Investor · Hampton Roads Area, VA · Member since 2022 · 33 posts · 12 votes
Hey team. Looking to potentially borrow against my military retirement account to go purchase at auction in my city. Interest on the loan sits at 5% over 5-year amortized period and repayment comes through deductions from payroll, unless I pay in full. Intention is to purchase at auction, and wholesale the place to a cash buyer after redemption period is over if i decide not to hold onto it myself. Looking for general advice as to what if anything, I should be concerned about. I'm fairly confident in my ability to get a place moved after acquisition.
Auction is a good way to go IF you know what you are doing. In my local market, the auction experts tell me that the profit margins are a lot smaller than they used to be 4+ years ago.
My advice would be do your research. I considered focusing on auction as a niche, but got spooked when I heard multiple stories of people not getting what they thought they bought!
For example, if you search the forums, a recent BP member paid over 200k and came to find out that he didn’t even get the property he thought he was bidding on. He just paid someone else’s debt off (apparently his title research was off). So I have learned that it’s definitely not risk-free, and to be left to the experts. I wasn’t willing to take the time to become an expert. I know another guy in my local area who has done very well at auction for 20+ years, but has decided to stop in the last 3 years, because the deals weren’t worth the squeeze for him.