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Posted about 6 years ago

I found a better deal right after backing out of first accepted offer

I backed out on the last property I was interested in. It was my first offer accepted ever. I was excited and learned a lot about the process of purchasing a property. I consulted with lenders, lawyers, inspectors and contractors. My gf and I then realized the property needed too much repairs and it just felt too risky for our first deal. The cash needed to put up front exceeded our budget. We needed a better deal, one that applied for an FHA loan or could be financed up to 90% and did not need a whole lot of repairs.

I again started looking in clasificadosonline.com, the site where most puertoricans post property listings. Using the specific keyword filter in the search, I looked up FHA and stumbled upon a condo apt 3 bedrooms with 1 and half bathrooms. I had gone to this condo before so recognized it just by glancing at it. I never considered that area before, in the financial center of San Juan. Now it seems like an obvious place to look at but looking at Airbnb data there is no competition compared to other touristy parts of San Juan and it is still at prime location close to everything. 

We went to see the apartment. It was remodeled recently and looked move in ready. Spacious, big windows, cross ventilation, in a quiet and secure area in the middle of everything. Best of it all, it applied for FHA loan. The real estate agent who showed it to us seemed to be pretty informative versus other mediocre real estate agents that we've met before. She even knew a lender which had prequalified me before for exactly FHA. 

The property is listed for $137,000 and the numbers work for us, cash-flowing $150+. Close luxury properties and location make us believe that the value won't go down as easily as other parts of the island. The catch is that it needs to be our primary residence as owner-occupied for at least a year. The ideal was to rent it right away long-term. We believe that by renting it out some days in Airbnb, but living the rest of the days in it, we still qualify. Airbnb is something we've done before in a more competitive area and still marketed well and maintained 80% vacancy. We can rent it at crazy LOW price compared to market prices and still make the money for expenses and cashflow. That is our plan. 

Tomorrow I will be told if the condo applies for Airbnb. If not, we'll consider short-term rentals (maybe?). Worst that can happen is that all goes to poop and I'll be back at clasificados hunting for deals and learning more every single day while others play xbox and fight with their girlfriends. 

Day-21 of my #100DaysOfRealEstate challenge.



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