Would love to know what kept you motivated! My husband and I were able to upgrade our house and rent our previous one. Now we want to grow our portfolio. We were hoping to pull a heloc out of our rental but it is not currently an option due to only having about 40% equity in it.

I have been looking for deals and networking with wholesalers and realtors but feel like I have hit a brick wall with financing. The hard money lenders I have found want me to be a seasoned investor, which totally makes sense.

Hoping to learn from the seasoned investors on here! Should I be looking at this in a different way?

Thanks!

@Katrina Gillrup Jacksonville is a great market. Have you tried finding lenders that'll facilitate a cash out refi for you?

We did but we're told we could only refinance up to 70% of the value. So with the home being worth around 245k and the mortgage being at 160k it just doesn't make a whole lot of sense. We had planned on using money we have in stocks but with the market tanking it doesn't make sense to lose on that front either.

Are you looking to fix and flip, BRRR, buy a turnkey rental?

I want to start with the BRRRR strategy.

@Katrina Gillrup Ask everyone you know in the business, plumbers, electricians, AC people, if they know people looking to put money to work, secured by real estate? You can do this, you just have to ask people, you may have to ask 1000 people to find 10 yes people and then the 1 that is qualified, but you can do this. Just keep asking people.

The stock market is a real craps table so why not get out and ask people if they want to make 7-8% on their money tied to real estate. Some will, some won't, so what someone else is waiting......

You can do this! - Jack 

@Jack Bobeck  Love your motivation Jack, I really needed to hear! Time to start analyzing properties! Do you work with a particular realtor in Jacksonville? Or do you have multiple?

@Katrina Gillrup I work with Taft Alexander, he is a fellow investor, builder, flipper, stager. He knows his stuff and his former company Bloom Realty was so successful they were purchased by Coldwell Banker. They sold a bunch of homes and he has been my Realtor now for about a year. He just sold his house on 4603 French Street that he bought off auction. He does a great job with flips and has an eye for value. I can get you his number offline if you need it but its on the Zillow page. He's great, I told him about you! 

Podcasts really help motivate me when I feel like I've hit a brick wall and am not moving anywhere. One thing I'd say is I would call up some more lenders because I know my brother pulled some cash from a HELOC using a credit union. It had less than 40% equity and he was able to pull out 100%. I'm also finishing up a refinance and I was able to find 85% LTV. Of course, your area might have some stricter lending policies but it doesn't hurt to search a little more.

@Katrina Gillrup I would recommend staying in touch other investors in your are who know the market well. Attend networking events where likeminded folks chat about their experiences and path. Learning from others will  keep you motivated and excited for the future. 

Podcasts, books, and hearing other's success stories were huge motivators when I was first starting out. Also the goal of passive income to replace my W-2 lol.