Multifamily Appartment Homes May Be a Safe Harbor for Investors

For years, the over inflated residential housing market has made investors nervous. Prices have risen far beyond fundamentals. In most Orange County real estate, break even on cash flow required 50% or more down. With these requirements at today's prices, it was getting harder and harder to make a property cash flow. Before the market peaked, my firm was slowly moving our clients out of bloated condos and into multifamily homes, especially 4-plexes.
The theory was that we could acquire highly desirable 4-plexes at prices between $650k to $700k. This is nearly half of what some of the pricier Orange County Beach city neighborhoods were asking. And they were located in very desirable high growth areas. Second, with 4 units, we have been able to achieve over $50,000 per year gross income. When you compare this to to around $24,000 for a single family home in Orange County, you can see that the cash flow will inevitably be twice as good. Third, the theory was that when the residential single family home market finally cooled, well qualified former homeowners would still need someplace to live and would flee to apartments while the market cooled. Thus with the increased demand we expected to see increasing rental prices. Which in turn would make the property cash flow better. Since these properties values are usually based on a gross multiples of their rental income, the increase in rental income would lead to the buildings value increasing in the face of decreasing residential single family homes.
So now that the market has changed you might be wondering how these investments are holding up. The answer seems to be very well for now. We have not seen any real softness among rental properties. Sure, once in a while you find an over zealous owner that went too far out on a limb acquiring the property with too little down. In order to accomplish cash flow, they may have financed the property on an artificially low interest rate loan that now has them upside down. But for the most part, most of our planning seems to have paid off. When it comes to multi-family homes ie. 4-plexes, they just don't make enough of them. Scarcity alone seems to be a factor in the buildings holding their value. If there is any danger in these properties loosing value, we believe it would be from rising interest rates squeezing cash flow. In order to insure stability, we usually recommend buyers finance the home using long term fixed rate loans. When it comes to one to four unit buildings, interest rates are terrific and financing is easy. In many circumstances 4-plex multifamily apartment homes may serve your long term need for both cash flow and appreciation. Visit out investors page for special real estate investment opportunities. We are also promoting special foreclosure opportunities at trustee sales. Please call or write for more details.

Want to make money in Orange County Real Estate? Trustee Sales may be your Best Bet!

They have a saying in politics, “all politics are local”. The same applies to real estate. In Orange County, it has become very difficult to achieve the American dream of increasing wealth through real estate. Prices remain high and double digit appreciation has disappeared. After months of putting great deals together on foreclosures, tax sales, and with distressed owners, I believe I have perfected a system for the best deals yet, capitalizing on Orange County Trustee Sales.

In prior years, investors would buy real estate at retail and it would increase in value by 20%, year over year. Under these conditions, it didn’t matter what you bought, you were going to make money. If we figure on in and out cost of 7%, that still left a hefty profit. But the rules have changed. And appreciation is out the window at least for the moment. If you want to make money in Orange County real estate you’re going to have to buy it right.

“Buying it right” means different things for different people. This will change based on the amount of money you have to put down and your time frames. With more money down, buying and holding becomes a very feasible strategy. With the right down payment, the property can carry its mortgage. Rents are very strong in Orange County but the break even point for cash flow may be as high as 35% to 60% down depending on the type of property and location. If buying and holding is a possibility for you, then you have a lot of choices regarding buying the right property. Bank foreclosures, REO, tax sales, and distressed sellers all may good sources for finding the right real estate deal that may perform well and increase in value over the long run.

But many people don’t have the ability to tie up large sums of money long term. Furthermore, they may not want to risk decreasing values in the short term. In this case, fix and flip may be their best bet. But to utilize this strategy you are going to need to buy the property at least 10% to 15% below market. This is no small feat. In Orange County, bank foreclosures are selling around 3% to 5% below market. Tax sales have been rather slim and distressed sellers will typically sell if they discount their real estate by 5%. Furthermore, investors have to be very careful not to violate California equity purchase laws. These factors have made typical sources for Orange County foreclosure properties worthless if you want to find fix and flip properties right now.

