Lea's Journal

You are so funny since you are busy doing deals all over the place and then some It would be an honor and lots of fun to do a deal with you anytime! You have a fun weekend too.

We looked at our partners SS property today. The yard in front has been well kept but the back yard grass is thick, dense and taller than me! No exageration. I wanted to check out the 1/1 but didn't want to walk through the grass not knowing what unseen critters (snakes) could possibly be there. Must let our partner know it needs to be mowed in the back.

Lea

The pastor looked at our partner's SS property. It wouldn't work for him for his landscaping business or his church. However, he told us he has a partner and the 2 of them want to get into REI. His partner and him want to take a look at it next week.

We talked with him a little about what we do and he said he is going to refer folks from his congregation to us who are facing foreclosure.

Denny e-mailed our partner suggesting an open house on one of his L/O's that we have gotten a lot of calls on. He just got back today and we have so much to catch up on.

Today we talked to our other investor with the house near us. Yesterday we drove by to check on it and the yard was freshly mowed. He has no idea who mowed it. There must be some good-deed-doers in the area LOL

Lea

thanks for the call today. you have no idea what it did for me.

Good morning Lea
I just wanted to stop by and say thanks again for all you and Denny do for me.
I am hoping that we work togetheron the other home and hopefully that package deal if your SS partner doesn't take action on them. You two are so driven to get things done,I know good things are around the corner for you.
keep up the hard work and it will pay off.
Richie.

Linda & Richie, Talking to you both is like a cool breeze on a hot day.

Linda - It was wonderful getting to talk to you the other day. You have a lot of wisdom about REI and sincerely want to help others. I know this will take you to many great places and great opportunities will come to you because of this! You have such a great sense of humor which is so important in life!

Richie - Denny and I are having a fun time working with you on this!

Denny is doing some resesasrch on the other home. I spoke with our partner this morning and he is contacting the owner of the possible package deal this morning. We are so blessed to have met you (and others) through this site. Dean has opened many doors for us. Thank you for always sharing your wisdom and knowledge with us. Your zest for REI, positive 'I can do' attitude and humbleness is a true testiment to the kind of person you are. Will keep you posted on the other home.

Lea

Great to hear about the package deal, If he drops the ball like I said, lets pick it up and run
Its funny, when I spoke to Rina and the southern phantom the other day, We both agreed that it is really incredible on how many great people we found on this site and how a few of us really became good friends. We are truly blessed to have this awsome FREE site. I really dont think I could thank Dean enough for everything that has happened for me and the great life long friends I now have.
Well keep moving along and hopefully that other deal will happen for us.
love you guys
RICHIE.

Thank you! Absolutely! Will definitely keep you posted.

Rina and you are right. I never would have thought back in September when I started my journal and reading others that I would have been blessed with the friendships that we have made. How cool is that!?!! I agree with you, it's hard to put into words to Dean for what he does - he probably doesn't even realize himself.

The countdown continues, 6 more days

Hugs,

Lea

Hello,
How are ya? Just stopping by to stay hello!! everyones journals are so in depth and full of information that like yours ive had to take a break from reading than come back!! almost done reading it but continued blessings in the rei World!!

Thanks for stopping by and taking the time from your busy schedule and saying hello You are taking the REI world by storm and are such an inspiration to so many Continued blessings to you also my DG sister.

Lea

We discovered our partner never followed up with the gentleman who owns the 8 properties (6 owned outright 2 upside down.) So we will be meeting with the owner's son next week to look at the properties. He has tenants in 6 of the properties and is contacting them to let them know he is showing the property. One of his concerns is if the new owner raises the rents (he has lowered them for some people who have lost jobs.) I have a message into a local property manager to see if he works in that town just in case.

It's been a strange week coming to terms with the fact that our partner just blew this homeowner off and also a great lead. I just don't get it. But it is what it is.

We are reassessing our commitment to our partner. Thank you to those of you who gave us your thoughts and input about this. You know who you are.

We got to look at Richie's property a couple days ago and are soooo excited for him and his upcoming closing.

Lea

Lea, always look forward, never behind you. You cant fix the past but you can layout the blue print for the future the way you want it to be.

Get those houses under contract and make it happen! You guys deserve that and more.
Good things are in your future! I know that because good things happen to good people
everything will work out in the end.

Richie.

I will make a note of that thanks! We are meeting the owner's son at house #1 at 9:30 on Monday and then the other properties. One of the properties we'll look at on Tuesday.

