Category Archives: Misc. Real Estate

August 5, 2008 · 10:10 am

Bad Guy Update

A few days ago I wrote about a crooked real estate investor that operates here in the Kansas City area. Upon futher research and confirmation I did find that he holds a real estate license and holds it with a different franchise of the same company I work for! Well, this simply won’t do.

I’m happy to say that this person will no longer have his license with Keller Williams Realty effective Friday. Why Friday? I’m not sure. But I have been assured that he’s gone. Good. One less yahoo out there causing problems.

And I heard from Ben Edsall over at Turn-Key properties that this crooked real estate investor stuck a bank he works for with over 100 properties. 100! One hundred! Uno hundred! Can you imagine?

And still two different sources have assured me the FBI is investigating the dude. I don’t take joy in the misery of others. But this guy deserves all he’s gonna get.

When you are looking to invest in real estate you better check out who you are going into business with. Anything less than 100% transparency should be huge waving red flag.

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Filed under Legal Issues, Misc. Real Estate

August 2, 2008 · 6:36 pm

Rehab & Rent Workshop Announcement

There will be a Rehab & Rent Workshop put on by Chris Lengquist of Keller Williams Realty in Olathe on Saturday August 23, 2008 at 9:00 am and ending about noon. Space is limited so you must register to attend this workshop designed to teach you the numbers and philosophy of buying a home under market, rehabbing it to rental standards and then renting the home for cash flow. The location will be at Keller Williams Realty Olathe located at 801 N MurLen Rd, Olathe, KS.

Guest speaker Ryan Dusenberry will also be in attendance to share his own personal experiences with this technique that has allowed him to build his investment property portfolio to 9 properties…and he’s still in his mid-twenties. And of course Chris Lengquist will be there to teach the fundamentals of how to evaluate these properties to choose between the winners and the losers.

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Have you ever wanted to own rental property in the Kansas City area?
Have you ever wanted to rehab a house for the profit?
Have you ever been frustrated with the available inventory of rental property and rehab property?
Have you ever wanted to know how to evaluate rental property before you buy?
Have you ever wanted to hear from someone actually doing it?
Have you ever wanted to hear from a lender on the subject of rehabbing and renting?

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There is no charge for this Rehab & Rent Workshop. But you must register. Simply click on the register highlights and fill out the form and indicate that you are registering for this workshop. There will be no books to buy, no seminars to sign up for at outrageous fees and no tapes proclaiming any get rich quick schemes.

This is a hands on workshop so feel free to bring a calculator, pencil and paper. Bring your questions and a good attitude.

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What if you could buy a home or duplex that was for sale significantly under market? Maybe not enough under market to flip the house but enough to rehab and then rent. You’d have great cash flow and a fair amount of equity just sitting in the property waiting for your next move later down the line.

More of this strategy will be discussed in detail at the Rehab & Rent Workshop. Register now.

8 Comments

Filed under Investment Property, Misc. Real Estate, Real Estate Investing

July 31, 2008 · 7:54 am

Are You A Straw Buyer?

Are you a straw buyer? If you are you are helping to perpetuate loan fraud. Sure signs you may be a straw buyer;

You are approached to help someone else buy a house for investment purposes
You are told you’ll have to do nothing but take out the mortgage in your name
You will be paid several thousand dollars upon a successful closing
You will share in the backside rewards of appreciation once the house is sold

On the surface, none of the items listed above is illegal. In fact, all can be done individually or grouped together in very legal fashion. But many, many times it’s a wide-open door for you to be defrauded.

Listen, YOU have to do YOUR due diligence. No one can do it for you save a very TRUSTED and TESTED source. Most straw buyers have never seen the houses they helped to purchase. That should be a warning sign right there.

Read more about straw buyers here and here. Then check with legal counsel before you do anything similar. Again, this can all be done on the up and up. But usually, it seems, it’s not.

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Filed under Legal Issues, Misc. Real Estate

July 24, 2008 · 8:16 am

First Time Home Buyers In Kansas City

Attention first time home buyers in Kansas City. And yes, that includes Overland Park, Olathe and a dozen other cities. The current mortgage crisis will now benefit you!

The House has passed a bill that will likely become law within the week. It’s a bill that no one wants to stand in the way of so it’s pretty much a done deal. How will this help the first time home buyer in the Kansas City area? Well, if you;

Are a first time home buyer
Have purchased or will purchase a home between April 9, 2008 and July 1, 2009
Have individual income of less than $75,000 or as a couple earn less than $150,000

If you meet those 3 standards you are eligible for a $7,500 tax credit.

