Hello everyone, I'm an engineer in Richmond Virginia. I have some investment experience in stocks and cryptocurrencies but the volatility and risk involved in both have motivated me to look for other ways to invest, so for the past 6 months to a year I've been looking into various options. Real estate has always interested me but in the past I've always had the mindset of , "I just don't have the capital yet"... After stumbling across the podcast in the recommended section of youtube I have been going through 10-15 podcasts a week and reading a lot on the website. I would love to connect with people in Virginia that have experience in BRRRR or multi family properties, so far I haven't seen many people on the forums from my area but I'm sure you have to be out there!
I have to respectfully disagree regarding a primary residence. By your photo you appear relatively young (myself being 38). Having purchased a primary residence first which then became a rental, I'd suggest only buying a primary if you can house hack to live for free, otherwise keep your personal expenses as low as possible to save up for a rental. There are quite a few 4plexes in Carytown that you could purchase on a primary residence loan, though I'm not a Richmond resident and am not current on pricing. Hope that helps.
@Matthew Thomas I am actually in Richmond as well, but my day job is in real estate. I primarily look at deals in Hanover and there isn't much multi-family up that way. Good luck!
@Amy H. I'm not terribly concerned with location, I would imagine that Hanover wouldnt have as much as some areas south and east of the city... Im also going to look into stuff in the south east part of the state as well. I doubt there is much in the DMV area considering how insanely priced most stuff is up there
@Matthew Thomas I wish there was more up in Hanover, but not anything I can afford. I am about to close on a SFR in Mechanicsville though, so definitely still good to be had around Richmond.
@Matthew Thomas welcome to the Real Estate club! I travel to Richmond and Virginia Beach about once a month to look at properties and stay current on the markets. I currently live in the Northern Virginia area and looking at either buying again in a few months.
@Matthew Thomas I'm in Gloucester, and work in King George. There's quite a few people here from Virginia. Right now I'm just saving up a reserve fund, then I'll be looking for small multi-family homes.
@Matthew Thomas
I work in Mechanicsville and live in Gloucester. I do BRRRR but no multifamily, just SFHs. If you want to chat, perhaps we can meet for lunch one day.
I am in Richmond, but only on my first property and not very far along. I do live-in renovations, mortgage-acquired, small (<4) multi-family properties. My day job is in planning if you need assistance navigating government lingo.
Wow thank you all for the responses i knew you all had to be out there somewhere... i will try to answer everyone so far in one post here..
@Amy H. I figured that was the case i work in chester and hopewell a good bit so there definitely has to be opportunities there as well
@Johnny Quilenderino Good to know! I travel to the DMV area once a week for work and im also in the norfolk Va beach area once a week for work as well so perhaps we can get together sometime
@Beau B. Bray I know your area very well, I graduated from Mathews high school and i have family all around the Mathews Gloucester Yorktown area
@Johnny Napier I would definitely like to do that, i have some flexibility with work and if not im always open to any time on the weekends
@Kelly Hall I'm sure that is something I will need some assistance in once I go to look for my first deal
@Brandon L. Unfortunately I have not, I also just signed a lease with my roommate for another year so I plan on doing so a year from now when i move out of this apartment
I have to respectfully disagree regarding a primary residence. By your photo you appear relatively young (myself being 38). Having purchased a primary residence first which then became a rental, I'd suggest only buying a primary if you can house hack to live for free, otherwise keep your personal expenses as low as possible to save up for a rental. There are quite a few 4plexes in Carytown that you could purchase on a primary residence loan, though I'm not a Richmond resident and am not current on pricing. Hope that helps.
@Michael Needle that was my thought as well. thankfully because of my job I have a decent amount of income that i can put towards investments. the only way i would buy a place to live in myself is if it had other units that would allow it to pay for itself. right now my income is roughly 4x my rent and im not sure that i will even stay in this area for the next five years so the only ties I want to any property is as a rental.... @Brandon L. what is your reasoning for putting this so high on your priority list? aside from the obvious point that it could help to reduce living expenses?
Hello everyone, I am a builder and lender out of Washington DC. I live in Northern Virginia, and find that once you find your targeted area to flip in, you really don't want to leave the areas winning formula. That said, I do have clients in southern VA, specifically in the Virginia Beach area. My best advice I can give you is to find a qualified real estate agent who can get you the winning purchase price and the right ARVs. You live and die by their forecasts. If you want to look in Northern Virginia, the hot pockets right now is around Tysons Corner, and some buy and holds in Springfield. Obviously there are the Alexandrias and the Arlingtons, but that hasn't changed. If you really want to make some money without investing a whole lot, I would look towards Frederick Maryland, specifically Hagerstown. The spreads there are incredible. Or let me know if you want to take a crack into DC. That's my stomping ground. DCRA (permitting office) is very backwards but you can usually make out if you can find a property that isn't loaded with regulations. Cheers
@Matthew Thomas I am in Glen Allen and invest locally. Also an engIneer by day. I would strongly consider house hacking/live-in flip strategies as soon as you are able. It’s the one thing I would do if I could rewind 20 years.
