as far as putting their contracts online for you to read.
-Check rental listings and see who has the best approach in your area.

Word of mouth is by far the best way to find a good pm. While many have web pages, their SEO (search engine optimization) could use some help. Hence, you may not find them in a standard search.
-Ask your realtor
-Ask your local REI club
-Ask other landlords you know. Specifically those that have been around for awhile and have several properties.
-As your driving your target neighborhoods (you better be doing this at least weekly), look at the for rent signs and who the PM firm is.
-ask on forums you use. Meetup.com or biggerpockets.com as an example.

Honestly when your looking, you should be doing all these things. Remember your 100K + investments are at stake, are you really going forward on a whim?

Next post, I’ll talk about what you should be looking for in a manager.
Till then, I leave you with this quote “Any man worth his salt will stick up for what he believes right, but it takes a slightly better man to acknowledge instantly and without reservation that he is in error. ” Andrew Jackson

I got 1 other offer out and looked at 4 properties this week. Set to look at another personal home potential tomorrow. Feels good to be busy and actually accomplishing things.

Incidentally, I did not get the probate house. The seller got a last minute bidder that I assume was significantly higher then me or anyone else. Oh well. Least the seller got a better deal. That would have been a monster project for a newbie like myself. I would have eagerly tackled it, but I would be happier learning on a much less steep curve if the opportunity arises.

I talked about networking last post. It happened again. Not that networking ever stops, but I continue to be amazed at the number of people you run into when you simply open a conversation. Talk to Strangers. So I had a home depot rep over to give me an estimate on refacing my cabinets. I had no intention of using them now, but if the price was right I would down the road. Turns out there as expensive as Sears. 10k for my little 10×10 kitchen. I think not.

I gotta hand it to the sales rep though, he merely through out a number and recommended for me to not reface the cabinets. As we got to talking real estate, he started talking about his rentals and flips. Turns out he is a home inspector and only uses the home depot gig to supplement his income during slow times. His knowledge of homes in the area was excellent and he said many key things that led me to believe he does know what he is talking about. I may not have found a good deal for cabinets, but I may have found another inspector to utilize when need be. Always handy.

That’s all for now. Btw, go over to my buddy Scott’s blog Struggling Investor and congratulate him. He’s getting his first MLS offer out this week. He’s a big go getter and I would not be surprised to see him getting 3-5 offers out each week and taking some properties down soon.

I’ll leave you with this quote “Playing it safe is very risky.” Seth Godin, Purple Cow.

Over my Asiago Cheese bagel my broker and I had a great chat. We discussed purchasing properties like my first two rentals. Only this time, I’m in control of the transaction. Before my LTV was 80%. This resulted in higher mortgage payments. I also lost a property in the deal because lending guidelines changed over night. I have seen plenty of keepers for 70-75 cents on the dollar after repairs. My mortgage broker knows a bunch of folks doing hard money loans. All he needs to do is validate I can support a new mortgage and they will loan the money.

While I’m about 5k short on reserves for my next rental, that will hopefully be in the next 4-6 months. My current focus is rehabs to provide that money to roll into rentals. The current plan with the rehab money is to keep 2/3 in the business for taxes and growth. The final third will go toward investments with a very small amount (less then $500) coming out for fun. (my reward).

I have no intention of rehabbing 12-20 properties a year. 5-6 would be great. I would like to invest with more of my own money though. If I stay small, there is no reason why this would hinder my progress down the road.

First things first though, I need to get the rehabs done. I should be hearing back from the probate seller by middle of this week with yeah or nay. He has contacted me 5 times to discuss the deal. If I get the contract closed I try and give as many updates as possible. I’m planning on many long, but very exciting days ahead.

Sorry for the late night ramble, but I wanted to get the post out before I prepared the next offer. I leave you with this quote “The only way it gets better for you is when you get better. Better is not something you wish; it’s something you become.” Jim Rohn in Seven Strategies for Wealth and Happiness.