Will keep you posted on the duplex I mentioned to you earlier. I'm hoping to get to talk to Ed shortly.

Lea

Hey whats going on guys. I had some time on my hands to just sit back and catch up on your journal on this Sunday night, so I stopped by to say hello. Its funny because I almost feel bad for not checking in before now. You seem to always make sure I am staying afloat and I appreciate that. You guys remind me of Rina because you have such a great heart and it shows in your willingness to help others. As always I wish you the best and I cant wait until we meet at the TOP!

Best Regards,
Shane

Thank you for taking the time out from your busy schedule to catch up and say hello. I love keeping up with your journal (and can't wait to hear about your 1st deal ) and have to say whoever it was that pointed out you're 'Shane-isms' hit the nail on the head You sure have a way with words and know how to keep all of us on the edge of our seats in your journal. Thank you for your kind words, being compared to Rina in any way at all is an honor but Rina is definitely in a class by herself She is amazing on so many different levels You are accomplishing a lot and are such a great inspiration on this site.

Take care my friend,

Lea

Today we went to look at 8 of the properties with the owner's son. We had originally planned on seeing 7 but they wanted to show us a townhouse near the beach that wasn't mentioned when we spoke earlier. Denny found it earlier along with the 2 other properties they haven't mentioned an interest in selling. I believe they are probably upside down on the townhouse but have to check. The owner's son said he doesn't know about any of these details. He manages the properties for his father and is tired of it. Tomorrow we will go look at the 9th property, a better day for the tenant. It was hot and humid. Fortunately we home before the thunder and lightning. All but 2 of the properties were air conditioned so that was cool (no pun intended )

All but one appears to be in pretty good shape. Most have tile or wood laminate throughout or at least in the main living areas. The 'one' not so great house has old damaged linoleum flooring, carpeting and 5 pets, not such a great mix. We could smell pet odors when we walked in. It isn't the worst condition of a house I've ever seen but needs more work than the others. The owner should have provided us with a map when we entered the 7/5 house, it seemed to go on forever LOL

I spoke to the local property manager and he does manage properties in this town if needed. The homeowner was concerned about his tenants having a place to live, so that's good news.

Lea

Very exciting stuff with this huge package deal! What a full day of looking at props! Sounds like they are pretty motivated too - upside down on a few and just tired of being in the landlord business! Perfect mix Glad you moved on despite your partner falling through and followed up yourself! Will look forward to keeping up with you and the details as they unfold. Best of luck to guys! Knowing that you get back in life equal to what you give you guys have a LOT coming

my DG sister, thank you for stopping by my journal it is always wonderful hearing from you. Boy, you sure have soooooo many things happening in your REI world. You and Rina make a fantastic team, you guys (ladies) are the 'Dynamic Duo'! Thank you for cheering us on about looking at these properties our partner had not interest in. We had fun looking at them. I enjoy looking at properties and learning. I think it's a blessing in disguise that our partner didn't want to do this. At first I kept asking myself why but reminded myself that I'll never understand and need to move on.

The gentleman (son of owner) who showed us the properties has a very nice relationship with all of his tenants and treats them with a lot of respect and vice versa. One of the properties we looked at had 4 bachelors living together and is a typical 'bachelor pad.' LOL It was cleaner than I would have expected and I couldn't help but visualize them running through the house getting it cleaned up on Sunday after a night of partying on Saturday. They have a cute black and white cat that the landlord knows about and also a little kitten he didn't know about. I almost laughed out loud when one of the bachelors said 'The kitten isn't ours, we are housebreaking it for a friend.' Cats are just about born housebroken.

Lea

You go Lea&Denny!!! keep on it,this is a blockbuster deal in the making!
I am so proud of you two getting out there and doing it for you and not that other guy. You guys deserve to reak the benefits of all the hard work you put into REI every day. I am right there if you need anything.

Richie.

i stand with Richie and Laura. i know it will all come together for you and you and Denny will take the REI world there by storm! you can't miss!

Thanks for the encouragement and all you do! It's funny but I feel a sense of freedom. Thank you for being there for us.

I still didn't talk to Ed (since this morning) but will keep you posted as soon as he gets the details to me.

Your friend,

Lea

Thank you! I appreciate your kind words. I hope you are feeling better very soon!! Seems like we haven't talked in ages but it really hasn't been that long LOL.

