Better to buy property with cash or leverage money?

[David Rutledge]

I wanted to get some opinions. 

I am looking at buying a very cheap multi family property in the coming months. I am looking anywhere from 20K - 80K. I am wondering if I should go ahead and just buy something that I do not need to take a loan out on (under 40K) and therefore obviously have no mortgage payments and potentially better cash flow initially or whether it is smarter to take out a small mortgage and buy a property worth closer to 80K. Cash flow may not be as good but I will be getting into a more valuable property and leveraging the cash that I have.

Also, does anyone have any experience taking out very small personal loans (under 20K) to fund real estate? I am wondering if these may be an option worth exploring if I found something where I was only 15K - 20K short instead of taking out a 30 year mortgage. 

I am a newbie so any advice or insight would be great.

Thanks

David

[Shawn Ackerman]

@David Rutledge I've found that leveraging cash is always a better alternative for a couple simple reasons.

1. More leverage with sellers as cash usually means a quicker close and deeper discount(depending on the market).  So you would instantly cut your offer rejection curve by half.

2. If your going to refinance a property when using financing up front, you'll have to season the property 6 months minimum.  When buying cash you can do an immediate delay refi.  AND!!! if you buy it right (65-70% below appraised value) you can potentially take all of your money back out of the deal within 2-3 months depending on how quick lender can turn things around.