US foreclosures - Boholt Seminars - NO

[heather_h]

a couple more questions

Hi Emma,

Your posts on Las Vegas property have been so helpful. Thanks for taking the time to give us that information! I'm a young gal and this is the first opportunity I've had to take advantage of a market situation like this - I have enough capital to buy a foreclosure, and I've been researching US cities to buy in for the past several months. However, it wasn't until I read your points around the Nevada taxation and landlord-friendly laws that prompted me to consider Las Vegas most seriously.

I have a couple more specific questions, if you have the time and don't mind:

1. Regarding your post where you mention that the market moves very quickly and you make a decision within hours or minutes, is this specific to extremely high yield properties? I'm wondering because I'm seeing foreclosures that have been on the market for much longer, that seem to have potential for 10% net or higher (even in the zip codes you recommend). Is is likely that these have something wrong with them, and is there something specific about them to watch out for?

2. I've been in touch with a realtor in Las Vegas, but I don't know how to tell how good she is, and I'm not sure that she is the best person to help me in purchasing foreclosed property. Do you think you could give me some pointers on how to assess the quality of a realtor?

Thanks!

 

[lawsjs]

I don't speak to my sister much, but she has done amazingly well. Just PM her, I would suspect that IF you paid $7k to her you would already own a nice little property in LV. Her problem is (and believe me we dont talk) to sort out the tyre kickers from the real buyers. I was in a small way involved in the seminar bandwagon 15 years ago. I left because I didnt like charging deadbeats to 'supposedly' solve their financial problems. I learnt that no one can 'help' anyone - as a comedian said once 'you can lead a horticulture but you can't make her read it'....

Just looking at the views on this post it is clear people are interested. I started this because I was disgusted at seminar presenters spruiking crap and charging a fortune - Emma was the real deal and they threw her out.

Emma is not about crap, if you found this you have a brain - don't waste it. I have no idea how she might work anything out, but for gods sake do NOT pay anyone anything until you have spoken to her.

 

[reeco]

I don't speak to my sister much, but she has done amazingly well. Just PM her, I would suspect that IF you paid $7k to her you would already own a nice little property in LV.

Just looking at the views on this post it is clear people are interested.

May i ask lawsjs? Why are you not interested in such opportunities. Having such a connection would put you much further along then your average joe from SS.

If recieving your sisters advice puts us on the street to easier money...why would you not pursue such a welcoming possibilty?

Seems this thread has brought a few new green eyed members to the forum.

 

[lawsjs]

OK. Well here is the answer.

Firstly I wish my sister the very best, but we do not speak - maybe 2-3 times every 2-3 years. I sort of forced her onto this site because Boholt annoyed me when she objected to someone actually asking questions. A personal slight if you will

I could tell you a long story but in essence it is this. I will not play in the foreclosure market because I am 'done' dealing with potential deadbeats and can now afford to make (for a better word) 'quality' long term plays. For $150-250k USD down my LA broker can get me about a $1m property with about $10-15kpa positive. If you have the money there are some great long term buys - my LA broker keeps asking why arent people contacting him? As an Aussie buyer you will think the properties are disgusting, but if you buy a 16 plex for around $1m (which is cash positive AFTER a full wrap - $10-15kpa now) and rents go up $100pm per unit - who cares???

Emma's play on the other hand is an absolute no brainer. My play is for income, the Foreclosure market is probably for very good (exceptional?) CG in a very short space of time. And my purchases are harder to sell - just because they cost more, harder to borrow on as they are commercial etc etc. For the price of a couple of plasma's you can own a 3br home in a desirable neighbourhood. Sorry - neighborhood.. Who here in Australia with any sort of equity cannot manage to buy a couple?

I have played my guru's market (and to me he was Jan Somers on steroids) for 13 years. It takes guts and faith initially, but I have just discussed with my wife and though we both dislike many parts of the US we are now about trading in my hard won solid gold assets in Sydney to buy real income property in the US. I didn't make this 'boots n all' decision 10+ years ago and I regretted it. Back then I came within a whisker of getting a 68u complex on the strip in LV for $1.2m - cash+ $80kUSDpa - I would have had it, but I didn't 'want' to sell so much as one 2br unit in Mt Druitt - which was only 'making' about $500 a year!. Does the term 'complete goose' mean anything to anyone?? I was scared to 'gamble' with safe assets. I now have another chance. Being greedy I hate selling anything, but it is about allocation of resources. Overseas they say (and I disagree) we have a property 'bubble'. I don't see a bubble, but I do see fully priced assets. The US in particular is dead, but coming back. Unlike our lunatic govt they HAD to hand out billions to get things moving again. That MUST have an inflationary effect somewhere. Which is great for property. And I like the stuff they have in Z-Gallerie and Ikea is at least 1/3 of Aust prices. Please explain to me why I would want to lose $30-50kpa on supposed 'investments' here when I could potentially make USD$40kpa AFTER paying horrendous changeover taxes???

