Leaving Military overseas with $40k

Real Estate Agent · Columbus Cleveland Dayton, OH · Member since 2024 · 2k+ posts · 917 votes

7mo

Welcome back! A good first step is to focus on markets where your $40k can actually get you into a solid cash-flowing property without relying on huge appreciation. Midwest markets tend to offer lower entry prices, realistic rents, and multi-family or house-hacking opportunities that work right away. Start by learning neighborhoods, running the numbers conservatively, and connecting with reliable local property managers and contractors. That way, you can build a portfolio that actually produces income while you get your feet back in the U.S. market.

[email protected]614-418-6081

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Corby GoadeBusiness Member

Investor · Boise, ID · Member since 2014 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes

7mo

Every new investor thinks their market is over priced and they can't find anything that "works." It's a tale as old as time itself.

You have a VA loan and some cash- that's like real estate investing superpowers. Buy a value add multifamily and live in one of the units while you fix the place up- hopefully a fourplex. Then do in again in a year or two. Repeat over and over. You'll be financially free before you know it.

Not to kill your dream, but don't get caught up in getting too creative- while your shipping container idea is fun, it'll take more time, energy and capital than you think. People typically get in their mind that they want to do something unique like that and spend so much time trying to put the details together and find a way to make it work that they completely miss all of the base hit opportunities all around them.

No need to reinvent the wheel, just start house hacking, keep house hacking and let the market do what it does. 100% guarantee it works.

Thank you for your service and best of luck!

2 Reply

Ken M.

Investor · Get yourself trained before doing something inadvisable. · Member since 2024 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes

7mo

Quote from @Austin Schultz:

Okay. So I have had a love and passion for real estate investing for years and years now, but I have been overseas for over 8 years for the Military. I have $40k saved up. Not a whole lot, but I think should be a good start? Haha.

My main plan was to build a shipping container glamp site in Williams, AZ. (Approximately 40 minutes from the Grand Canyon). I’ve also have been researching a ton into house hacking in Phoenix, AZ. Finding a home with an AUD or a multiplex where the math actually WORKS is just absolutely insane. Everything feels so overpriced in the Phoenix area.

From someone who has never invested in real estate and haven’t lived in the United States for such a long time, this process is of course intimidating and feels like Phoenix isn’t the “greatest” place for the type of investing strategy I would like to commit to.

I would love some advice from people. What would be the first steps if you were in my shoes? Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and help! Hope your New Year is going great!

I help investors who don't qualify for traditional bank financing, get started using creative financing. You leave out the one important aspect.

Will you have an income? That to me, is more important.
If yes, then there is something to work with.

To my way of thinking, you have to be able to pay the mortgage, or you lose the investment.
As a general rule, your living expenses should be no more than one third of your income.
And, there are cheaper areas of the country.

If you are jobless right now, you might check out the AZ REI group AZREIA.com for about $20 a month. If nothing else, you can start learning and these are experienced investors, so you would make good connections.

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David Stephens

Member since 2025 · 29 posts · 13 votes

7mo

Hey @Austin Schultz congrats on getting started! I would recommend that you reach out to @Jeremy Holden. He's a realtor/investor in Phoenix and really dialed into the market. He would be able to help you analyze properties and find something that cash flows.

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Patrick O'SullivanBusiness Member

Property Manager · Phoenix, AZ · Member since 2024 · 527 posts · 201 votes

7mo

@Austin Schultz, welcome back, and thanks for your service!

$40k is a solid start, especially with a VA loan. I'd focus on a simple first deal—something like a house hack or small multifamily you can live in while learning the ropes. Phoenix is tough for cash flow right now, so be patient and conservative with your numbers.

The container glamping idea is fun, but for your first investment, it adds a lot of complexity and risk. Start with something straightforward that teaches you the process, and you can get creative down the line.

[email protected]480-795-7938

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Shane Rock

Member since 2025 · 4 posts · 3 votes

7mo

Thanks for your service! I'd love to connect and chat. I'm also in Phx area.

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Bernice RetzloffPro Member

Memphis, TN · Member since 2024 · 234 posts · 100 votes

7mo

Hey @Austin Schultz! First off, respect! Being overseas that long and still staying focused on investing says a lot.

You’re not crazy at all for feeling the way you do about Phoenix. A lot of people want to house hack there, but the math just doesn’t cooperate anymore unless you’re stretching hard or banking on appreciation. And for a first deal, that’s usually not the move.

