Mike Stark is a web guru and search engine optimizer. He is responsible for my website. He designed it. He built it. He told me to blog. I interviewed Mike last week about his first real estate purchase. Here’s what he told me
KM: Like me, you live in uptown. Why did you buy your first house here?
MS: This is actually my second house. I bought this one and another one (on Weber Street) as investments. I had a buddy and the two of us bought two townhouses. Not too long after we bought them, because we were both starting our businesses, we bought each other out and this one became mine.
KM: So originally you didn’t live in it?
MS: No. When I bought it, it had tenants and I had to ask them to leave.
KM: So you could move in?
MS: Well yes and also they got way behind in the rent.
KM: Oh.
MS: And they never took out the garbage. When I asked them to leave I said something like, “if you leave tomorrow I won’t go after you for the back rent”.
KM: And they left?
MS: The next day. But they left a hell of a mess. I’m sure they never took out the garbage the whole time they lived here. They left all their furniture behind too. So I rented a bin. The funny thing is (I can laugh about it now), the funny thing is that I filled the bin with garbage before I even started removing the furniture.
KM: Wow.
MS: Yeah, it’s amazing how some people live. So I learned something about buying rental properties with tenants. Check them out thoroughly before you assume them and get as much in writing as you can from the seller and the selling agent. You maybe buying someone else’s problem.
KM: Good advice. Thanks Mike.
