A realtor asked if he could show our rental property to a client of his. We had a few conversations, and things sounded like they were on the right track. But there was NO rental application. The realtor was instructed to arm our security system when leaving the property, but we noticed it was not armed. After a few conversations with the realtor, I decided to head to the property. It was about 6am, and I found a man with three dogs there. The man shouts, “Stop, my dogs bite!” After a brief discussion, the man realized the realtor did NOT have the right to let him move in. We were lucky. He packed up his dogs and went away. Be careful with allowing realtors you don’t know to show your property! REALTOR LETS RANDOM MAN MOVE-IN
SURPRISE LIEN
FORGED LEASES
When I first started investing in real estate, I bought a value-add property for cash from another real estate investor. I was not a REALTOR® at the time, and as an anxious new real estate investor, I was not thinking about liens. The property had an outstanding lien because the current tenant had not paid the electric bill. The previous owner was only concerned about their rental payment and nothing else. When I got ready to pay the bill, I realized the tenant was stealing power and had severely damaged my electric meter socket load center. I had to get the electricity brought up to code. I spent triple what I paid for the property based on the lien, purchasing new equipment to get the property’s electricity up to the latest residential code, and inspection fees with the city’s community development department. I learned a valuable lesson in real estate investing.
A few years ago, during a final walk- through, we noticed five units were vacant, despite the rent roll stating they were leased. We questioned the owner, who stated that all five units had furniture delays. We then requested to see a copy of each lease and quickly identified that all five lessees not only had the same handwriting, but miraculously had the same handwriting as the property manager! Once again, we spoke to the owner and they doubled down, stating that they were legit leases. It was only after we pushed further that he confessed to having his team forge the leases. The best part of the story is the broker knew the truth the entire time, but still lied on behalf of the seller. This birthed our motto which we still live by to this day: “Never trust, always verify!”
Adrian Smude Mobile Home Investor Author of How to Buy Mobile Homes Read Adrian’s book
Dr. Michael Threatt Principal and CEO Elevate Housing Solutions, LLC Connect with Dr. Threatt
Ashley Wilson Co-Founder of Bardown Investments
Author of The Only Woman in the Room Read Ashley’s Book
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