How much money should a person have before they start ?

Question

How much money should a person have before they start investing in real estate ? How much money did you have ? I know that this is a braod question but I would like to know people thoughts.

Tre Mcfadden · Answer

Great question im a newbie and was kind of wondering the same thing as for me i live in houston with a start up cap of about 25k and homes here are through the roof. Im completely lost my self.

Dick Green · Answer

In business actually licensed???...11 to 13 years.  Been dabbling in real estate more than 20 years.  Not a member to any clubs.  Belong to several associations.  I Find good deals a number of different ways, word of mouth/referrals, mls, foreclosure list, fsbo's, newspapers, ect....

I hunt alot...my philosophy is, "the hungry hunter finds food".
When I was a kid, my grandmother (God bless her), often scolded me for openning the refrigerator and just stareing into it.  She would say, "If you can't see anything you want, you're not hungry".  It's the same in real estate....there's deals everywhere.  If you can't find one, you're not hungry enough.

As for apartments....my specialty is single family residential.

N/A N/A · Answer

Closing Costs:

Miscellaneous costs associated with closing a real estate transaction. Items such as points, attorney fees, appraisals, credit reports, prepaid interest, homeowner's insurance, title insurance, and reserves the lender collects for future taxes and insurance. The downpayment is not considered a closing cost.

Who Much Do you Need to start?

You can find decent places at realtor.com.  Here's the list I've been working on.  You might be able to get away with a small cash advance from one of those Platnium Cards from Capitol One!

Fort Smith, ARK
5 Unit Building
$50,000

Muskogee, OK
4 Unit Buildings
$20,000

Garden City, KS
3 unit building
$35,000

Clarksville TN
2 Unit Building
35K $600.00 income

Knoxville, TN
2 Unit Building
$18,000

Sedalia, MO
2 Unit Building
31K $535 income

Rugby, ND
4 Unit
$18.9K $1070 income

Mars Hill, ME
4 unit
30K 1375 income.

I would also like to add that with even 20% down you can get started for less than you think.

Check out City-Data.com to find low crime areas where you can invest.

Wes Tuinstra · Answer

Thanks Pizza Guy,

That is a very inspiring, positive, and instructive post.

My hat is off to you sir.

N/A N/A · Answer

What exactly are "closing costs"?  Is that the cost of tranferring title and realtor fees?

Dick Green · Answer

If I were just starting I would say No Money Down.  It equates to about $1500 to $1700 on a $140,000 purchase with a 570 credit score.

$500 earnest, $100 option fee, $200 inspection and approx $700 to $900 on insurance paid upfront.  Seller pays closing cost and depending on the time of year (like this time of year),  I might be able to walk away with some cash on the transaction.

N/A N/A · Answer

Hi dcg123,

How long have you been doing this ? Do you always go to real estate investment clubs ?  How do you come accross properties that are cheap ? Do you come accross any apartment buildings that are cheap ? Thanks for your time.

Dick Green · Answer

$25k is more that enough to get started.  Houston is my backyard and ranked as one the top ten best places in the U.S. for the real estate entrepreneur.  If you need any help feel free to contact.  I'm always running across great deals.  For instance I know where a property is in Old Oaks selling for 198 worth 250.  Another about to forclose at 80 worth about 125.  I always run across 80 to 70 cents on the dollar properties.

Christopher McGuire · Answer

im about as newbie as they get but im starting with less than 3k....depends on where you live.  I can buy a house in my area for 50k but some other places would be 4x that.

N/A N/A · Answer

Hi,

I'm located in the northeast. I wish I could buy homes for 50k ! Where are you located ?