Hello from a newbie investor
Hi everyone! Wanted to introduce myself. My name is James, and i am just beginning my real estate investing adventure. I'm from Baton Rouge Lousiana and that is where i will be investing. I currently own a home and live in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. My plan is to take out a HELOC in the next month so that i have cash on hand when the right deal pops up. I have been binge-listening to bigger pockets podcast starting with episode 1. Right now im on episode 14 and im hooked. Im wondering if this is the logical way to start learning since those episodes are 10 years old... probably not as relevant as the current ones, but they sure are enjoyable. Thanks Josh and Brandon!
Cheers!
James
Quote from @James Matuschka:
Hi everyone! Wanted to introduce myself. My name is James, and i am just beginning my real estate investing adventure. I'm from Baton Rouge Lousiana and that is where i will be investing. I currently own a home and live in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. My plan is to take out a HELOC in the next month so that i have cash on hand when the right deal pops up. I have been binge-listening to bigger pockets podcast starting with episode 1. Right now im on episode 14 and im hooked. Im wondering if this is the logical way to start learning since those episodes are 10 years old... probably not as relevant as the current ones, but they sure are enjoyable. Thanks Josh and Brandon!
Cheers!
James
Hello sir!! Welcome!
I have several properties in the Baton Rouge and surrounding areas and would love to chat!
The older episodes may be outdated, but definitely have gems that you’ll want to listen out for!
reach out if you’d like to chat some time, my wife and I are investor friendly agents out here in BR.
Welcome to BiggerPockets, James!
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Before you start having to pay interest on a HELOC I would recommend you have everything else in place. I have no ideal what your financial situation looks like but make sure you have reserves of cash as well just incase things do not go as planned. There are always more expenses and they are rarely cheap. Make sure you have a good realtor, PM and even a handyman.
I am from Baton Rouge myself and had rentals there but sold them as neighborhoods declined. The property I kept in Louisiana is in a small quiet one street neighborhood.
Just make sure you know the area you invest in and what direction it is headed.
Best of luck!
Welcome @James Matuschka! I'm an investor with 16 units in Baton Rouge and own a property management company here. It's a great place to invest as long as you're in a good area and have a great team. Both posts above have great advice. @Brian Mackey is right: the older episodes still have some excellent, still relevant info. You may want to alternate listening to the newer ones as well or maybe check out some of the books from the BP bookstore. @Blake Hernandez is also right to make sure you have all other pieces in place, especially finances/reserves. My # is below and I'm happy to chit chat if you have any questions about the area. Good luck getting started!!
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Property Manager Louisiana (#995699837)
- Sage Property Management
- http://www.sagepropertiesla.com
Welcome James,
I also invest in Baton Rouge and it's a great place for cash flow.
One think that you need to take into account if you use your HELOC for the downpayment is that most HELOC's are adjustable rates and they go up or down based on the prime rate. Every time the FED increase their rates your HELOC interest will go up.
Considering that they might increase another 1% between now and the end of the year, you should take that into account in your underwriting.
Feel free to reach out if you have any questions
Welcome to BJ James!
Hi @James Matuschka. There are definitely some hurdles when it comes to out of state investing, but it's 100% doable. Some of the older episodes will be outdated for todays environment but they're still invaluable. So many great nuggets of information in those. I'm over in New Castle, so if you ever want to meet up for a beer and talk real estate, feel free to reach out!
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#2 Managing Your Property Contributor
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Your biggest question shouldn't be WHERE to invest, but HOW you will invest!
Many OOS investors set themselves up for failure because they don't truly take the time to understand:
1) The Class of the NEIGHBORHOOD they are buying in - which is relative to the overall area.
2) The Class of the PROPERTY they are buying - which is relative to the overall area.
3) The Class of the TENANT POOL the Neighborhood & Property will attract - which is relative to the overall area.
4) The Class of the CONTRACTORS that will work on their Property, given the Neighborhood location - which is relative to the overall area.
5) The Class of the PROPERTY MANAGEMENT COMPANIES (PMC) that will manage their Property, given the Neighborhood location and the Tenants it will attract - which is relative to the overall area.
6) That a Class X NEIGHBORHOOD will have mostly Class X PROPERTIES, which will only attract Class X TENANTS, CONTRACTORS AND PMCs and deliver Class X RESULTS.