Your DG sister,

Lea

We looked at the last of the 10, yes ten (we looked at 9 yesterday, I lost count, they added 2 more) properties today. The owner's son changed his mind over and over today about when he wanted to meet at the property. But finally at 3:10 we met. While he kept delaying the time(he was busy at a rental property, hmmm another one we don't know about?) His sister has a rental propertiy too, one of the 10 properties are hers. we drove around the neighborhood checking it out and looking for 'for sale' and 'for rent' signs. We found quite a few.

After we left the property we stopped at a convenience store to get cold drinks. We asked the cashier how she was doing today and she said she was tired and stressed out. Turns out she just moved to the area from another part of the state. She is staying with a friend and is having a hard time finding a rental. We gave her our card and got her ph#. She is looking for a small 1 room place in a low price range. Richie, if you are reading this we'll talk more to you about her later. I'm not sure if she is a candidate for your duplex but will get more details. If not Ed can probably help her out.

So far in our journey of looking at houses we learned to bring a flashlight, camera, cooler with cold water and the thought crossed my mind to invest in a a machete to get through the overgrown yards with snakes LOL Yesterday we added bug spray to our list. While looking at one of the vacant properties the owner's son stepped in a red ant hill and got bit up. Them little ant bites hurt!

On a un-REI note, for the past couple weeks I've been making smoothies for us in the morning (with berries pineapples, bananas and sometimes plain yogurt.) These are my baby steps to healthier eating and are refreshing on a hot day too! Now all I have to do is start making carrot juice and I'll be on a roll.

Lea

WOO HOO! You guys are R-O-C-K-I-N-G !! This guy must own alot of properties!!!
Sounds like he is tired of renting and in need of a cash infusion on top.
I think you already hit on one of his buttons with him worrying about his renters being evicted by the new owners. hmmm I have an idea
Once you have all the info we'll talk. You'll have to blame Laura and Rina because they kinda molded me over time They help set my mind in being creative when thinking of what can be done.
good luck my friends, You are definately are on your way.
can I get a SCOTT WHO? lol. You guys are better on your own.

Richie.

WOW! Leave it to you to come up with and idea to help us help him help his tenants. I can't wait to hear your thoughts on this!! We want this to be a happy ending for everyone. OK, OK, I'll blame Laura and Rina for helping to mold you LOL. I've always been impressed out how quickly you think on your feet and the creative ideas that just pop our of your head.

SCOTT WHO?!!? HA! HA!

Your DG sister,

Lea

i'm lovin' it!!! don't forget about sandwich lease/options if needed.

I with the other guys on the Scott Who!! Its always to have someone else that has seemed to have success down the road you are traveling but if things do not work out. Never be afraid to seperate yourself from people who are not apart of your "YES" team. I give Randy all of the credit for that statement. In his last major entry that was posted on the home page of DG I remember him talking about this.
I am loving how busy you guys have been looking at all of these homes. I need to give myself a kick in the but and start looking at houses. Even if its not the ones that you buy, you would be surprise that there is always something to learn by just meeting people and going to look at the house. Eveyone of them are different and have a story to tell. It also kinda of get your creative process a good working out.

Keep on Keeping on and I will see you at the TOP!

Best Regards,
Shane

Thank you! L/O isn't out of the question. The owner wants 20% down for L/O's and then might consider it. We'll look at different options for him. Maybe a mix of both. He needs cash and is fed up with being a landlord. It seems he wants to put this all behind him. He is taking care of a sick wife too. She is the focus of his life now and the costs I'm sure are rising for her care. It's great that his son helps out but his son is tired too.

Your DG Sister,

Lea

Thank you for your encouragement and words of wisdom my friend. You always have so many things going on in your REI world and you stay busy with your job and your precious wife and little girl.

I have to admit I do enjoy looking at these properties and meeting different people. Some of the tenents in these properties are afraid that they will end up with no place to live. We were very considerate of this fact and respectful to them. We must come up with a way for everyone to be happy about this. And I'm just itching to hear Richie's thoughts!

Take care my friend,

Lea

the nonrefundable option consideration should come from the tenant/buyer and if they don't have the whole amount up front, maybe they can add an extra amount to the monthly payment until they have it covered. you want some money to put in your pocket too. just a thought....

It was so great to talk you the other day! Now I have a voice to go with the name...now we just need a picture haha. Or perhaps a face to face when Richie and I come see our props You guys are the best offering to be my eyes in checking out that house. The realtor got great pics for me so its not necessary on that one - but i will keep you on call
I must say - the way Richie is going I'll gladly take any 'blame' for playing a part in his creativity! There's no stopping him now!
Talk to you soon!