Archive for November, 2014

Mon, December 1st at 5:00 PM in Norcross, GA
Atlanta REIA Main Monthly Meeting
& Vendor Trade Show
Dec 1st @ Atlanta Unity, Norcross, GA
The New Paradigm of Real Estate Investing Success
How You Can Double, Triple or Quadruple Your Real Estate Success in 2015 with Roger Salam

“In times of change learners inherit the earth; while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” ~ Eric Hoffer

The above quote by Eric Hoffer is a profound one. If you’re not changing with the changing times, you’ll disappear like the dinosaurs of the past. It’s no secret that Real Estate is bouncing back quite strong in many areas of the country and if you’d like to get back into it or if you’re an active Real Estate investor now, we’d like to invite you to find out how the game has changed. Without this knowledge you’ll become Real Estate Dinosaurs.

Roger SalamJoin us at the Atlanta REIA December 1st Meeting at Atlanta Unity located at 3597 Parkway Lane in Norcross, GA with our special guest, Roger Salam, who is a real estate investor, mentor, international speaker & best-selling author. Roger will not only show you how the real estate game has changed, he’ll also give you the new rules of the game. Roger says, “Not only the paradigm of Real Estate investing has shifted, but the entire paradigm on success has changed.” Perhaps you’ve noticed, but don’t know how to adapt and change with the new shift and the new game.

Join us December 1st and Roger will show you:

  • The single most important philosophical change that will make immediate and the biggest difference in your Real Estate investing business
  • 5 New paradigms of success not only in Real Estate investing, but in life
  • How To Make Your First $5k In Two Weeks
  • The Biggest Mistakes New Investors Make That Get Them Sued
  • Automating Techniques That Will Reduce Your Actual Work By 80%
  • How market research before you begin can make or break you in this business
  • How to buy wholesale properties at 50% or below market value (his exclusive list)
  • How to get owner financing for your deals (He’ll owner finance, bad credit, no credit, ok!)
  • All this and much, much more!

December is a very special month and most people are pretty much wrapping up the year and getting ready for the New Year. Roger will also give you some very special tips for making 2015 your best year ever!

Join us for our last meeting of the year. We saved the best for last, but you be the judge. Bring a friend and they’ll thank you!

BonusSPECIAL BONUS JUST FOR ATTENDING: Roger will be giving away his “Real Estate Success Secrets” DVD along with the PowerPoint Slides to follow along. Supplies are limited and will be given away on a first come, first serve basis. Arrive to the meeting early to network with other like-minded investors, vendors and other real estate professionals.

RSVP Now!

Atlanta REIA Members Can Attend at No Charge. This month,
Guests Can RSVP Online Now for $20 or Pay $25 at the Door.

*Meeting Day Agenda
4:30 pm: Mobile Real Estate Rockstar Subgroup with Don DeRosa
5:00 pm: Vendor Trade Show & Networking
6:15 pm: Updates & Announcements
6:30 pm: Haves & Wants Speed Marketing Session
7:00 pm: Networking Break
7:20 pm: Vendor Door Prizes & Giveaways
7:30 pm: Main Presentation with Roger Salam
9:30 pm: Late Nite Networking at Three Dollar Cafe

*Please Note: Meeting agenda is subject to change.

4:30 PM in Meeting Room
The Meeting Before the Meeting
Mobile Real Estate Rockstars Group
with Don DeRosa

Don DeRosaPlease join us for the Mobile Real Estate Rockstar Group (Rockstars) hosted by Don DeRosa at our “Meeting-Before-The-Meeting” on Monday, December 1st at 4:30 PM at Atlanta Unity in the Main Meeting Room.

The Rockstars is an educational and networking group for investors who want to leverage mobile technology to become more competitive, profitable investors. You’ll learn how to use the latest apps, tips and techniques to use the information they need, right now, at their fingertips, from anywhere.