But wait! There is hope. The trustee sale. What is a trustee sale you ask? When a bank forecloses, there are 2 processes that a bank can use to foreclose, the judicial and non-judicial foreclosure. (See our article on California non Judicial vs. Judicial foreclosure and Borrowers Redemption Rights) For our purposes we are interested in the non judicial foreclosures as prior owner do not have redemption rights. This means we can resell the property immediately. With the non judicial foreclosure, when the Orange County real estate is foreclosed, the holder of the trust deed hires a company to auction off the property to the highest bidder prior to giving the real estate to the bank. The amount that is asked is typically the cost of the outstanding note that is foreclosing plus the cost of the sale. As an example, if we take a $600k home that has a 1st trust deed of $450k and a second trust deed of $100k and if the 1st trust deed is foreclosing, then that means you can typically buy the home for around $455k assuming the price is not bid up. That is about 25% under market value. Now we are talking. We just made some serious cash. Net profit might be around $105,000

Now for the tough part. If it was easy everyone would be doing it, wouldn’t they???
Here is the catch. First, you must pay cash for the property at the time of sale. You must show up at the court house with a cashiers check for the full amount of the property for sale. In our example above, that means $455k.
Second, the property is bought “as is” without warranty. That means you will be responsible for anything wrong with the property, including all liens not wiped out by the foreclosure. In our example above, the second would be wiped out, but if there were property taxes, hoa dues, special assessments, IRS liens etc., they would still exist and you would now be liable for many of them. So the bottom line is you better do your research prior to bidding. Performing a thorough title search will help, but even a thorough title search may not be without risk as liens are sometimes recorded just prior to the sale. So buyer be ware! Even though the payoff can be large, it is not without risk.
Last, many times the property must be purchased sight unseen. For many people with no tolerance for risk, this may be the deal breaker. However, if you know the product that you are bidding on, you can hedge your bet by estimating possible costs against your potential gain.

If you are trying to purchase Orange County trustee sale properties on your own it can be exhausting. Most people don’t have the ability to do a good job with title searches and may not have the experience to identify problems. It is labor intensive to tract properties going to sale. They are published regularly in local papers, but when you go to the auction, you will find that they are typically postponed for various reasons including bankruptcy and bank work outs between the owner and bank. In order to successfully bid on the property you may have to return a week or more later when the bidding process resumes. Last and most importantly, in order to know what price to bid on a property it is important to have current comparable sales in your target properties neighborhood. I ‘m not just talking about sales in the last 6 months. I mean current active listings. If you are going to flip this house, you must know what your competition is and what price will cause the home to sell within 30 to 90 days. We recommend setting a conservative price as market conditions may erode depending on the time of year and buyer demand. In order to get recent comparable sales information, the MLS is probably the only complete source for timely information.

If you want to bid on properties at Orange County trustee sales, most investors find it invaluable to have an expert on their team. A professional can help research properties and provide valuable experience when making important decisions. We have a program for investors that will make this process easy and profitable. Call John Daniel at (949)481-7358 for further details or visit www.JDanielRealty.com.

An Eviction Overview & Tips to Avoid a Do Over!

This information is not meant to be specific legal advice. Although it is believed a reliable overview, it is not guaranteed. The laws in California change frequently and you should consult an attorney for specific legal advice.

As a first time Landlord, eviction can sometimes seem scary. With the right document preparation and procedure, it can go smoothly. I am a big proponent of doing your homework up front when screening for the best most qualified tenant applicant. But even the best of us will once in a while get a bad apple due to unforeseen circumstances. If this happens, save yourself a lot of grief and consult a professional attorney who handles evictions. Most of them charge only around $500 for the procedure and can save you thousands in lost time, aggravation, damages, and yes a do over ordered by the courts for failing to comply with state law.

