New Member from Texas, currently stationed in the United Kingdom
Rental Property Investor · Sumter, SC · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 1 vote
New Member from Texas, currently stationed in the United Kingdom
Most Popular Reply
Kerry BairdPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2011 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votesWe were stationed at Mildenhall, and bought three houses while over there. We were stationed over there when we were E-3s and bought our first house in Mildenhall Village. We were posted back to the States and bought another owner-occupied. And then we read Rich Dad, and got cracking on pre-foreclosure properties. And then back to Mildy for another 10 years. We bought another owner occupied house in Brandon, N. of Lakenheath, and held it while improving the house. We wanted to keep growing our portfolio, and the only way to do it was to buy back on the other side of the Pond, as it was very hard to buy investment properties in another country, and in foreign currency. The exchange could go either way, as you have probably seen. We went from $2.00 a pound down to $1.15-ish, while there. That's a big variance over thousands of dollars/pounds.
After 10 years in, I got exited service to be Mom, while my hubby continued on active duty. When we sold the last house, we used the proceeds to buy another owner occupied, and one more rental. My profile has the long list. So, we've done what you are thinking about.
How did we get there? We used the Dave Ramsey approach to save up, and keep our credit score looking good. We paid down debt and saved up any extra. We bought clunker right-hand drive cars, knowing we wouldn't be there forever. We used the 10% savings program while deployed, to grow funds. We set aside hostile fire, family sep pay, and tax free pay, plus any bonus money, and let it grow until we had enough for down payment money. When we got any gift money from family, it went into the pot. Don't get me wrong...I loved travel over there, but the "travel" pot and the "investment" pot were sacred. I didn't want to blow the investment money.
Where to buy? We'd been stationed in Texas for tech school, so we were familiar with it. We liked how the cash flow looked, and I really dug into the demographics and job growth, which was good there, so we bought in Texas. And then, when my mother-in-law fell ill, we bought a house near her, so we could get a possible write-off when we visited. Now, we are on a Humanitarian Reassignment due to her declining health, and my hubby has to decide soon if he's done with service or if he will press on.
How to buy? Really, just like you'd do if you were present. Hire an experienced agent, look at houses online, pull up property management companies and call or email to ask where demand is and what current rents look like. We bought newer brick houses (no siding and newer systems, so little capex *but* higher prices). Newer homes will not require rehab to get rent ready, though our FL house did need to be painted and a few maintenance items (bathtub plug didn't close, a side door allowed water in when it rained). The Realtor suggested a lender who could close, so we talked with the lender to see what we needed to do. Our credit was already good, because of the Dave Ramsey approach to daily living. I DO use debt to acquire the portfolio, and we do use his famous Debt Snowball to pay down the houses.
What about my owner occupied houses? Well, we continue to buy houses where we can create value. Our two in England were like this, and the current one in FL. I like good bones to my houses, but prefer a tatty kitchen to a perfect one. I've got an appointment with Home Depot to measure up our current kitchen next week. And even though this house isn't quire ready to sell, I'm on the lookout for another gentle fixer to roll into. This is the first house where we've used one of our VA loans. I'm not working, except on the houses...and raising kids...so I am not sure whether we can use the other VA loan yet (mine, I mean). You have to wait on the VA until you can occupy, so find other ways to do it.
All the best to you. I miss those lovely green fields, and would love to swap places! Hope you are making the most of your tour there. We went all over the place. Got our English Heritage pass. Drove to Edinburgh, Normandy, Garmisch, Paris, tulip fields in Holland. Wouldn't trade that for all the houses in Texas! :D
10 Replies
- Investor / Wholesaler · Nashville, TN · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 667 votes10y
- Austin, TX · Member since 2016 · 42 posts · 6 votes10y
Hi Sgt. - The logistics of that might be a little tricky. Where would the property be located and is there a property already in mind that you've see prior to your deployment? If you're looking for a property in Texas, crowdfunding could be a god option for you. You could essentially invest in properties for rental income while the property itself is managed by someone else.