The Pretty House Boot Camp - Part 1: BuyingDon will also be discussing his upcoming “Pretty House Boot Camp – Part 1: Buying Pretty Houses” which takes on December 14th – 16th in Buford, GA which is designed to teach you how to Buy, Sell and Hold Pretty Houses with little or none of your own money. This this event is limited to 30 people and will only be offered once per year. Read More>>

5:00 PM in the Main Lobby
Monthly Vendor Trade Show

Dylon Ross with XfinityAt 5:00 PM in the Main Lobby, we have a Vendor Trade Show that lasts throughout the meeting where you can come out and meet many of our participating Business Members and Vendor Guests who help sponsor our meeting. See a full list of our vendors and sponsors below as they are added.

Vendor tables are limited, so any vendors wanting to reserve a table for the meeting can RSVP for a Vendor Table here. Vendor tables are reserved and setup on a first-come, first-serve basis.

6:15 PM in the Main Meeting Room
What’s Happening at Atlanta REIA

Dustin GriffinStarting at 6:15 PM, Dustin Griffin kicks off the Atlanta REIA Main Meeting with updates and announcements. Dustin covers what’s happening at Atlanta REIA in the upcoming weeks and months such as upcoming workshops, webcasts, special events, members benefits and much more! Be sure to be in the main meeting room at 6:15 PM for your chance to be one of the first to receive a printed copy of The Profit Newsletter while supplies last.

6:30 PM in the Main Meeting Room
Haves & Wants Marketing Session

Joe ThompsonAt approximately 6:20 PM, Joe Thompson will be hosting the Haves & Wants Speed Marketing Session which gives our members the opportunity to quickly market deals they HAVE and to find deals they WANT. We also give our business members the opportunity to get up and say a few words about their businesses. Members who want to participate in the Haves & Wants Marketing Session must bring your flyers and get to the meeting early to get on Joe’s list of participants.

9:30 PM @ Three Dollar Cafe, 6050 Peachtree Pkwy, Norcross
Late Nite Networking at Three Dollar Cafe

Three Dollar CafeAfter the conclusion of the Atlanta REIA Main Meeting, we will be reconvening at Three Dollar Cafe located at 6050 Peachtree Pkwy #100 in Norcross, GA at 9:30 PM for the Late Nite Networking and the “Meeting-After-The-Meeting”!

  • Do you love hanging out with other fun loving, like-minded real estate investors who love to talk about real estate investing and doing deals?
  • Do you want to work with fun, energetic people who are consistently doing deals?
  • Are you always looking for new contacts and resources to build your real estate dream team?
  • Do you ever have trouble putting together profitable deals and need help?
  • Are you constantly looking for new leads sources as well as home buyers and sellers?

If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you belong at Late Nite Networking! Whether you are brand new to real estate investing or have years of experienced, everyone benefits from Late Nite Networking. Come eat, drink, connect, and have fun with like-minded real estate entrepreneurs as we network late into the night!

There is no charge for Atlanta REIA Members or guests to attend Late Nite Networking at the Three Dollar Cafe, so bring a friend and head on down to Late Nite Networking! Just be sure you order food and beverages from the cafe and please tip their wait staff generously.

Participating Meeting Vendors & Sponsors
Meeting Vendors & Sponsors

American IRAAmerican IRA – The American IRA mission is to provide the highest level of customer service in the self-directed retirement industry.
Read More>>

Networth Realty of Atlanta, LLCNetworth Realty of Atlanta, LLC – A licensed, full-service residential wholesale brokerage that specializes in finding quality wholesale properties and making them available to you. Read More>>

Halperin Lyman, LLCHalperin Lyman, LLC – A transactional real property law firm devoted to providing the full spectrum of non-litigation related real estate legal and consulting services to its clientele. Read More>>

Goldmine Properties, Inc.Goldmine Properties, Inc. – As Atlanta’s first full service real estate wholesaler, we offer wholesale property at 65% loan to value, with financing available. Purchase price and repairs are 65% of certified after repaired appraisal. Read More>>

Advanta IRA AdministrationAdvanta IRA Administration – With the help of your local Advanta IRA staff, use your IRA to invest in assets you know, understand and control, such as real estate, notes & mortgages, private placements, and much more! Read More>>

The Small Business AdvisorThe Small Business Advisor – A full service small business consulting firm specializing in QuickBooks with a wide variety of specialized services, trainings and products for small businesses. Read More>>

