Recommendations for USA all-in-one property managers

Whatever,,

No house has no maintenance and no house has zero vacancy… any thoughts to the contrary are folly.

Not to be bragedousous, however I will be,, there are very few in the US with my wide breadth of experince in multiple markets. Being one of the largest hard money lenders in the fix and flip space  from 2002 till the GFC in 2008 gives me a special perspective do I know it all of course not… have I been there done that"  certainly have" can I help others save their hard earned money by being cautious you bet your ass.

Rehab is rehab… Tenants are tenants…. yes fresh rehab gets you through the first year or so… We have over 100 Sec 8s in our portfolio and not one of them does not need 500 to 1000 a year upon reinspect even in year one.

additionally many section 8 folks lose their vouchers… they earn too much money one year and are kicked out of the program,,
people die, all sorts of maladies, to say you have never missed a day in rent is <moderator: delete language> or someone who has limited experince.

These OZ investors that are on this site know the difference your not going to come on here and puff your product.

Your comments about Atlanta are way off base……

And that is why I do not hide behind a fake name handle on this forum… I use my full name first and last anyone can google me……
And again its why I do not even put my company headers at the bottom.

Oz investors are smart and they will find their own way, I am very experinced,, I use this forum to try to bring the other points of view the points of view of what to look out for….

At the end of the day I own everything I invest in, I do not flip make middle man fees or anything else I own long term every property that I buy with my investor partners..( caveot my new construction in Oregon those go to home owners) , and have full control those that invest with me, have confidence that I do  this for a living and have done it for more years than most of the guys in this business  have been on the planet..

Not to mention I can type 60 words a mintues and enjoy the bantor

And I do not run anything through spell check so there.

JLH

Hi Alex

that is very good news. Have been reading your posts been busy, am in Atlanta at the moment.
You need nerves of steel to drive on these roads. Anyway, have been checking out all my properties, looking at a couple of rehabs and taking care of the business side of things, catching up with lawyer and opening up another bank account. Only here for 8 days, no time for fun at the moment. 24 hour flight, still trying to get over that one.

You asked how property management is going in one of your posts….. that is a difficult one, I will say I am working on this. I believe the property management company I am using is reasonable, however I need to tweek a few things.

I am over and out at the moment, don't think I will be buying anymore properties in Atlanta as not finding any decent properties  at 20% gross, I think those days are over. Last time I was in Atlanta 12 months ago, there were foreclosure signs everyone, I am amazed that this is now not the case.

I see the Aus $ is starting to fall back, just watching this,  my plan is to leave rental income in US, however will be interesting to see whether the Aus $ actually falls below US$. May be a good opportunity to start bringing the money back home. That will sure help mitigate some of those maintenance bills….

http://s1178.photobucket.com/albums/x374/selectamericanhomes/Flat%20Willow%20Renovated/?albumview=slideshow
Just got these photos, one of my rehabs. This is a nice subdivision in Douglasville.

Cheers WI

Living close to the Candadian border… I can always tell when there is a big line of traffic being held up by one car… Almost always a Candadian,,, driving 55klicks instead of 55 mph plus add 15 to 20 to be in the flow of traffic which is basically legal.

I drove all over Italy for 3 weeks and was told how wild they drive,,,, We drive just as aggressivly here in the states I think.

Have not been on the Auto Bon but would love to rent a high end mercedes or Porshce and give it a whirl…

Seems that you have disappeared off this forum rather quickly. Funny about that.

How could you not get my point ?? The main point is this city is dying and has been doing so for a number of years. The only thing keeping it going is people like you trying to sell foreign investors into some kind of nirvana for property investors. I have always maintained the point that Detroit and all the mid western cities should be the domain only of local investors who know what they are doing and treat property investment like running a business. Yes there is a buck to be made I'm sure but foreign investors are just playing with fire and being sold smoke and mirrors by people like you.

Mihovi,

Good point,,, and I am sure the OZ investor does not want to be feed to the lions. Most investors want their investments to be more lamb like than lion like….. At least I think thats true.

You should check out the post of the OZ investor that was shot and killed trying to collect rent at one of his rentals in Detroit.