It is not for the fainthearted, and for anyone here I would recommend Emma's deals, but if you want to know my reasons these are they....

 

[WinstonWolfe]

Law and Emma, you two are either two of the most passionate and switched on PIers on Somersoft, or two of the most sly foxes.

Only more self revelation will clarify.

 

[lawsjs]

And in fact what you just said was why I seriously debated with myself posting at all.

This is no b/s. There are no skeletons in the closet.... Michele, Sim, TW, rix, asyral etc will attest to my not being a Boholt. 10 years - sort of brings back old great memories posting on here....

And if Boholt hadn't been a complete twit I wouldn't have posted here at all...

 

[reeco]

And in fact what you just said was why I seriously debated with myself posting at all.

And if Boholt hadn't been a complete twit I wouldn't have posted here at all...

Well welcome back, even tho it maybe for a short while. Your visit was/is appreciated.

Care to share your adventures? I'd like to know the Jan somers on steroids you speak of. Sounds like my cup of tea. My appetite for risk is considered unhealthy. I just brought a property in Indonesia of all places. People from miles around have told me wonderful stories about how bad/dangerous it is...still.... I bit off a piece and started chewing. Next stop...US of A

 

[Perp]

I declined her offer to pay up to $7000 for her 'system' though. While I'm sure that there are many pitfalls to successful U.S. real estate investing though there must a better way to learn rather than pay for Dympha's course.
I'd appreciate any assistance that you and and your sister could offer to help me on my way.

Yeah, much better to just ask another successful investor to do it for free. Perhaps this was meant as an introductory post, ingratiating yourself for future specific requests for information, in which case I apologise if this comes across as hostile.

But given that you didn't ask any specific questions, or contribute anything at all about what you'd like to do, it reads a bit like "I have no idea, and I don't want to pay Boholt to tell me, but I like the idea of making money. Can you guys just make me rich for free using your hard-earned knowledge? Where do I send my $10K and when will you send me back $1M?"

(Please accept that I'm making this post more because your post amused me than because I'm attacking you. Though if you were thinking along these lines, then consider yourself flamed! )

 

[Emma171]

Heather... I hope that you are still reading. Any GOOD foreclosed property in any market moves quickly... There are estimated to be at least 20k aof active investors looking for properties. I am always one of the first and on a good property there can be as many as 5 others at the house at the same time... Don't be scared off.. Just be quick and prepared. Don't get emotional.. Ever.. These are just numbers and another will come along but you do therefore need a great agent...mine is [email protected]... She is amazing..

 

[Emma171]

How to tell a good agent... Ask how many foreclosed properties have they won for their clients and if they would be willing to show you a property at midnight on a Saturday and write up an offer on a Sunday at 8am. If the answer is no, they just aren't going to cut it.. I have mentioned earlier this is the wild west... The chances in any realestate cycle that you get more than 2% of all loans going into default, let alone going to the point of foreclosures is minuscule... This is a tiny, weeny window of opportunity and I literally know of only one agent that has nailed this market in Vegas and I went through 10 to find her. That simple, let alone one who understands the issues of foreign banks, earnest money issues and strange bizarre time zones. I have had her on the phone at 3 am in international time and at court houses working for me 2 am my time because i cant. That is service for me and trust me.. We are talking pittance in commission from me... But she understands that in 5 years time, I am a seller and she will be the only agent I deal with. That is the type of agent you want to deal with.

 

[Chui]

I have had her on the phone at 3 am in international time and at court houses working for me 2 am my time because i cant. .

Emma, aren't you in LV, how do you go about inspecting properties if you are out of state?

Incidentally, this is posted at http://www.city-data.com forums. Emma, were your repairs for vandalism or is it wear and tear?

[youtube]PogiIwr8aQM[/youtube]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PogiIwr8aQM

 

[whittarj]

Wow fantastic thread. Thankyou for sharing your experience Emma. Fascinating read.