- Rental Property Investor · Sumter, SC · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 1 vote10y
John, thank you for your input. I have actually never heard of crowdfunding for real estate until now and I am curious as how this is done. I will be overseas for at least the next year or so and then I do not know, so this sounds like a good idea to get informed on. Thank you.
- 10yIan IppolitoBusiness MemberInvestor · Tampa, FL · Member since 2015 · 1k+ posts · 1k+ votes
@Emmanuel Villasenor, Are you accredited or nonaccredited? If you are an accredited investor, then there are lots of good options for crowdfunding real estate. However, many people are not, so if you're nonaccredited, there are only a handful and usually accompanied by very large fees. It still might be an okay option for you, depending on your situation.
The Real Estate Crowdfunding Review - Rental Property Investor · Sumter, SC · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 1 vote10y
Ian I am, unfortunately, an non acreditted. Thank you for this clarification.
- 10yKerry BairdPro MemberRental Property Investor · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2011 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
We were stationed at Mildenhall, and bought three houses while over there. We were stationed over there when we were E-3s and bought our first house in Mildenhall Village. We were posted back to the States and bought another owner-occupied. And then we read Rich Dad, and got cracking on pre-foreclosure properties. And then back to Mildy for another 10 years. We bought another owner occupied house in Brandon, N. of Lakenheath, and held it while improving the house. We wanted to keep growing our portfolio, and the only way to do it was to buy back on the other side of the Pond, as it was very hard to buy investment properties in another country, and in foreign currency. The exchange could go either way, as you have probably seen. We went from $2.00 a pound down to $1.15-ish, while there. That's a big variance over thousands of dollars/pounds.
After 10 years in, I got exited service to be Mom, while my hubby continued on active duty. When we sold the last house, we used the proceeds to buy another owner occupied, and one more rental. My profile has the long list. So, we've done what you are thinking about.
How did we get there? We used the Dave Ramsey approach to save up, and keep our credit score looking good. We paid down debt and saved up any extra. We bought clunker right-hand drive cars, knowing we wouldn't be there forever. We used the 10% savings program while deployed, to grow funds. We set aside hostile fire, family sep pay, and tax free pay, plus any bonus money, and let it grow until we had enough for down payment money. When we got any gift money from family, it went into the pot. Don't get me wrong...I loved travel over there, but the "travel" pot and the "investment" pot were sacred. I didn't want to blow the investment money.
Where to buy? We'd been stationed in Texas for tech school, so we were familiar with it. We liked how the cash flow looked, and I really dug into the demographics and job growth, which was good there, so we bought in Texas. And then, when my mother-in-law fell ill, we bought a house near her, so we could get a possible write-off when we visited. Now, we are on a Humanitarian Reassignment due to her declining health, and my hubby has to decide soon if he's done with service or if he will press on.
How to buy? Really, just like you'd do if you were present. Hire an experienced agent, look at houses online, pull up property management companies and call or email to ask where demand is and what current rents look like. We bought newer brick houses (no siding and newer systems, so little capex *but* higher prices). Newer homes will not require rehab to get rent ready, though our FL house did need to be painted and a few maintenance items (bathtub plug didn't close, a side door allowed water in when it rained). The Realtor suggested a lender who could close, so we talked with the lender to see what we needed to do. Our credit was already good, because of the Dave Ramsey approach to daily living. I DO use debt to acquire the portfolio, and we do use his famous Debt Snowball to pay down the houses.
What about my owner occupied houses? Well, we continue to buy houses where we can create value. Our two in England were like this, and the current one in FL. I like good bones to my houses, but prefer a tatty kitchen to a perfect one. I've got an appointment with Home Depot to measure up our current kitchen next week. And even though this house isn't quire ready to sell, I'm on the lookout for another gentle fixer to roll into. This is the first house where we've used one of our VA loans. I'm not working, except on the houses...and raising kids...so I am not sure whether we can use the other VA loan yet (mine, I mean). You have to wait on the VA until you can occupy, so find other ways to do it.