Lima One Capital, LLCLima One Capital, LLC – A fully capitalized, direct lender for residential real estate investors and homebuilders. We are fully capitalized and our team prides itself on closing loans quickly for our clients. Read More>>

Island REIA Winter RetreatIsland REIA Winter Retreat – Dave Biddison from Dream Trips will be at the Meeting to tell our members and guests about our first annual Island REIA Winter Retreat that will take place on January 18th – 24th at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, an All-Inclusive Resort, in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Read More>>

CRS DataCRS Data – We offer comps from the MLS & FSBO’s, custom searches, property tax records, interactive maps, sales & mortgage info, real estate valuations, mailing lists & more. Read More>>

Atlanta Carpet ServicesAtlanta Carpet Services, Inc. – Providing carpet, wood, vinyl, and tile, ACS is dedicated to every aspect of your floor covering needs from initial consultation to the sale and follow-up services. Read More>>

Fuller Center for Housing of Greater AtlantaFuller Center for Housing of Greater Atlanta – A faith-driven, Christ-centered, non-profit organization dedicated to providing adequate shelter for people in need in the Greater Atlanta area. Read More>>

  • RenterUP
  • Air Conditioning Experts, Inc.
  • Scott Swanson, Century 21
  • APEXTKHomes with Tyler Sherman
  • Peachtree City EPIC Group with Chris Littleton
  • Haves & Wants with Joe Thompson
  • Atlanta REIA West Group with Leslie Mathis
See Atlanta REIA Events Calendar for More Events!
Download The Profit Newsletter for December 2014 (PDF)
The December 2014 Edition of
The Profit is Available for Download!

The Profit Newsletter - December 2014The December 2014 Edition of The Profit Newsletter is available for download just in time for our Atlanta REIA Main Meeting on December 1st. The Profit is an digital, interactive newsletter for new and seasoned real estate investors delivered as an Adobe PDF file to read on your PC, Mac, Smart Phone, iPad or other mobile ready devices with a PDF reader. Many of the articles and ads in The Profit contain many hyperlinks you can click or tap to visit websites, watch videos, listen to audios, download content, send emails, comment on articles, share socially and much more! The high res version of The Profit is “print ready” for those who want to print the newsletter on their home or business printer. Also, be sure to Subscribe to The Profit Here so you don’t miss a single monthly issue.

Download The Profit Now!
See The Profit Archives for our past editions.

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Roger SalamI’ll admit it; I’m a bit of a seminar junkie. I go to every seminar I can and I probably should go to the “Seminars Anonymous” meeting too. The truth is, I’ve learned from all of them (even the bad ones). I sit near the back so that I can find an electrical outlet for my laptop and type furious notes as I’m listening. Some larger conferences offer wi-fi (wireless) access so you can browse the Internet when a speaker mentions a specific site. Trouble is you tend to check your email and wander other places online. And then you’re not actively listening. So beware of being too plugged in.

How do you know if the seminar was worth the cost, the hassle of traveling and the time out of the office? If you’re not purposeful, after a week or two, you may not even remember the name of the great speaker let alone what he or she said or what you got out of it. And you really haven’t changed the way you do business or anything. Here are some steps to take to set yourself up for success before you actually fork out your hard earned dollars.

To get the most out of any seminar (or event in general), there are two sets of preparation, pre and post event. US Army lives by the 5 P’s – Prior Preparation Prevents Poor Performance. So, here are a few things you can do prior to jetting out. Read More→

Appreciation?

Posted on November 28, 2014 by

As the real estate market shifts in different areas investors must adapt to the changes in both their buying and selling strategies. Many people, including myself, strongly believe that you make your money when you buy a property at the right price. Recently, due to lack of inventory and/or more competition, investors have begun to buy outside my personal comfort level. I see them beginning to buy/invest based on future appreciation. If the appreciation comes the profits will be great but if not then they remodeled a house for a new owner for pennies or nothing.

