RE Attorney and Tenant

Talk w/RE Attorney

I traded emails last year with a rep for a local real estate attorney, trying to get a meeting set up. Something would always seem to come up, and I never did get a chance to talk with him. Well, yesterday I had a few minutes to burn, so I called him again. This time I was able to talk directly with the person I needed to. I was fully expecting to say, "Hi - can I set up a time to come in and talk to you about your services and how they may be able to help me?" - instead I got what amounted to a sales pitch. I mean the guy just started and wouldn't stop about everything he could do for me. The only time I could get a word in edge-wise is when he asked me a question. This didn't come across too well for me, but listening to what he could do was a bit uplifting.

Basically, he said that due to the legislation Texas passed in late 2005 that made L/O's all but illegal, it narrowed down the options for investors to basically owner financing the property (which is what I wanted to do in the first place). He said his office can handle all the paperwork and once he got my and my buyer's info, closing should occur within a week - two at the most. I had expected to pay around $2,000 for closing costs, but he said my only costs would be $1,500 (he said the buyer would pay $1,500, also). Not bad, I suppose. I figure once I do an owner finance deal through his office (or maybe two), I'll have the info needed to do them on my own (via a title company) for less.

I then asked if his office handled subject-to closings. His exact quote was "Subject-to's work in California, but not in Texas." Needless to say I was a bit put off by his response as people do them here all the time. And, he was supposedly a RE attorney many investors recommend. So, I may go with him if I can't find someone else, but I still need to call another attorney who I know handles subject-to closings AND owner financed closings. Although, I would need to see what he charges, too.

Tenant

I got an email from the tenant yesterday - the first one ever. He basically apologized, profusely (again), and said he was so thankful I (and my wife) let him pay late (even though he paid the late fees). He said it would never ever happen again (we'll see), and he will have the remainder of the deposit on the day we agreed. Oh, and he said he wanted to know if I had a problem with his girlfriend staying with him. Ugh. So, I responded with a few bullet items with the first couple regarding other things I wanted to clear-up first. I then told him that I wouldn't have a problem with another person staying there, but she would need to fill out a lease app first - even if she wasn't going to contribute financially to the rent each month.

Judging by how slow he does things, I am going to go over there after work today and drop off the app in person and tell him he has 24 hrs to get it back to me.