 

[reeco]

In your opinnion, How long do you think this window of opportunity will last?

Looking at your efforts, those who are serious from AU stand little chance. From what I can see, to have any real chance... You need to be living in the states AND know Vegas like the back of your hand... It would take near on months of foot pounding to know the ebbs and flows of a place like Vegas. A place that has a greater population then Perth!!

Been here 2years and I only know parts of this place!

On top of that we would be competing against very sharp and dedicated shooters like yourself...

As i see it. The only real options we in AU have is to team up with a person like yourself...anyone know a person like Emma that has the same distinct features of being from AU, experienced on the ground, living in the states, has great connections,110% trustworthy, streetwise etc etc

...on top of the myriad of other necessary skills she has?

Make no mistake people. The info that has been provided is awsome. But don't downplay the attributes/skills required to pull a quality investment off in the States! Emma's modesty is making things look easy... It's not. Well not for people who live literally on the other side of the globe.

 

[DEC]

This makes interesting reading, I have no idea how much truth there is in it.
Here's a small taste for more click the link below
http://www.rickotton.com/blog/?p=119

The average American light bulb lasts about 15 months and very cheap to buy but boy, how many times have I been charged $88 to have a light bulb put in a house all because I was an absent landlord. And if you think an American will change their own light bulbs I’m sorry you are sadly mistaken.

You see in Australia we do stuff with our hands, Americans on the other hand have been used to being gifted to for so long they do nothing. I find that when I rent my properties in the US, if the carpet is more then 2 years old the property becomes un-rentable. If the property has been painted less then a year ago it becomes un-rentable. You see in Australia I can rent out just about anything and I can rent out a place with 10 year old carpet, 20 year old carpet, 30 year old carpet and it hasn’t been painted for 5 years. Not in the United States. If that property is not squeaky clean with new carpet and new paint, it will stay empty and you will not rent it. Why? Because vacancy is much higher in the US then it is in Australia. Now you can rent your property to people commonly known as “trailer trash” but then again may I suggest this is not a good idea

You’ve also got management companies whose job it is to make sure they take money out of your pocket. Constantly I have seen this the way people would be charged for hot water systems, be charged for heating systems, air conditioning systems, which never ever appear in your property.

Americans don’t pay rent. The percentage of Americans that pay rent is much lower then in Australia and I think for $19.95 I could buy a book called 500 Ways to Rip Off Your Landlord and Never Pay Rent. You are in the area of big business, I make money and you make none. A lot of Americans do not pay their rent. This is just the way the business is. Please recognize it for what it is, Americans do not pay rent.

Something else you much realize is that American sewer pipes are 2 inches and not 4 inches. Australian sewer pipes are 4 inches and American sewer pipes are 2 inches. You’ll constantly be fixing blocked toilets. It is just the standard system of fixing the blocked toilet which is about $90 every time the “Rotor Router” guy comes out and fixes blocked toilets.

 

[Emma171]

Reeco, you have a good point, to a point and you are right. I am not sure if I am trying to dispel the myths of the difficulties or just be brutally honest as to the practicalities. I only know that if gonzo is right, you do not ever, nor should you, pay $7k to buy a system that doesnt guarantee a property when that is about 3k over what it would take to spend a month in any random city setting up your own entire network, airfares included and buy your own blasted property. Bloody hell, I would find a property at less than that for people... It isn't that hard! I started as everyone else did.. Zero knowledge and figured it out. I happened to take it admittedly to an extreme.. Ie very hands on etc. Mainly because I started in Alaska for US investments with an on paper of 25% return and didn't realize that plumbers up there earn $180 an hour, everything freezes and then melts.. Each costing crazy amounts... Thus I learnt very very quickly to do my own repairs because i couldnt afford it any other way. My mantra for a long time was that i had yet to meet someone with a higher IQ than I doing the repairs and sureely if they could do it, i could... Or at least enough to know i wasnt being ripped off.... I have saved thousands upon thousands..... That being said, I chose Vegas over anywhere else because I had learnt a very valuable lesson. Vegas doesn't have any of those issues and is not dissimilar to buying anywhere else in Australia that isn't in your own backyard. I have two properties in Cairns for instance that I have never seen.... They cost me more than 3 Vegas properties, are APARTMENTS ONLY, and return me, um, flip, they are only barely positive and on interest only loans. Doh! the rent is less than a single Vegas property... Sigh.... Double doh... See my brothers comments... I don't normally agree with him but it is so true, we cling to Australia... Sigh... Yes, even me. But heck it costs so much to get out of prooerties here... No stamp duty in the States... Only 15% capital gains tax.... Yay....