7) That OOS property Class rankings are often different than the Class ranking of the local market they live.
8) Class A is relatively easy to manage, can even be DIY remote managed from another state. Can usually allot 5-10% vacancy factor and same for maintenance.
9) Class B usually also okay, but needs more attention from owner and/or PMC. Vacancy and maintenance factors should be higher than for Class A as homes will be older, have more deferred maintenance and tenants will be harder on them.
10) Class C can be relatively successful with a great PMC (do NOT hire the cheapest!), but very difficult to DIY remote manage. Vacancy and maintenance factors should be higher than for Class A or B. Homes will have even more deferred maintenance and tenants will be even harder on them.
11) Class D pretty much requires an OWNER to be on location and at the property 3-4 times/week. Most quality PMCs will not manage these properties as they understand most owners won’t pay them enough for the time required and even then it’s too difficult successfully manage them.
***Only exception is if an owner has plan & funds to reposition Class D to Class C or higher.
Also, SERIOUSLY consider - do you really have the time to be a DIY landlord or should you hire a PMC?
Good luck with whatever you decide😊
Hi James, I would suggest listening to the latest episodes and go backwards. I started listening when BP was on episode 300 and I went backwards only till episode 200 but otherwise I kept listening on a weekly basis.
You can always go on YouTube and these forums to find out about different strategies to learn and develop your mindset. Feel free to reach out if you want to connect and talk about getting started. I would love to discuss.
Welcome to BiggerPockets! You'll find a great network here.
@James Matuschka love Glenwood Springs! I used to live there and New Castle. Curious what your plan is with your home in Glenwood - STR? Long-term renters?
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Real Estate Agent New Hampshire (#072410) and Massachusetts (#9562547)
- Sopris Realty LLC
Quote from @Jessica Stevenson:
@James Matuschka love Glenwood Springs! I used to live there and New Castle. Curious what your plan is with your home in Glenwood - STR? Long-term renters?
Me too! I have finally convinced my wife to buy a smaller house of her own that we can live in, maybe somewhere near rifle, co. At that point I could rent out my home in GWS. I have a tenant in the basement paying 1200/mo. The mortgage is 2100/mo. I can rent the top floor (3bed/1bath) for at least 1900 I'm guessing. I got approved for a 177k HELOC and I am going back and forth between House Hacking another place around here vs. trying the BRRRR strategy in Louisiana. I think you have to be grandfathered in to do short term rentals in Glenwood Springs.
Quote from @Aj Parikh:
Hi James, I would suggest listening to the latest episodes and go backwards. I started listening when BP was on episode 300 and I went backwards only till episode 200 but otherwise I kept listening on a weekly basis.
You can always go on YouTube and these forums to find out about different strategies to learn and develop your mindset. Feel free to reach out if you want to connect and talk about getting started. I would love to discuss.
Thanks for the tip! I have been listening to the current episodes recently. I would love to discuss some things with you. Thank you very much.
@James Matuschka You can DEFINITELY get more than $1900/mo. in GWS for a 3/1! Let's talk.
Quote from @James Matuschka:Great. Feel free to reach out
Quote from @Aj Parikh:
Hi James, I would suggest listening to the latest episodes and go backwards. I started listening when BP was on episode 300 and I went backwards only till episode 200 but otherwise I kept listening on a weekly basis.
You can always go on YouTube and these forums to find out about different strategies to learn and develop your mindset. Feel free to reach out if you want to connect and talk about getting started. I would love to discuss.
Thanks for the tip! I have been listening to the current episodes recently. I would love to discuss some things with you. Thank you very much.
@James Matuschka Oh Interesting about being grandfathered in, I'm not surprised though. Lots of cities/towns are trying to crack down and implement some sort of regulations around STR, even here in the Northeast. It's definitely something to be mindful of - although I'm sure you could do it with a place in Rifle eventually?
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Real Estate Agent New Hampshire (#072410) and Massachusetts (#9562547)
- Sopris Realty LLC
Quote from @Jessica Stevenson:
@James Matuschka Oh Interesting about being grandfathered in, I'm not surprised though. Lots of cities/towns are trying to crack down and implement some sort of regulations around STR, even here in the Northeast. It's definitely something to be mindful of - although I'm sure you could do it with a place in Rifle eventually?
Yep Rifle allows it currently