Just two years ago I was acquiring single family residential properties for 65% LTV, last year I was still picking up a good amount of investments at 70% LTV and today I am having to go as high as 75% LTV. I understand that some areas are hot and demand is high but going above that seems ridiculous for a flip. Buying at a high LTV to rent I can understand but that is a whole other topic. There are investors who have given criteria that they will buy at 90% LTV. These are seasoned investors that buy, fix, and sell homes regularly. I ran into one of these investors the other day and had the opportunity to ask how he is making a profit buying at 90% LTV. He turned to me and said, “Appreciation!” As soon as he said this I already knew his business model. I myself benefited from the recent appreciation he was referring to on a few deals I joint ventured on this year. Essentially, he is figuring out the average appreciation in the area the property is located in and estimating what this property will be worth when it is renovated. He then runs his numbers based on those future appreciated values. Thus, while I am using current values and purchasing at 75% LTV he is buying based on estimated appreciated values at 75% LTV. This makes his true LTV greater than 75% based on current values and he would out bid my offer. When I benefited from appreciated values I still bought based on the current value. When I listed the property and ran a new CMA I adjusted the list price up to the new values. This increase in value was a bonus and nice to have but I did not base my entire investment on this appreciation. In fact, I could have still listed the property at the original ARV, undersold all the other listings on the market, had a better product, and sold even faster. Read More→

There are several rather unusual ways that I like to use to locate motivated sellers. I’d like to share several of my favorites with you so you can find even more motivated sellers in a non-conventional way. This is absolutely the best time of the year to be locating motivated sellers since property tax bills have just gone out to owners in many states AND the holiday season is upon us. As you know one of my favorite techniques to locate highly motivated sellers is using direct mail and during the holiday season sellers are opening all of their mail since they are getting letters from friends they have not heard from in a year. Here are some of my other favorite albeit unusual techniques to find highly motivated sellers.

The first of these is to contact auction houses in your area and work with them to help you find leads on houses for sale. I’m talking about the auction you go to on Friday or Saturday night to buy “stuff”. Where do you think these auction houses get their merchandise? They get it from homeowners who need to get rid of a household full of items. One way to find these auction houses is to look in the yellow pages or google “Auctions” and find the ads that say “we consign estates”. These are going to be the ones you will want to work with. Many times an auction house will be contacted by an heir to sell items remaining in a property to settle an estate or to simply get rid of things remaining in the property after they inherit it. They may also be working with a widow or widower who wants to get rid of their excess furnishings, sell the home, and move into an assisted living facility or with a relative. The next item of business is to get the property sold as well. You can make a deal with the owner of the auction house to contact you when these situations arise, and they will give you the information about the sellers. If you offer a fair price and the auction house gets paid a commission, this is a good way to buy houses no one else knows about.

Another unique way to buy houses that no one thinks about is to contact local attorneys in your area who handle estate, probate, family, real estate and business law. Quite often they will have clients come to them with a probate situation, a divorce situation or a bankruptcy situation or other situation that they need handled. These clients need to sell a property quickly in order to liquidate assets no matter what condition the property is in. If you are a person of integrity and you do what you say you are going to do and offer a fair price, these attorneys will continue to contact you with potential deals. Interestingly enough, you will find that these attorneys talk to one another and you will find yourself getting referral business from other attorneys. This is one of the ways I use in my own business to bring in new leads on a regular basis.

Another way to find motivated sellers is to contact mortgage brokers who deal with private lenders. I have personally purchased several foreclosure properties this way. A private lender would just as soon sell a property they have had to foreclose on to you as they would rehab it themselves or sell it conventionally. This is an excellent way for you to get leads coming into your business, especially if you are just getting started. Very often the same private lender who had to foreclose will finance the same property for you if they see that you are going to get it sold and get them paid off. In addition, this is a good way for you to bring new private lenders into your own business. This is another technique that most of your competitors just don’t think about.

The fourth unique way I use to find motivated sellers is to check various types of ads in the newspapers and online. For example, you can check the marriage notices to find out who is getting married. If you see older couples, you can pretty much assume that they both already own homes and want to sell one or both to buy a home of their own. You can also check the death notices. When someone dies, there may be an heir who now has a house they need to sell. Tread lightly when following up on these leads, you don’t want to offend a potential seller. Send them a generic type of letter explaining that you are interested in buying some houses in their neighborhood. DO NOT refer to the fact that you know the person has died. You can also watch the paper for public auctions, bank foreclosures, and divorce filings. In divorce cases, you will have situations arise where neither spouse wants the property; therefore they are anxious to sell. Or they need to sell in order to liquidate assets.

