First steps in real estate investing are just over the horizon.

[Paul Kucera]

After countless hours listening to Real estate podcasts, particularly BiggerPockets, I’ve taken my first actual step to prepare myself for investing in real estate. I recently refinanced my primary residence to a conventional loan which brought my interest down from 4% to 2.785%.  Of course there were plenty of closing costs associated, but there was also a reasonable amount of money that came back from the previous bank which was being held in escrow. This is a 30 year fixed loan, which also managed to drop the payment by $60.

While none of this is necessarily cause for celebration, the fact that the refinance freed up my VA loan is. We don't have a significant savings for any down payments for another property, but over the course of the next year that will change. Also over the next year my wife and I will have paid off our vehicles, which will free up over $900/mo. Since my current mortgage is only $950, that's a whole other mortgage we could afford. Especially since a VA loan is 100% financed.

In about a year, my wife and I will easily be able to justify our ability to afford two home loans, with or without a renter in either. I imagine it can be difficult to convince a lender to take a chance on you with a first time investment property having no landlord and or investing experience, especially during this COVID pandemic. This seems to be a solid work around as we navigate these uneasy waters. Utilize the VA loan to purchase our next primary residence, and then place a renter in our current home. After roughly 6 months, we will have a proven track record of maintaining two mortgages and profiting off of one as a landlord.

All of this with no money tied up in either property. Ideally after this, it should be off to the races. Now all I have to do is learn how to evaluate properties. I know, but I got a year and a half before I'd be prepared to finance my first property strictly as an investment property, so I've got some time which I have no intention on wasting. After that, I'm gonna BRRRR like the sky's falling. After all, who knows? It just might. And as far as we know, life doesn't have a reset button.