A few thoughts if I were in your shoes:

1. $40k is absolutely a solid start

Especially as a first-time investor. That’s plenty for:

A low-cost house hack in the right market

A solid out-of-state long-term rental

Even a light BRRRR if the numbers are clean

You don’t need to “swing for the fences” on deal one. The goal is reps + learning + not blowing yourself up.

2. Container glamping = cool, but higher risk

Not saying don’t do it, just know it’s:

Zoning-heavy

Permit-heavy

Ops-heavy

Harder to finance and exit

That’s usually better as a deal #2 or #3, once you’ve got income-producing rentals under your belt and more margin for error.

3. House hacking doesn’t have to be Phoenix

House hacking works best where:

Entry prices are reasonable

Rents still cover debt

You’re not banking on appreciation to survive

A lot of investors priced out of AZ/CA end up going out of state for deal #1, then come back later when they’re stronger financially.

4. Start simple, especially after being overseas

If you haven’t lived in the US in a while, I’d prioritize:

Long-term rentals over STRs

Professional property management

A boring, repeatable strategy

For context, I’m a real estate agent based in Memphis, TN, and I help out-of-state (and military) investors build rental portfolios. I also work closely with FoundationPM.com, so we’re used to setting things up for people who aren’t local and want systems in place from day one. Memphis tends to make sense for folks in your exact situation because the buy-in is lower and cash flow is real.

If I had to give you a simple first-steps roadmap:

Decide: cash flow first vs lifestyle/income hybrid

Pick one market that fits your numbers (not emotions)

Talk to property managers before buying

Run 20–30 deals until the numbers start clicking

Buy something boring and survivable as deal #1

You’re not behind at all. Honestly, you’re ahead because you’re being cautious before jumping. If Memphis ever pops up on your radar (or you just want to sanity-check numbers), happy to help answer questions.

And Happy New Year to you too! You’re asking the right questions at the right time 👊

901-664-1949

1 Reply

Drew SygitBusiness Member

Property Manager · Royal Oak, MI · Member since 2012 · 12k+ posts · 9k+ votes

7mo

Quote from @Austin Schultz:

Okay. So I have had a love and passion for real estate investing for years and years now, but I have been overseas for over 8 years for the Military. I have $40k saved up. Not a whole lot, but I think should be a good start? Haha.

My main plan was to build a shipping container glamp site in Williams, AZ. (Approximately 40 minutes from the Grand Canyon). I’ve also have been researching a ton into house hacking in Phoenix, AZ. Finding a home with an AUD or a multiplex where the math actually WORKS is just absolutely insane. Everything feels so overpriced in the Phoenix area.

From someone who has never invested in real estate and haven’t lived in the United States for such a long time, this process is of course intimidating and feels like Phoenix isn’t the “greatest” place for the type of investing strategy I would like to commit to.

I would love some advice from people. What would be the first steps if you were in my shoes? Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and help! Hope your New Year is going great!

The Real Estate Crash of 2008-2010 caused real estate prices to crash across the country - but didn't affect rent amounts. This caused a historically unique opportunity for investors - they could buy Class A properties and immediately cashflow when renting them out.

This couldn't last forever, and it didn't, as excited new investors drove up prices.

Eventually, Class A property values increased to the point that even increasing rents didn't allow them to cashflow upon purchase.

So, the flood of new investors switched to buying Class B properties.

COVID created a chaotic spike in both the sale & rental markets, attracting even more new real estate investors. According to CoreLogic, in December of 2023, almost 30% of home sales were to investors!

Investment also spiked in Class A Short-Term Rentals (STR) and investors started paying higher and higher prices based upon anticipated STR rental rates, that exceeded sustainability based upon Long-Term Rental rates (LTR).

Now we're seeing investors pouring money into buying Class C rentals - but, many are getting burned.

In our experience & opinion, the main determinant of property Class is not location or even property condition, those are #2 and #3. The #1 determinant is the Tenant Pool.

If you don't believe us, try putting several Class D tenants in Class A apartment buildings and watch what happens. Or try the reverse - rehab a property in a Class D area to Class A standards and try to get a Class A or B tenant to rent it.

Unfortunately, many newbie real estate investors are jumping into buying affordable Class C rentals - expecting Class A results.

In our opinion, Class C tenants have FICO scores from 560 to 620 - where their chance of default/nonpayment is 15-22%. See the chart from Fair Isaac Company (FICO) below:

FICO Score	Pct of Population	Default Probability
800 or more	13.00%	1.00%
750-799	27.00%	1.00%
700-749	18.00%	4.40%
650-699	15.00%	8.90%
600-649	12.00%	15.80%
550-599	8.00%	22.50%
500-549	5.00%	28.40%
Less than 499	2.00%	41.00%

Source: Fair Isaac Company

According to this chart, investors should use corresponding vacancy + tenant-nonperformance factors of approximately 5% for Class A rentals, 10% for Class B and 20% for Class C.