Speedy and I have the exact same view point,,, Inner city rentals in most US cities are not appropriate investments for Off shore investors.

guys like you come and go and when you go they are left holding the bag…

I had this very conversation with the CEO of Professionals,,, I asked him point blank why do so many Oz investor take such huge risks just to make an extra few % a year…. Answer because OZ is a completly differenct animal when it comes to rentals.. Negative gearing and all.. but at least by and large they protect their capital…

There are investors every day being wiped out in the US who thought they could buy these type of properties…

But your a little late Mihovi,,, you may sucker a few into risking low dollars on the dream… but the readers of this forum by and large if they have been here any amount of time realize the risks….

You also commented on my comment about Canadian drivers…. I own a home in Kelowna BC and have for Years. I drive there ( when weather does not allow me to fly my plane) many times a year to go fly fishing….

And the major route from Vancouver has the super hwy called the collector and even the Canadians will do 100mph plus. but others will be doing 60 klicks….

Appreciate your points of view and your free to express them here on the forum…… But your just another of a long line of spruiekers that got called out by the regulars and the  guys like me that do not make their living selling anything to anyone on this site……..

Although I hope that the investors here will visit our on line Hardware store.. Where we can save them nice money and control their cost on maintenance items and rehab… The US rehabbers are doing that and we are growing everyday.

Its funny I just sent an order to Singapore for Shower rollers… We sell a 6 pack of them for under 2 bucks… Ship them there for 15 bucks still a better deal than what they could buy them for there……

mahvi:

I fly a Cirrus Sr 22… a 2004 I bought brand new from the factory there in Deluth…. My next plane if the RE gods are good to me will  be will be a TBM 850…. And my health allows me to keep current and on top of it.

If I can give you any advice thats worth reading is this:

many have come before you with claims of rehabs that were done that will never need maintenance.

perfect tenants that always pay and treat your homes like their own.

And Inner city US is no problem we are here to help you ( from any number of Turn Key guys)

These statements on their face are just not reality, So when you leed with those you lose some credibility,,,

You can still do business with these folks in your area but they understand there will be maintenance and vacancy.

And if your working above 8 mile and out in the out lying areas they know these are not South of 8 mile and in the war zones or we hope they do and we would hope as a member of this forum you would explain the difference to them in an honest open manner…..

However when you work Metro Detroit or MI  or Rochester new York  your going to have to overcome all that bad press….but hey washington DC has hoods… The murder capital of the US is new Oreleans,,, and people love to go there… Nevada is the second most dangerous state in the US as it relates to violante crime per captia  ( although i am sure all the gambling and drinking heavily sways this)…And I am in the processing of buying myself a winter home there right now. I like it there.

So maybe if you come on the site and educate the forum attendees with what they should look for and what they should be very careful with in MI… and educate them that there can be good places to invest… that may be better for you in the long run.

Not sure if your aware of my back ground however from 2002 to 2008 I was one of the 5 largest hard money lenders in the Middle US in the turn Key space I  loaned to over 40 turn key companies clients… Averaged 40 to 50 a month for years. And ran my book of business far north of 35 million on my way to 50 and up right up until the GFC…. When that happened I got stuck with just under 500 loans on the books and only a few over 300 got retired.. I ended up foreclosing and owning just under 200 homes. From Chicago, Detroit, Indy, Memphis, St. Luis, KC,, Jackson, Bham, Atlanta, Columbus, Kokomo, Marion, Cincinnatti, and even my home base here in Portland Oregon and Washington,,, I  ended up with 95% SFR's,, but I had a few multi's a Mobile Park and a bagel dog factory.  Now the Bagel Dog factory seemed like a good loan at the time as they all did… I successfully closed well over 2500 loans over that period of time… And know most of the movers and shakers of those days in teh turn key bizz either personally or by reputation….. And when I say they come and go, thats a fact. 90% of the guys I did bizz with went out of bizz from 08 to 09,,, leaving me in a huge effort to reclaim my properties through deeds in Lui, foreclosures cash for keys etc.

The silver lining is that I got to go to the southeast bring my Sr 22 and fly all over the place corralling all these properties. And being a west coast flyer it was nice flying were there were few rocks that could jump up and smack you…. MEA's for low level IFR at 2k feet that was nice.

So yes I am very opinionated about what can happen because I have had every malady know to turn key investing happen to me on these properteis. not only that the market crashed so I lost a fortune in equity….

But I am not blind enough to see buying back the same assets I was loaning on at 60 to 80k wholesale that rented for 600 to 800… and to be able to buy them for 10 to 30 how that made a huge amount of sense…..