Now, you will be expected to pay that back over the course of the next 15 years interest free. So it’s not free money. But it’s discounted money. If inflation ends up being 5% this year, well…hopefully you get the picture. I’ll work out the math for you a little later today but you will be saving hundreds and possible a couple thousand in interest over the course of that 15 years.

(Further details will be announced as I dig deeper into this Housing Rescue Bill.)

So if you are a first time home buyer and looking to purchase a home in the Kansas City area you need to contact me today. Regardless of where you are looking be it Olathe, Overland Park, Blue Springs, Lee’s Summit, Shawnee or a host of other suburban cities or Kansas City. If I am not knowledgeable about the area of town you are looking I’ll hook you up with someone who is.

With a FHA loan, 3% of the purchase price and good credit this makes it easier and more economically feasible to be a first time home buyer than ever before!

Radon Gas In Your Kansas City Rental Property: Upcoming Workshop

Radon gas in Kansas City is a problem. But how much of a problem? What are the real health risks versus myth? What are your liabilities concerning radon gas and your Kansas City rental property?

Radon gas is tricky. It can also be scary and highly misunderstood. Real estate agents are aware of it but seldom do we really understand what it can do to you over the long term. All we really know is that it can throw a wrench into inspections at the last minute, which nobody likes.

A real estate agent down in Charlotte, North Carolina wrote on Radon Gas last November. And here is a helpful website from the Kansas State Engineering Extension breaking down radon gas in a more text-book sort of way. I’ll let you go off and read those now. But when you come back we’ll discuss a free workshop being sponsored by KCRAR (Kansas City Regional Association of Realtors) for investment property owners, real estate agents and property managers that you may wish to attend. Look below the photo!!! And by the way, my house recently came in at 3.3. You’ll have to come to the workshop or read the second website to know if that’s good or bad. 🙂

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Radon & Rental Housing Workshop
Friday August 8, 2008 9:00 am – Noon

Targeted to rental housing owners, managers, inspectors, housing agencies, real estate agents and others in the rental housing industry, this seminar will provide information and resources necessary to deal with radon in their holdings in a cost-effective and efficient manner.

Radon basics, testing processes, reduction methods, risks and liability issues will be covered in this 3-hour seminar, with handouts and a free radon test provided for the first 25 people through the door.

Come hear from the experts at Kansas State University’s engineering extension office. This is not the same Continuing Education class they regularly teach at KCRAR, because this one is especially for landlords and those who work with rental properties.

THIS IS NOT FOR CE!Questions? Contact Jan Pringle, KCRAR Education Director, (913) 498-1100, or janp@kcrar.com.

ATTENTION: Jan Pringle of KCRAR just sent me this so be sure to register! I just did.

Wow! That’s great. What a nice website, too!

Just one thing, would you please put in your article that KCRAR members can register online there at www.KCRAR.com, but NON-KCRAR MEMBERS must email me to reserve a seat??? We have limited seating and I have to keep ahead count.

4 Comments

Filed under Investment Property, Legal Issues, Misc. Real Estate

June 19, 2008 · 8:15 am

Why Hire A Professional Real Estate Agent? (Follow Up)

I’m writing today as to why you should hire a professional real estate agent as a follow up to yesterday’s post. I had a phone call and a couple of emails telling me all the reasons why hiring a real estate agent may not have helped.

Listen, I’m not trying to insult anyone. And I am not perfect. Just ask my kids and wife. And yes, there are certain items/situations that no man, woman or child can forsee. However, you really need to hire a PROFESSIONAL REAL ESTATE AGENT WHEN BUYING OR SELLING REAL ESTATE!!!! Period.

Not a housewife that works part time. Not a guy that “works it in” at lunch. I’m talking about an honest to goodness real estate agent that goes to trainings above and beyond the required continuing education. A real estate agent that knows the area or classification of house you are looking at. Etc.

Not to brag, but I’ve only had to testify one time during my real estate career. It was back in 2004 and it was for an investment client I represented on the sell side. He was an out-of-stater. I’m not going to go into the details, but when his attorney called me to the stand I had written notes and photos of the issues in question and documentation that the buyer was fully aware. Slam dunk. Buyer loses and gets to pay all the costs of his attorney and the court.

Want to tell me again how you saved money on your last FSBO buy or sell? Fine. Just know that liability comes with it. So does lack of insider knowledge and many other factors. Sure, experienced guys like Christopher Smith can do transactions on their own. But if you are a buyer or seller once every 5-12 years or you are a first time home buyer I would strongly urge you to hire professional real estate help. At the very least you know where I stand.

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Filed under Legal Issues, Misc. Real Estate