Wholesaler from Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Hi everyone!
I own TALLAS Properties LLC, a real estate wholesaling company in Cedar Rapids. I work primarily with assigning contracts to purchase or leases with a purchase option. I have been lurking in the BP forums for awhile now, and have finally decided to step out of the shadows to officially join all of you on BP! :-)
I would love to network with other investors not only in the Cedar Rapids area, but throughout Iowa. Networking is my primary focus right now, as well as adding to my cash buyers list, and always learning more about my passion for REI!!
Here's to everyone's prosperity!
@Matthew Kim Cedar Rapids is a very similar market to the area I also work and invest in. I now wholesale to other investors as well, just depends on our workload. @Glenn McCrorey is right, Cedar Rapids (also Waterloo) are great for buy and hold. Lots of low income housing, but great for cash flow.
Curious what your strategy is for investing in Iowa from out of state. Hold?
@Dan Maletta Yes, I'm primarily interested in buy and hold for a few reasons: (1) This will be my first real foray into real estate investing and (2) I'm fully expecting to make a ton of mistakes as a rookie investor and I thought low income housing would be a safe place for me to learn as much as I can before I find out what my niche really is.
I have looked into Waterloo as well and its definitely on my radar.
That's great. I personally love my area for investing. A lot of people run away from it because their are some rough neighborhoods and tenants can be bottom of the barrel sometimes. However, as with rental, their is a recipe to get better tenants and often is a reflection of the landlord/property manager.
Anyways, I'm glad you are interested investing in Iowa. If you have any questions feel free to reach out.
@Matthew Kim Nothing wrong with getting 2% but you usually have to buy a cheap house in a sketchy neighborhood to do it, in my opinion. Those kind of properties don't appreciate much but can cash flow well. I would start researching property managers before you bought anything.
@Glenn McCrorey Any tips on how to research property managers you'd like to share? Or do you have some referrals in mind you could send my way?
Also, this is a total newbie question, but how friendly is Cedar Rapids to the out of state investor scene? (or is that too broad a question?)
As always, thanks in advance!
@Matthew Kim We aren't friendly at all! Just kidding. I think the landlord tenant law is fair if that is what you mean. The city is pretty reasonable on their inspections so that's not a big deal.
I was buying in CR before I had to move to Prescott, AZ for a job in 2009 and the bank I was using said they couldn't loan to me any more because I was an "out of state real estate investor" and that was against their charter. That was Hills Bank by the way, they are good to work with but I now like Hiawatha Bank in Hiawatha, IA (Tim Vipond) and the University of Iowa Credit Union (Marion branch - Thad Roffey) I send lots of people to them. Not sure if they lend to out of state investors but mention my name when you contact them. I have a very good relationship with both.
Share what you find out.
Forgot to mention I'm using Lucas Burrington at AMMT Property Management. Let me know how it goes and good luck.
Looks like this thread is 2 years old. But I'm looking to get some properties in CR, Marion etc.. Looking to BRRR.
Hi are you still investing in Cedar Rapids?