Another way I like to locate potential deals is to locate vacant houses. I simply drive around and look for them whenever I am out driving somewhere. I will tell you, the more difficult it is to find the owner of these vacant houses, the better a deal you are likely to make. These houses are sitting empty for a reason. It may be a divorce situation where both parties just walked away, or an estate, or perhaps a pre-foreclosure. These are all good lead possibilities and vacant houses are some of the easiest potential leads to locate. In my personal business I use a skip trace service to find the owners of these vacant houses.

Another unconventional way to find a bargain is to make a friend of someone who owns a junk or disposal service. These folks are an excellent source of leads for you. Think about it. Who do people call when they have just inherited a house loaded with junk? Or maybe a widow or widower who needs to have the attic or basement cleaned out? In these scenarios the junk hauler is often the first person to be aware that a sale of the property is imminent based on their conversation with the owner. I will offer the hauler money for the lead and another fee if I actually purchase the property. This keeps him very interested in finding more properties for me to buy. And, once again these are leads your competition knows nothing about.

Speaking of unconventional ways to find deals, how about working with the owners of storage units? Think about it, if someone is putting things in storage, most likely it’s because they are moving. The owner or office manager of the storage unit is going to know it before anyone else and this is a very good source of leads for you. In addition, inside the offices of storage units there is usually a public board where you can post your business cards or a flyer with pull-tabs. When the person comes in to pay their bill, they will see your information. We have purchased properties using this very strategy.

Another great way to find excellent leads is by going to estate sales and yard sales. I know many of you like to do this on the weekend anyway, so here’s a great opportunity to mix business with pleasure. When you arrive at one of these sales, ask the person running it why they are selling their stuff. It’s that simple. I once bought a house where the owners were trying to sell enough “stuff” to make up a past due mortgage payment and they were in pre-foreclosure. If you see a sign that says “everything must go” this is also a pretty good indicator that they might be selling the house as well. Sometimes in estate situations you will see a sign that says “estate sale”, another good indicator that the home might be for sale. If they don’t want to talk to you just then, leave your business card with them and also try to get a phone number to contact them later as well. These sales can be a very good source of leads for you and another idea that your competitors are simply not thinking of.

And last, but certainly not least are your tenants. What an incredible source of leads for you if you are a landlord. We have a tenant referral program where we offer our tenants a credit of one hundred dollars toward the following month’s rent if they give us a lead and we buy the property. We have purchased multiple houses on the same street using this technique. Your tenants are hearing about situations while talking to their neighbors that you would never know about otherwise. When the tenant knows they can make money from it, they will refer these people to you.

We also put signs in the yard of every rental property that we own which helps our tenants start a conversation with a potential seller. They will give the potential seller our contact information as well as getting their information for us. We have some tenants who are fairly greedy and send us lots of potential leads.

As a real estate investor, you always want to be finding new ways to locate properties no one else knows about, and to have between three and five marketing strategies in place at all times.

Kathy KennebrookKathy Kennebrook is a speaker, author and has been actively investing in real estate since 1999, Kathy currently resides in Bradenton, FL and is known as the “Marketing Magic Lady” because she is the country’s leading real estate marketing expert on finding motivated sellers using direct mail.

Contact Kathy Kennebrook

Kathy Kennebrook’s Other Articles >>

This month I want to continue the line of thinking how sellers think differently than investors. Last month I talked about how sellers believe their property is worth top dollar even though many times they failed to keep the property in good condition.

Once you realize this will be what you will be facing when you first talk to most sellers you will have a better understanding of why sellers say the things they do when you ask them questions, such as “We Want ALL Cash” for our house.