To address Class C payment challenges, many industry "experts" are now selling programs to newbie investors about how Section 8 tenants are the cure. If only it was that easy. Yes, the government pays the Section 8 rent timely, but more and more tenants are having to pay a portion of their rent. Then there are the challenges with Section 8 tenants paying utilities and taking care of their rental property.

Investors should fully understand that Section 8 is not a cure-all for Class C & D tenant challenges, it's just trading one set of problems for another.

We see too many investors not doing enough research to fully understand all this and making naïve investing decisions.

Once you understand the above, you still need to find a property. You’ll have to do what investors did before the Great Real Estate Crash:

Evaluating 100 properties, to identify 10 to make offers on, in the hopes one seller accepts.
- Yes, this takes a lot of work!
Network with wholesalers who can bring you “deals”
- Many wholesalers are also newbies who have no clue what a real deal is and are just time-wasters.
NOTE: We often see wholesalers re-marketing MLS properties at HIGHER amounts!
Start using your own personal network to find motivated sellers.
- Start posting on your favorite social media site what you are looking for – not once or twice, but CONSISTENTLY for 6 months! Give updates on properties you’ve looked at or analyzed to keep your audience engaged, so when they stumble upon a potential situation, you are the first one they think of.

Good luck!

[email protected]248-209-6824

Logical Property Management4.9458 Reviews

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Grant SchroederPro Member

Lender · OR ID AZ CA WA CO NV TN MT · Member since 2018 · 598 posts · 312 votes

7mo

Hey @Austin Schultz, thank you for your service! If you are looking in and around Phoenix, AZ, you should definitely connect with investor and local realtor @Jeremy Holden there! He is incredible at what he does and would be the perfect person to have on your team as you plan your next steps with house hacking or investing using your VA loan. Definitely reach out to him if you have no already!

[email protected]541-231-1256

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Jacob Thorpe

Lender · Lake Geneva WI, USA · Member since 2023 · 141 posts · 72 votes

7mo

Quote from @Austin Schultz:

Okay. So I have had a love and passion for real estate investing for years and years now, but I have been overseas for over 8 years for the Military. I have $40k saved up. Not a whole lot, but I think should be a good start? Haha.

My main plan was to build a shipping container glamp site in Williams, AZ. (Approximately 40 minutes from the Grand Canyon). I’ve also have been researching a ton into house hacking in Phoenix, AZ. Finding a home with an AUD or a multiplex where the math actually WORKS is just absolutely insane. Everything feels so overpriced in the Phoenix area.

From someone who has never invested in real estate and haven’t lived in the United States for such a long time, this process is of course intimidating and feels like Phoenix isn’t the “greatest” place for the type of investing strategy I would like to commit to.

I would love some advice from people. What would be the first steps if you were in my shoes? Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and help! Hope your New Year is going great!

Austin, appreciate your service. Here is the hard reality and the upside.

First, 40k is not a lot of runway in real estate once you count closing costs, reserves, and the first surprise repair. So the plan has to be conservative.

Second, be careful with the narrative that Arizona only goes up. Arizona can still work, but you have to buy based on cash flow and fundamentals, not agent optimism or headlines.

If I were in your position I would focus on one of two lanes.

Lane one is a VA owner occupied duplex or fourplex, or VA new construction if you can truly control build costs. The VA benefit is one of the strongest tools you have because it can get you into a multi unit without bleeding your savings. The goal is to buy or build at a basis that creates equity day one and gives you breathing room.

Lane two is a value add buy and hold, basically a BRRR style deal where 40k may work in the right neighborhood. Find a tired duplex with solid bones, renovate with a tight scope, rent it, then refinance once it is stabilized. This is one of the most repeatable ways I have seen people build a portfolio, but only if you have reserves and can execute.

Its going to depend on your goals and ambitions. Some people would take the 40k and turn it into equity, others appreciate using it to fuel a BRRR run to quickly grow a modest portfolio. Each path has its pros and cons and risk factors.

A few rules I would not break.
Underwrite vacancy and repairs even if you are living there.
Build the team first. Contractor, property manager, and a lender who actually knows VA multi unit or VA construction.

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Leaving Military overseas with $40k

Leaving Military overseas with $40k

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