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SheReadyLLC

Selling and Buying at the same time!

I purchased my current home in 2017 using my VA loan benefit. It was a smooth and happy experience.

Fast forward to 2023, my life has drastically changed and it’s time to MOVE. In preparing for this move, I have done 2 main things.

  • I decluttered.
    • I threw away, sold and gave stuff away that was no longer useful to me or taking up space.
  • I set a goal to have a specific amount of money that I’m going to need.
    • This money is to be used for moving costs, purchasing new furniture, and any small updates like paint, flooring and gadgets (nest thermostat, ring doorbell, and alarm system)

On April 5th I met with a realtor that I decided to work with based upon his knowledge of the area (he lives down the street) and I looked at his closing stats. Out of all the realtors who have listings, the properties listed with him seem to not stay in the market longer than a month. He was also the previous seller agent for my current house.

Juggling A Lot

We discussed a lot of things. Here is a list of the things we discussed:

  • What updates and upgrades have I done?
  • What contingencies do I have?
    • Closing cannot be done quickly as I need to look for a home out of state.
    • I also mentioned renting back to the seller as an option.
  • We discussed the steps to getting HOA approval to put a sign in the yard.
  • I’ll be leaving some furniture in the house that I’m not taking with me .
  • We talked about having a photographer taking pics and drone footage.
  • We talked about listing the home as Coming Soon prior to it being Active and ready for showings.

We discussed a few more things, but you get the idea of what goes on besides just talking about the price.

The house was listed on April 7th and after what felt like a never ending time frame of showings, I received an offer on April 30th.

SheReadyLLC

Why Am I Sharing My Journey???

The word “WHY” always comes up when someone starts a new journey and adventure. The “WHY” can be one thing or many things. I asked myself why did I get into real estate investing many times. Other people have asked me why I got into real estate. It’s funny, yet interesting to me how one word helps define your reason for continuing to do something and push forward through trials and tribulations.

Everyone has a story to tell. We all have different experiences in life and we all handle situations and challenges differently. I am no different from anyone else and I don’t see myself as being more special or more privileged than anyone else.

I’m sharing my journey because it helps me learn from my mistakes and I hope someone else will learn from my mistakes and make better decisions. I enjoy sharing what I know and what I’ve learned with others.

If you have recently started a new journey or set a new goal for yourself, I’d love to hear about it. What is your “WHY” and what do you do when you get stuck or feel like giving up.

Leave me a comment or email.

SheReadyLLC

Tax Lien Redeemed and Another Lesson Learned

In August 2020, I wrote an article about my first tax lien buying experience in MS. Click on the link to review the post. Tax Lien Buying in MS

Yesterday, I went to the mailbox and low and behold, I received mail from MS. Immediately, I knew someone had paid their property taxes and I was getting the money I paid back plus interest which I was looking forward to. Low and behold, that is not exactly what happened. Yes, I got some money back with interest, but not everything I paid.

Here’s the breakdown on what happened.

  1. Tax lien cost $177.33
  2. I paid $199.33
  3. I received $193.29

When I looked at the stub that came with the check. it listed the delinquent amount which in my case is $177.33 and then it lists the interest on that amount which is 15.96% and that’s how I ended up with $193.29.

Now I lost $6.44 but it’s also a gain because I learned that I should have paid more attention to the training for the website and during the live auction. I’m pretty sure this is the lien I was bidding against myself on. I was in a bidding war with someone and went a little too far. LOL! I’m laughing because it’s an easy mistake to make when dealing with online bidding and attending the live auction. Normally, I wouldn’t attend the live bid, I would place my bids and wait for the results. This is not something I’m going to beat myself up over, but it is something I wanted to share because it’s an easy mistake to make for anyone.

On a positive note, let’s say I did only pay $177.33 for it and I received $193.29 with the 15.96% interest. That’s $15.96 on $177.33. You are not going to get that with your money in a bank. Keep in mind, I purchased this in August 2020 and it’s February 2021. I can’t make that much interest on $5,000 in the bank in 6 months. It’s definitely something to think about as you find ways to make your money work for you.

If you are interested to see other rate of other states, check out the link below.

Tools and Resources

SheReadyLLC

The Value of a Property Manager

Earlier this week, my hometown of Meridian, MS got hit pretty hard with winter weather. It snows about 3-4 years in that area, however if 2020 wasn’t enough to put everyone on edge, the winter storm of 2021 sure did.

After checking on my immediate family, I reached out to the Property Manager I have looking after my rental property in the area to check on her and the tenant in my property. I was not surprised to hear something had happened. However, I am pleasantly pleased at how she has handled the situation.

The tenant was not at home at the time and a pipe under the second bathroom burst and she was already on it. She’s already hired someone to fix the issue and turned the water off to prevent a large bill for the tenant. She said, “I only want to involved you when I really need to”. That to me is a sign of a great Property Manager. She knows I don’t live in the state and that I have other things going on and understands the importance of her position to take care of the tenant needs and the property.

In this moment, I couldn’t be more happy that I actually pay someone 10% of the rental income to have someone to take of things like this. I’m also reminded of a book I read named Long-Distance Real Estate Investing By David M Greene that recommended hiring a property manager as well. My advice to anyone especially, if you are a long distance real estate investor is to add a Property Manager to your team. It will be better for you in the long run.