You need to realize that the investor is trying to buy just another house they can make money with, while many sellers are selling a home that has emotional meaning to them if they live in the property. This difference of thoughts and emotion make a huge difference when you are negotiating. As I said before, this isn’t rocket science it’s just a fact of life. When you understand how sellers think you might have an easier time putting together a more profitable deal. By finding out what the seller’s true needs are, will give you a position of power when negotiating your deals. Remember, each seller has just one house to sell and you have thousands of houses to look at and choose from. This is why you are the one in the position of power when negotiating.

More than anything else you need to know why the seller is selling their house if you want to create a win-win deal. You truly are in control of each negotiation. You just don’t realize it. I concluded many years ago that I have lived many years without this seller’s house and if I am unsuccessful making a deal I will probably live out the rest of my life just fine without that house.

Here is a list of things you need to think about when talking to every seller. Read More→

Pretty Houses and Ugly Houses

Posted on November 28, 2014 by

I was recently on a panel discussing the business models of pretty houses vs. ugly houses. The good news is that both businesses are extremely viable in today’s economy.

Because I have been a successful investor for so many years, I know that there is no wrong choice between the two strategies, but I also know that it is essential to have both techniques in your arsenal so that you can take advantage of all possibilities. The more options you have, the better your chances are of making the most money.

I would like to teach YOU about both business models so that you have yet another tool to help you to succeed. Here is just some of the knowledge I’d like to share with you.

The Ugly House

An Ugly House is a distressed property. When you drive past an ugly house, you will see needed repairs, tall grass, and broken windows. There may be prostitutes, drug dealers, and individuals who make it unappealing to live in the community. A majority of Ugly houses are typically in lower socioeconomic neighborhoods, but sometimes in moderate or middle class neighborhoods.

The Ugly House Market is large because after 15 years, a new house will have a higher chance of being ugly because of deterioration. The owners have let things go. They have not maintained the property. They may not have bought a new roof or an HVAC system; there are large ticket items that need to be addressed. Read More→

When most people think of retirement they think of long walks on the beach, golf, sitting around the house enjoying their grandchildren, and other happy thoughts. If you look at how most investment and annuity companies advertise, that’s exactly the dream they’re pushing. That advertising and marketing strategy has worked very well at getting Americans to fork over their hard-earned money to money managers, brokers and other financial professionals for them to underperform the Index on their behalf.

The thing is, it used to be easier. For example, the long term average dividend for U.S. equities has been 4.4 percent, going back to the 1920s. Stocks are paying a dividend of less than half that figure now, at 1.9 percent for the S&P 500.

Meanwhile, investors are currently paying 20 times earnings and up for exposure to the stock market. The long-term average is closer to 15 times earnings. Your parents and grandparents were getting a much greater return on investment than you are likely to get going into retirement.

In the 1970s, you could easily buy bonds that generated 10 to 12 percent interest, without breaking a sweat. Money markets even generated some solid numbers north of 5 percent and up. Inflation was a factor then, but inflation moderated, finally, going into the 80s, when investors simultaneously enjoyed the beginning of one of the biggest bull markets in history. But that happened because dividends could be profitably reinvested and multiples were simultaneously expanding from the tough times of the 1970s. Read More→

Subordination

Posted on November 28, 2014 by

This technique will be used frequently and is one of my favorites to make a property easy to fund. It simply means the seller will take back a second, allowing you to get a new first to cover down payment and other costs.

The big advantage is it sets the stage for you to negotiate a deal that’s easy to fund because you can borrow the first at a low LTV making a hard money loan easy to get.

Example:

Seller wants $1,000,000 for an apartment complex that needs $100,000 in work. She owns it free and clear and fixed up and rented, you feel it’s worth $1,800,000. Seller says she’ll take $100,000 down and the balance within 24 months but will subordinate to a new first and take low or no payments or interest on the $900,000 second.

Purchase price $1,000,000
Down payment $ 100,000
Seller second $ 900,000

New hard money 1st $300,000
Less down payment -100,000
Less rehab costs -100,000
Cash to you $100,000

Financing structure
New 1st $300,000
Seller 2nd +900,000 – no or low payments
$1,200,000

Your exit is to buy, fix and refinance with a good, permanent loan, or sell. You should be able to get a $1,350,000 loan (75%) or more and pull out cash once it’s stabilized. Read More→

Using Forms to Free Up More Time

Posted on November 28, 2014 by

“What the world really needs is more love and less paperwork.” ~ Pearl Bailey

Welcome to 2015 – I know it’s going to be a great year! And while the weather is cold, what a good time it is to review office procedures and forms to make sure the business is humming along as efficiently as possible. I guess you could call it a kind of pre-spring cleaning. I know, it’s not as good as sledding, but work with me, here.