In general there are 2 types of evictions, contested and uncontested. Lets first look at the uncontested eviction. When a tenant fails to pay rent or when a landlord wishes to terminate a month to month tenancy, there are 2 forms most commonly used. Respectively, they are the 3 day pay or quit and the 30 day notice to vacate. When a tenant fails to respond to these, a complaint is filed with the court. A summons and complaint is then served to each party to the action. At the time of this service, it is recommended that a prejudgment claim of right to possession be served also. This will make the judgement applicable to all parties occupying the residence not just the specific person mentioned in the complaint. This form could avert a third party "Arrieta Claim" in effect causing a do over! Once served the resident has 5 days to answer the complaint. If the resident fails to respond, the owner can request to enter default and judgment and be issued a writ of possession.

The writ of possession is then given to the Orange County or other Sheriff. and the eviction notice will be served. The tenant has 5 days to vacate at which time the sheriff will remove them if they are not gone. As the owner, you should be prepared to change the locks and secure the property. If the sheriff removed the occupant, then the occupant has 15 days to claim their belongings. If no sheriff was involved they have 18 days. After this time, the owner may dispose of the items if they are valued at less than $300. For items more than $300 a public action must be held. Any unpaid balances will have to be collected with another court action.
With regard to a contested eviction, if the resident answers the complaint, a memorandum to set a civil trial should be filed with the court clerk and request for a trial and notice of trial. The judge will hear the arguments and if the owner wins, judgment after trial by court and notice of entry of judgment will be prepared and recorded. The remaining steps are the same as above in the uncontested eviction. Should the tenant win, this is equivalent to a do over, and the owner will have to go back to the beginning and better prepare his case.

It is my sincere wish that you never have to use these procedures. But if you do, please consult the help of a professional attorney. If you don't have one, feel free to contact me for more information.

California Non Judicial vs. Judicial Foreclosure and Borrowers Redemption Rights

The following article is not meant to be legal advice and although believed to be accurate is not guaranteed. You should verify all information before investing in and transacting trustee sale properties and possibly seek legal council. "Caveat Emptor", Let the buyer be ware.

In California, most lenders choose non-judicial foreclosure. When we look at the difference between the 2 forms of foreclosure it becomes clear why lenders choose this form of foreclosure.

With Judicial foreclosure, the foreclosure occurs in the courts. Its starts with a complaint filed to the court and notice of Lis Pendens. This process can involve attorneys, added court costs and can take 1 to 2 years. In addition, the borrower may have a right of redemption from 3 months to 1 year and may be allowed to remain in possession of the property during this time period.
Loss of marketability and control of the property can make judicial foreclosure much more costly and may ultimately reduce the net recoverable amount that the bank may get from its liquidation. The benefit of a judicial foreclosure is that a deficiency judgement may be issued in favor of the lender against the borrower. However, this may only be true for recourse loans. In California, most first trust deeds are non-recourse loans. In these cases judicial foreclosure simply would not make any sense.

Therefore, non judicial foreclosure is much more common in California. With this form of foreclosure, the lender first files a notice of default. For the next 60 days, the foreclosure will remain dormant. This is the time of redemption for the borrower. Once the redemption period has expired, a notice of trustees sale is published in the adjudicated paper of general circulation in the city where the property is located. Publication takes place 1 time per week for 3 weeks. The actual sale date will be established at least 30 days after the date of first publication. At the sale, the property will be sold for a minimum of the full amount of the debt plus foreclosure fees and expenses to the highest bidder. Bidding for non judicial foreclosure properties typically takes place on the steps of the county courthouse or other public predisclosed locations. The procedure is typically conducted by a foreclosure company or title company. Successful bidders must pay for the property in full at the time of bidding in the form of cash or a cashiers check or equivalent.

This information was gathered in response to a question that I recently received regarding the borrowers redemption period. I hope that it proves helpful to you in your bid for investment property. These are but some of the many issues surrounding foreclosure properties and trustee sales. Please do your research carefully regarding liens that may not get wiped out by the foreclosure process.