But what I learned was just how vulnerable I was to 3rd party vendor management, and a less than honest rehabber,, take that and add the sales load that the Ozzie companies routinely charge and you get an overpriced under rehabbed property with a less than honest or pressional PM… And I can assure you these investors dreams of 15% net yeilds plus are just fantasy…

This led me to create my company… I endevoured to plug all the holes that killed me,,, And would give the investor the absolute greatest protection from a  day one….And although this Model is vaugely understood by this audiance its not something most of these readers will invest in… As the concepts are too foriegn and there is still that thought that hey I can come to the US and pick the right companies and it will be fine… And that can happened… Its just the long term of how these properties perform that the OZ investor really does not have any data points to lead them to beleivable returns over time… Your taking a property that has been vacant and just turned over no way you can predict your incomes to the decimal these readers like to talk about.

Now our program to the US investor is wildly successful. And I cannot keep enough inventory infront of me.. I have put a national team of partners together in the markets I personally like and with the teams that are expereinced and when the GFC hit their character came to the top they did not run and hide… So for that help through the mess, I have created a company and given them equal ownership in everything we do…. Its an alignment of interests…. When everyone is an owner in the key areas properties go much smoother and our investor never has a bad day,,,, Do they get 15% net yeild NO when we sell for a modest profit they will get 15% or better I just do not crystal ball the returns ,,,, and we share equity… For all that protection this is how we make our money long term,,, Not big front end fees… We take some front end but not whats standard in the industry when you have 3 levels of marketing agents in the deals… again I know this first hand as I closed thousands of these transactions. over the years…. I am sure you have heard of Armondo Montolongo of late night TV fame… I have even funded deals for his students as well as Marshall Reddick, and any other numbers of these guys….

So to finish thats where I am coming from, trying to give the Oz investor the other side of the coin if they want to risk super high returns in rough and tumble neighborhoods ( which we all know what we are talking about and would never live anywhere near them)….Then God Bless them and good luck and good night.. I think Walter Chronkite used to end with that line.

http://www.hardwaresupercenter.com  go to clearance page,,, we have smokin deals on pretty much anything you buy to rehab a house all shipped to your office or job site within 24 to 48 hours, and no sales tax….. buy in volume and free shipping. Rehabbing 20 plus properties a month for my company I found these guys and was one of the top buyers… Then I liked it so much I bought the company a few months ago… As I have so many contacts in this space that marketing in the states will be redicuously easy for me,… And I know exactly what the rehabber wants and needs. My hope as well is for the Home owner especially off shore they can order there own parts pay for them at cost and have them shipped to their managers office no more fighting over the cost of the items.. and no more having PM mark up everything,,, I got to think this should take off as well… emma 171 really likes the concept and will start pointing her clients to me… Saves her a trip to home depot….

My memphis turn key guys drive down to our warehouse in Jackson and load up box trucks full of cieling fan/s all the door hardware, plumbiling sets lights etc etc. they will save at least 50% or more per item compared to Home Depot or Lowes..
We have Aircondioner units tub surrounds toilets…. really at the end of the day we will carry 25,000.00 items that can all be dropped shipped…. Our close outs though are where the smokin deals are those average 50 to 90% less than one will pay for them at the big box store or hardware store,  check it out

http://www.truewholesalehouses.com is my version of turnkey and you will see that I am the only one in the US that sets up the transactions as we do and the only one that legally can pay specificed monthly payments…. Lots of guys trying to guarantee rent but thats getting shut down by the US government for security violations.

Hopefully the modartor will let these go as examples to you personally and note spruieking.

Thanks for that great post Jay – it was (as always) far from advertising.

I’ll check out your online store – could save me filling bags from OSH, Lowes, HD etc and taking them home myself…

I will point out to people that (so far) my sister (emma171) has had great management success hand picking tenants and being very careful with their selection. Obviously she is a tiny operator but so far it does seem to be working very well.

Jay Just played on your hardware store did not realize the prices , Kevin looked last time and said prices were high. He is crazy I am sending site to Tori and Our main contractor Kliener.

And I will still go to lowes daily to see what they have. Just planted garden in my yard and re landscaped the front of the house. Went way overboard and still cost less then $500 bucks. Got to love Lowes 3 days in row their.

Absolutely enlightening thread. Thanks guys.