If you’ve taken any of my courses, you know how much I like to automate. The fewer steps it takes to get something done, the better I like it. Creating a good system of business forms is a big part of automation, especially if I can get forms to share information with each other, or feed data into a spreadsheet. So part of my pre-spring cleaning is to review my forms every now and then to make sure they still make sense.

And let’s face it: There’s nothing more annoying than trying to work with a badly designed form. If you doubt that, get online right now and try applying for a job at some big company. It can be a real nightmare!

Forms, of course, have always been a pain in the neck. The military is famous for them. Heck, the Romans probably had rotten forms, too. Until just a few years ago, there was no relief from bad forms. You were stuck with whatever form somebody handed you. Read More→

In January of 2014, Florida passed a law that allowed the Banks to push their foreclosures through the court system faster than the normal 879 days that it used to take. I have seen foreclosures go through the court as quickly as 4 to 5 months because the Sellers, even though they do not have an attorney, do not take the time to file an “Answer” when they are served with the Summons and Complaint. An Answer, in which they themselves can file, simply states that they would like this matter set for trial. This letter includes the caption of the court pleading and their address and telephone number. They would have to file this Answer with the Court along with a Proof of Service that they mailed a copy to the Attorney representing the Plaintiff (Bank). Once an Answer is filed, the Court must slow down the Foreclosure proceedings to allow enough time for the proper hearings that are entitled to the Sellers.

I used to advise my students to wait to send marketing letters to Sellers who were in Foreclosure for at least 6 months. Times have changed! I am now recommending, due to this new law, that the marketing starts as soon as the Notice of Lis Pendens (a document letting the public know that the Sellers are in Foreclosure) is served to the Seller. Many Sellers are running scared. They are moving out before they even have time to fight the fight. I say “Don’t Run and Don’t Let the Bank Win” and do a short sale. Even if you are doing a Loan Modification and/or Short Sale, the Bank is still pushing through the Courts to get a foreclosure hearing date set. However, a short sale takes control of the Sellers destiny. Read More→

Year End Tasks

Posted on November 28, 2014 by

It is the goal of this column to answer questions about QuickBooks and how it is used in the REI arena. Know how to record transactions in the proper way and have your set of books in good shape when it comes time for taxes. It is our intention to do this by you the members submitting questions to Karen@smallbusinessadvisor.biz, and getting answers here in this column.

Q: What are the important tasks I should be doing to prepare for Year End?

  1. There are a number of things to do for Year End and tax filing:
    1. Reconcile all bank statements and credit card accounts – you may have to reconcile the credit cards into January to capture all your December expenses
    2. Order w-2’s and 1099’s forms and envelopes
    3. Print W-2’s and 1099’s – W-2’s if you are using the Pay Roll module and 1099’s for all subcontractors (they should be set up as vendors and you must have their Social in order to print a 1099). You have until January30th to produce these.
    4. If you have inventory that you track in QuickBooks you must take a physical inventory and reconcile with book inventory for accuracy.
    5. Check with your CPA if he/she requires a full back up of your QuickBooks or an Accountant’s copy. If they take a full back up that they are going to make adjustments to you cannot work in your copy – if they are going to send you a printed copy of the adjustments for you to enter then you can continue working.
    6. An Accountant’s copy will ask for a cutoff date for the accountant to work in a certain period and this allows you to continue work – when the accountant has finished you should be able to import the accountant’s changes.
    7. Back up your data as an additional safety at year end for you to keep after you send the file to the CPA
    8. Print out your Income Statement and Balance Sheet with a comparison to the prior year. This will provide you with some information on increases/decreases in expenses, income, liabilities, assets, etc. Don’t forget the Income statement is only half the picture – the Balance sheet is the other half.

Read More→