Investor · Nashville, TN · Member since 2015 · 429 posts · 143 votes
Hello BP!
My name is Mark Douglas. I'm 22 years old, and totally new to all of this! I graduated college with a B.S. in Agriculture Business in May '13, and just relocated to Nashville, TN in December '14.
I'm currently in underwriting, but I'm looking to eventually break away from the 9-5 and generate a steady income from wise real estate investing, specifically in single family and duplex properties.
By January '16, I hope to have purchased my first single family home to rent out. I'd like to have a few years of solid renting/landlording experience before I incorporate duplex renting.
Any and all advice is appreciated! I know this business is not easy, but I am excited to learn as much as possible and see where it takes me.
Hey Corey, yes I thought about that but I'm in the process of getting an FHA loan, and was told they don't make loans for duplexes anymore. I think they used to. I'm sure I could get a conventional loan for one, but I don't have the 20% down. Great option though, I'd like to go that route soon.
The FHA absolutely makes loans for duplexes. I recently closed on a triplex in Nashville using a FHA loan. It may be that the particular lender you're talking to doesn't do FHA loans. If that is a route you'd like to take, I'd suggest finding another lender.
To all interested, I am starting a new monthly gathering called the
MUSIC & MONEY INVESTORS GROUP
Our first meeting is this next Wednesday, April 8
8-10 AM at the coffee house on bridge street, downtown Franklin, TN.
This is a group for education, networking, and deal flow, specifically for anyone interested in investing in passive income generating assets, and targeted towards my network within the music industry (though there will be some non-music folk coming as well).
Love to have any of you join and help us start it out right! Let me know if you might be interested in coming and I'll put your names down.
Oh wow, thanks for the heads up! I just asked my lender to confirm and he said they do under certain conditions. I'm definitely going for this!
What's your opinion on the age of the duplex? I know every building is different and I'll have to get an inspection, but is there such a thing as too old? I don't have thousands to sink into repairs/upgrades after the purchase. (Should I stay away from anything pre 80s, etc?)
I don't think there is a such thing as too old, but you need to know what sort of issues to expect with an older home. If you don't have extra money spend on repairs then I would stick with newer 80s+ builds. My property was built in the 50s and had issues with a settling foundation, old wiring, and galvanized pipes. Luckily I was able to roll most of those costs into my loan (203k) and still paid very little out of pocket.
@Jared Larry OK I'll have to look into the 203k....I'm still pretty early on in the process and I'm not really pressed for time, so I'm going to do some more shopping around till I find the right place. Thanks again!