The speed just needs to be pointed out, and reality.. Don't talk gross, talk net returns and factor in vacancy and everything else you can. You can buy quickly but tie it in with a vacation to the states having done the research first and having your earnest money, proof of funds etc set up. if you don't have that confidence make connections... just make sure that if you are spending thousands you at least have a property, an estate agent and a property manager at the end of it. We are all in the same boat and there just isn't enough at my level of investment to make 20% gross or net yield if you are also paying someone 7k to sell you a system... ! The States isn't Some third world country to negotiate around and not if you are looking at a 5 odd year play like I am.

i suppose ultimately my biggest gripe on all this is that this is a narrow window of opportunity... The foreclosed market will dry up within, in my mind, the next 12 months one way or another. That of the mega bargains anyway... Probably more because of Bernanke and USD devaluation improving the export market and reducing unemployment thus increasing internal home buyers etc... The US will do all possible to increase housing demand and you can bet on that as it is a key economic indicator. The first to cease supply will be the foreclosed market... New home sales barely stand a chance until the supply of foreclosures are sucked up....thus the limitation... Even with the voluntary walk aways. The Fed can't allow it! So this is a one year, maybe , play.. Give or take... I have seen a significant change in the year I have been playing it ... In the "old" days before GFC short sells were generally the best you could hope for. If you can't build a property for less than you can buy it, it isn't going to last. Thus everyone touting the great opportunity may seem to be selling systems, not properties... Because it is tight.

Off the soap box! Lol.... ha, for tonight anyway.

 

[Emma171]

DEC ... Sorry so so so not true.. Sewer lines are 4 inches..kitchin sink pipes are 1.5 inches feeding into the main drain lines that are all 4 inches. The toilet is 4inches.. I swap toilets out all the time.. $79 for an all in one toilet from home depot... Cost for an Australian toilet? Hundreds.....The article even states inches to prove it .. What the heck is 4inches in metric anyway? Plus, it costs me $75 in Australia to change a flipping smoke detector battery.. I seriously pay someone that amount! I have my licensed contractor in Vegas charge only $15 an hour..... a whole house is repainted for $900. How much for a fridge here... A Frigidaire new at home depot in the States costs $350.....US or Australian it is the same... Halve every cost in Australia for repairs and then halve it again...

Sorry, just one of the amazing things about the states... How cheap it is....now that is it... Unless you are in Alaska...

 

[Bradsdad]

WOW Emma, great reading. Glad I'm at the end of the thread (for now) and I can hit the hay as it's near 1.30am here but I just couldn't stop reading.

 

[DEC]

DEC ... Sorry so so so not true.. .

Thanks for the reply Emma, I didn't think the toilet bit sounded right but what about some of the other points like

I find that when I rent my properties in the US, if the carpet is more then 2 years old the property becomes un-rentable. If the property has been painted less then a year ago it becomes un-rentable. If that property is not squeaky clean with new carpet and new paint, it will stay empty and you will not rent it. Why? Because vacancy is much higher in the US then it is in Australia.

and

Americans don’t pay rent. The percentage of Americans that pay rent is much lower then in Australia and I think for $19.95 I could buy a book called 500 Ways to Rip Off Your Landlord and Never Pay Rent. You are in the area of big business, I make money and you make none. A lot of Americans do not pay their rent. This is just the way the business is. Please recognize it for what it is, Americans do not pay rent.

 

[Chui]

Please recognize it for what it is, Americans do not pay rent

Am I the only guy in this forum who had people skip rent on him in Australia?

 

[Emma171]

DEC.. This refers to my earlier posts.. I don't do condos, I do single family properties, I don't over price and I choose carefully my tenants. I spend enough time in Vegas that I do my own reviews. Get a security deposit, stay on top of rents and yes, everyone can have the odd bad tenant but if the worst happens and you need to get rid of someone.. Or they walk out.. If you have the right property, you end up not losing $$ because you can rent it out again quickly. I price about 10% below others for quick rentals and my single family properties are cheaper to rent than an apartment.. My tag line on my ads is "why rent an apartment when for the same price you could be living here".... Sorry all you MFR fans out there but I have yield to make! Have a good property manager too... Oh, yes, just like any rental anywhere...!