All the best to you. I miss those lovely green fields, and would love to swap places! Hope you are making the most of your tour there. We went all over the place. Got our English Heritage pass. Drove to Edinburgh, Normandy, Garmisch, Paris, tulip fields in Holland. Wouldn't trade that for all the houses in Texas! :D
- Rental Property Investor · Sumter, SC · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 1 vote10y
Kerry,
Thank you so much for your insight! We currently have one year left here in England and frankly we don't have the time or resources to buy here. We currently don't have any debt except $800 in our Star Card (Credit Card), have $50K in cash and some other investments. We are trying to save up to $100K before I leave the service in less than 4 years so we can start buying houses in Texas when we go back. I really liked how you mentioned the Rich Dad book, my wife and I just finished reading it not too long ago and it has seriously changed our lives. We are currently educating ourselves on investments, real estate, etc.
So with the houses in Texas you had a property manager and agent who helped you out? What were the prices for that and how much of a positive cash flow did you end up with? I just really want to be as armed with information as possible before diving into anything as we have spent the last 4 years acquiring our cash and want to put it to good use. I know there is risk involved, but with more information and knowledge I can reduce that risk. Again, thank you for your advice and believe me, we are traveling all the time. My wife has what my mother and grandmother would call the "callejera" syndrome, literally translated to street person from Spanish. We LOVE to travel and we have gone to many places.
Emmanuel
@Emmanuel Villasenor, what @Kerry Baird has said is great advice and info. I am also stationed in England (less than 1 yr left). Where are you at? Where do you think you are going next? I have been investing the last 2 yrs while overseas in England. We should get together sometime to talk real estate. I have invested in rentals, flips & notes so far and could pass on a lot of good info. It is essential to find an area (city) that you are comfortable with and then start looking for a great realtor & property management company there. Network with other investors in that same market (they can give you a lot of good info & recommendations).
Investing while overseas is certainly a challenge but it can be done. It is much easier to do the passive investing while overseas since you can't reach out and touch the property yourself, but you can still invest other ways if you take the time to develop the right connections/relationships with key people.
Check out my profile and let me know if you have questions.
- Rental Property Investor · Sumter, SC · Member since 2016 · 5 posts · 1 vote10y
Bryan,
I am at RAF Alconbury, where are you located? At this point I have no idea where I am going next but I hope to stay overseas. Definitely please message me and I would love to get together, I am really devouring all the information I can on real estate but there is so much to learn. I would really be thankful to hear about your journey in real estate. This area here is actually growing, even though the base is shutting down. They created a huge industrial park in the airfield side of the base and that is bringing many companies here so it might be a good place to invest in, but I really have no idea. Like I said, I am brand new to real estate (like a week or two into actually getting into it and planning etc.). Thank you for your response.
Emmanuel
- Investor · Coppell, TX · Member since 2008 · 2k+ posts · 646 votes10y
Hello and welcome to BP! Teaxs will be a good place for you to invest. Thank you for your service. It is good that your saving. It will make things much easier to do what you wanna do. Just like what you do. Education is the key to not making a lot of mistakes. It is my understanding that you will make mistakes and might have fear. Just learn from your mistakes and make any fear more positive reaction. Fix and Flip goes well with Buy and Hold. One is short term and the other is long term. Having a partner is not a bad thing and it can be complementary. They can help you get things done and something is better than nothing. Find experienced and trustworthy Team members for your Team and know if they will take care of you when you call. People like Attornies, Inpectors, CPA's, Real Estate Agents, General Contractors, etc. will help you as an outside force or Team member. Do not try to do everything yourself. Do not cut corners to make something look good. Always take out insurance to cover your new purchases that are closed. Focus on doing all those things that need to be done before you start investing.
I am 59 years old and I found BP about 7 months ago and I have to decide what I am going to do. I was born and raised in Dallas Texas. I went to college and got a business degree that emphasized real estate. In that same year that I graduated. I got a broker license. I did a few deals for other people. Regardless of what I had I felt more comfortable with the construction business. I have been in the construction industry since I was 17. My father has been in real estate for about 40 years and he has taught me a little bit. I kept my broker license for about 30 years until I gave it up. If you think I can help you please contact me through BP at any time. Good luck!
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