As with anything in life, it gets easier with repetition. So here is a way to get better at your nemesis. Start talking to random folks you run into during the day. Here’s how you open. Find a quality you like about them (hair, shirt, tone of voice, anything, make it genuine), then tell the person. Start with a question, and then let them chat. People love to talk about themselves. Give them an opportunity.

These opportunities are everywhere. In line at the fast food joint, at the bank, a new coworker, that relative who’s name evades you. Just start the conversation, and get them to talk. Compliments are my favorite way because they are unexpected and open folks up. Just remmeber to get them to do the talking and show genuine interest in what they want to talk about.

This will help you long term when talking to sellers and finding out their needs. It will help you learn how to open sellers up. It will also help you to overcome that fear of talking to people. Whats the harm in a little conversation while waiting for a Starbucks? Remember opportunities to grow happen all day everyday, don’t let them go to waste.

On another very positive note. I want to give a shout out to Josh Dorkin at Bigger Pockets. He has created the largest real estate forum on the web. Nearly 50k members. Not only is the largest, but it is hands down the best way to stay on top of the ever changing real estate market. The information freely given by its members far outweighs its weight in gold.

Recently Josh just put this blog on the top 20 real estate blog list. Its the who’s who of real estate bloggers. I was truly stunned at the mention. This is the Grammy of real estate blog recognitions. I’m am very honored and humbled to mentioned next to the likes of Shae at Good Faith Investing, Scott at Struggling Investor, Jason at 123Flip, Tom at Tom Tarrant, Rachel at Adventures in Mobile Homes, JP at REI Tips and many others. I can’t even compare to the quality of these blogs. I read them almost daily. You should too.

Again thanks for the honor and keep up the good work Josh.

I leave you with this quote “To believe in yourself and to follow your dreams, to have goals in life and a drive to succeed, and to surround yourself with the things and the people that make you happy – this is success!” Sasha Azevedo

I’m talking about that little book that you carry around with you everywhere you go. Its always within grasp and its a great companion towards success.

I know most of you have heard about it. Want to utilize it to the best of its abilities and yours? Here’s what you do.

Take that notebook everywhere you go (make sure you have someway to write). For you tech savvy type, use your blackberry, droid or Iphone. Anytime and every time you have a fleeting idea, write it down. Stop whatever you are doing and write it down. Did your idea come in the car? Get that little app that allows you to use your phone as a microphone. If that doesn’t work, get a microphone and record your thoughts while driving. The reason for all the effort? Your ideas are simply to good to trust to that sketchy thing we call memory.

How many of you have had a great idea and thought, I need to write that down later. Later you simply forget or don’t recall all the great details. By not stopping write there to write down that idea, you miss a great opportunity to encourage those other ideas to start flowing from were ever they come from. In the book “Think and Grow Rich”, by Napoleon Hill, he called it tapping into infinite intelligence. If you are on the line with infinite intelligence, why hang up the phone and try to start the conversation later? It simply may not happen again.

Use the little notebook and record your ideas. Since you always have it on you, that notebook can also be used for notes. Crazy, I know. Ever need to remember a phone number, name, place. Utilize it.

I strongly urge anyone using those idea catchers to go back and read through them again, perhaps even transfer them to a word document so you can group them. I know its time consuming, but the potential reward is limitless. Whatever you do, find a way to improve yourself every day. This is one way. Best of luck.

I have a newsflash for you, your absolutely wrong. How in the hell can you be expected to handle more money, and time when you can’t handle it now? Do you really think you can accomplish your goals when you don’t complete them now. Heck you probably don’t even have concise goals now.

“Ah, but if I were rich and wealthy I would have time to do what I want.”
“With more money, I would finally get caught up on my bills.”
Would you? I highly doubt it. Wanna know why?