@Jon Scoglio Thank you for your input! would you be willing to expand on why? I understand that you are obviously paying off something that provides you income instead of paying rent but at the same time if you have enough disposable income/ good credit you shouldn't have any barriers in working through a deal from what ive seen right? perhaps I'm just missing something here but i have a year left in my current lease and i dont really have any desire to sub lease or break it but if for some reason I wouldnt be able to get going until I did then i would certainly reconsider.
@Matthew Thomas in my view, house hacking and/or live-in flipping is a great way to gain experience managing a property/project. As an owner occupant, you can qualify for a very low down payment loan and, if you occupy for at least 2 years, can enjoy significant tax free capital gains when you sell. Ideally, you are also adding value through rehabs while you occupy the property.
With that said, you have to look at your whole situation and short- and long-term goals. House hacking doesn't have to be your first deal, but if it fits your personal situation (now or sometime in the future), I see little down side. No reason you couldn't do other deals while employing this strategy at the same time if you have the capital to do so.
@Matthew Thomas equity building, tax benefits, investment potential from activities such as house hacking, inexpensive financing compared to other investments, downpayment assistance. Equity build-up will open up more investment doors in the future. The list is endless I could go on forever.
I feel a lot of people waste time with wholesaling, flipping, and a bunch of other stuff in the beginning because it takes a long time to master those things and get any kind of significant results.
If you partner with a good agent you can buy a primary residence in a short time, learn the basics of the real estate acquisition process, with very little out of pocket AND a low credit score. It makes no sense to do anything else when starting out.
I can go on and on so if you have any other questions feel free to reach out and we can have a chat.
Hi! I'm a real estate agent in the Richmond area and working towards purchasing my first investment within the next year. Looking forward to getting there with you! If there's anything I can do to help out, let me know!
Hello everyone, I'm an engineer in Richmond Virginia. I have some investment experience in stocks and cryptocurrencies but the volatility and risk involved in both have motivated me to look for other ways to invest, so for the past 6 months to a year I've been looking into various options. Real estate has always interested me but in the past I've always had the mindset of , "I just don't have the capital yet"... After stumbling across the podcast in the recommended section of youtube I have been going through 10-15 podcasts a week and reading a lot on the website. I would love to connect with people in Virginia that have experience in BRRRR or multi family properties, so far I haven't seen many people on the forums from my area but I'm sure you have to be out there!
Welcome Matthew
Richmond market is pretty tight like most places, but good advice in this thread for you. I’d recommend attending various real estate meetups in the area (check out meetup.com) to help network with like minded real estate investors, though many are also on here.
Personally I am based in Richmond and am a realtor here, but heavily invest in multi families in the western part of the state as I am from there and familiar with the areas.
I have to respectfully disagree regarding a primary residence. By your photo you appear relatively young (myself being 38). Having purchased a primary residence first which then became a rental, I'd suggest only buying a primary if you can house hack to live for free, otherwise keep your personal expenses as low as possible to save up for a rental. There are quite a few 4plexes in Carytown that you could purchase on a primary residence loan, though I'm not a Richmond resident and am not current on pricing. Hope that helps.
Quads around carytown if even available are getting pretty close to a million... duplexes went past $500k a while ago for the most part. I would not recommend central fan for a cash flow house hack play simply because the math isn’t there
Matthew, welcome to the forums! I was in very similar shoes around this time last year. I started looking in December and closed in February (3 BR, 3 Bath). There are a million strategies to use, but as others have said, house hacking is a great way to get started. I don't like the term "hacking" because it makes the process sound over-complicated.
I live in one bedroom and I rent the other two bedrooms out to close friends. Granted this is a little easier being single, but to me, it didn't feel like a hack. Before I made the purchase, my friends and I set very clear expectations of each other. So far, it has been a win-win for everyone. They get a responsive landlord that is looking to continually improve their living experience. I get to live with close friends that pay on time and take care of my property.
@Matthew Thomas , in reading your OP, I was wondering if you've also looked into investing in real estate without dealing with properties? Some institutions and lenders allow individuals to invest in their real estate portfolio and receive regular returns that aren't as volatile as the commodities community. Some lenders offer 8%-10% returns paid on a monthly basis which is pretty steady ROI and stable (not subject to market volatility). Just something to think about. Happy to chat if you'd like to learn more about it.