Deals Gone Bad #7: How Being a One-Man Show Led To A Stupid Tenant Lawsuit w/ Todd Toback » Episode 943

When a Realtor contacted Todd Toback about a deal that was falling through to see if he wanted it, he couldn’t see any downsides. The California house was built next to a landfill, sure, but it was worth $550,000 and they were selling it for $180,000. Even if he just rented it out forever, he’d always be in cash flow heaven. But when it came time to rent out the home, Todd didn’t want to pay a property management company the first month’s rent. So he listed it himself on Craigslist. Todd wants you to know one of the biggest lessons that he learned is that landlords should never be dealing with tenants. From the beginning, his tenants had his personal phone number and access to information that put him on a path to a crazy lawsuit. When you’re a one man show, then you’re in a sea of information and you can’t figure out where you’re at. You have to be good at marketing, at rehabbing, at being a landlord, at contracts, and everything else. Instead, Todd says you should figure out which of the four areas of real estate you’re good at: acquisition, disposition, marketing, and accounting. For the other three areas, partner with someone else or hire it out. Narrowly avoiding $68,000 in legal fees, Todd now puts a lot more layers in between his investments and his tenants. As a real estate investor, you need to do what you do best. For Todd, that’s locking up deals and empowering other people. Leave property management to the experts and save yourself time and money by hiring that out. What's Inside: —If a deal is too good to be true, then maybe there’s a toxic waste dump next door. —How you can figure out what you’re best at and focus in on that. —Don’t be scared to invest in other people. —For more epic Deals Gone Bad, text the word BAD to 313131.