You haven’t spent the energy to calibrate yourself now. Lets play some poker where money is involved. Lets say you tend to always fold to a bluff. At the $1/$2 table who cares. Pot sizes rarely exceed $50. You only lose a few bucks. You can always make more at your job. But you want to play with the big boys. You want to play at the $100/$200. That simple mistake you never corrected before can now cost you a $5000 pot. How bout them apples. Think that mistake is small now?

“No problem, I’ll just fix that mistake when I move up.”

Do you really want to think about such trivial things as balance and how to shift your motorcycle when your on the highway (or jumping cars for you extreme types). Hell no, you want that to all be natural, to almost be instinctual.

“What do I do then?”

Fix all the little things. Take a hard long look in the mirror. See all those item you need to fix. Be hard on yourself. Look for those things that need fixing. If you can’t manage money, then set your budget and stick to it. Start working down your debt. Make keeping a budget so natural it requires little thought or effort. Set exact goals and work everyday on completing them. Break the big goals in to little bit size goals and make it happen.

Budget your time. Learn to be more efficient with your tasks. For god sake turn off the latest idol, survivor, drudgereport, facebook, twitter, PS3, wii, fastlane forum (yes you read that right) timesink. Get your tasks done then reward yourself. Never ever put off anything till tomorrow. Make it a habit of finishing it now. Complete the task before it gets added to the bottom of that ever growing to do list. You will never get where you want by putting even the smallest thing off. Get it done. Look at all the successful folks out there. Don’t be the guy/gal that is working late because you had that 20 minute chat at the water cooler.

When money and life matter, make it count now. Fix yourself now, while the mistakes don’t cost you as much. That way when you move up in life, you don’t have to think about the trivial.

Look folks very few people learn to do this on their own. Some really good authors have put together some good material on this subject. If you need help, consult them. Napoleon Hill, Zig Zigler, Brian Tracy, Tony Robbins, etc etc etc. Now is the time to get yourself prepared. DO everything the right way now, when your put to the test later it will be much much easier to handle.

First he used a new pipe http://www.pexinfo.com/.  Its been around since the 60’s but has come into frequent use lately.  It’s a cheaper alternative to metal.  Plus it has a nice feature of expanding if it freezes.  This minimizes pipe burst.  Second, he has done work on the rentals for me $900 last week for several items.  I simply told him I could not afford his original quote.  This is a true fact.  I will be scraping by the next few weeks as a prepare to do the windows as well.  Finally, besides the new washer, all my water connections are within 5 feet of each other within the house.  Shower, sink, kitchen sink and toilet.  Remember this is only a 3/1 house.  I think $1800 is still a good deal, but still reasonable.

I should not, one thing I love about PEX.  Its color coordinated.  Red lines are hot and blue lines are cold.  Brilliant design addition.  When I’m in the dreaded crawl space trying to fix a problem, I want to know right away which water source to turn off or repair.

The house now done, I have enough water pressure all over the house to provide for my needs.  The difference is amazing.  I’m very glad I went down this route.  One added benefit of the water pressure, it will allow me to put in a sprinkler system come spring.  I think this repipe will help the resale value of the house tremendously.  I’m very happy with the results so far.

My next update will likely discuss my new windows or my ventures into wholesaling.  Till then.

On a regularly scheduled interval.  Say once a week, you meet up either in person or via phone conference like we do.  The group then goes into a brainstorming, motivational, goal setting, problem solving, life enriching session.  Each group functions differently based on group needs.  Our group goes over the accomplishments from the previous week, goals for the following week and discusses problems anyone has and potential solutions.  Then one universal rule for nearly all masterminds, its confidential.  You have a group of trusted folks that you can really share your ideas, goals, and setbacks with.

We usually accomplish what we need to in about an hour.  We record meeting minutes in our private forum.  Each person posts their goals for the week and if they complete them or not.  Believe me, peer pressure is a great thing in this setting.  I find myself very motivated to work on goals when I have stated them to the group.  We also have a section to discuss any challenges each member faces.  Other group members suggest solutions.

Its hard to describe how amazing this type of thing can be, but each member of our 9 person group is focused more and they accomplish more.  I strongly suggest looking into a mastermind group to help you achieve your goals in life.  Gather together 6-7 other motivated folks who concentrate on solving problems rather then dwelling on them.  Meet at a scheduled time, work out needs of the group and see where it takes you.  So far its been an incredible experience for me.  By the way, not everyone has to be in the same industry.  In fact, we found that our very dynamic group backgrounds has helped us think outside the box much more then if we were all in the same industry.  It has also got us to at least understand a bit more of the life of someone doing something we may know little about.  If your looking for more info, I suggest you login The Fastlane to Millions forum and see what other folks are saying about it.

Networking is how you find the folks to get started, how you find the members of your team, how you find deals and sell deals.

Let me give you a scenario that just happened to me about 30 minutes ago.   I get home and notice that the abandoned property to the north of me has a truck parked out front and the front door of the house is wide open.  So I wait.  Note: never, ever go into a place where someone could be waiting for you. I already had the license plate jotted down just in case.  Eventually a gentleman comes out.  I introduce myself and inquire about his presence here in a very casual tone.  I don’t want to put folks on the defensive when I first talk to them.  It makes it very hard to get extra facts later you may need. It turns out this gentleman secures and eventually cleans out properties for the bank. I now know someone who knows the condition of property before it goes to the auction block.  I let him know a few more details about what I am trying to do.  I got his business card and I let him know that I will pay a finders fee for properties that he can bring my way.  I just made a new contact.  That simple.

This may not pan out, but it could turn into a very good way to pick up properties.  He may throw me a 50k deal, you just never know.  Never waste an opportunity to network with folks.  You may not see them again for months or even years, but they could be the key to your future success.

Just make some contacts.  Contacts are how I met my first investors, how I bought this house, how I bought my first rentals.  Thank god for the gift of gab my folks gave me.  If your the shy type, I strongly urge you to find any way you can to break out of your shell.   Effectively meeting folks is one hell of a tool to have.

My sister gave me a contact of someone to call and get the system installed.  I called and the sales rep came over within about 45 minutes.  I was actually pretty impressed with that part.  She sold me the system.  $400.  I really didn’t think twice about it.  I thought I had and ADT discount since I had looked about their prices online recently.  An hour after I signed the contract a gentleman walked by stating that they were offering free systems to new customers.  He was wearing an ADT t-shirt, had all the right paperwork, etc etc.  Thinking this was another ADT rep, I gave him my name and number to call back.

Turns out they were both security system brokerage firms.  The second company stated I had 72 hours to back out of my contract with the first company and still sign up with them.  Here’s the catch, they asked my not to tell the other firm why.  Well that perked my interest.  I guess one authorized dealer is not allowed to steal customers from another dealer.  Red flag number one.  The 2nd red flag came when they claimed to be giving me an $1800 system free.  I inquired what was in the system.  Same components that were in the system I already purchased.  Come to find out as well, they tack on hidden fees and I would only be saving around $200 if I went their route.  Red Flag number three.  Three strikes your out.

I decided to go with the first company.  Yes, it probably cost slightly more, but they were honest with me, had a good reputation of follow up customer service, and were very prompt.  They get my service hands down.  If track records with shady companies have told me anything, the 2nd company would have cost me far more in headaches and low customer service.  No thank you.

So lesson learned, security companies sell their products through brokers.  Shop around before you buy and evaluate their service.  Sad part on this one, it wasn’t till after this whole hiccup that I remembered someone telling me this months ago.  Dang CRS strikes again.  Some lessons just have to be learned the hard way I guess.  I won’t make this mistake again though.  Another note to others.  When you move, your security system can go with you.  They will move the system.  Just make sure you don’t advertise security system with your house.  That is unless it will help sell the house and it would be cheaper to buy a new system.  Food for thought.  Good luck.