Looking to get into Multi-family and Single-family in Florida

Looking to get into Multi-family and Single-family in Florida

Member since 2019 · 16 posts · 4 votes

Hi Everyone!


I'm personally from Canada, but a dual US/Canadian citizen. I'm 28 years old, own and operate a Tech Recruitment Firm, and as an entrepreneur, my net income is solid. I'm currently living in Vancouver, Canada, and the real estate prices here are out of control, and the weather isn't great either. My plan is to move to Florida!

So, I've been put together my plans combining what I've learned from David Greene, Graham Stephan, and Grant Cardone (among many others).

So here is a high-level overview of my plan. I'd love some advice, feedback, and also connections (ie Property Managers, Realtors, Lenders) to make this happen. I would like to move to Florida, by latest September. My plan is to purchase a Multi-family home, ideally 4 units+. The extent to which I would have to rehab the property will depend on the conditions at hand. I would like to in total, use $75k USD of my own capital to make this happen (includes down payment, fees, rehab, etc..). Again, I make money from my recruitment company, and will continue to invest more as necessary. The regions I'm looking at are Cape Coral, Palm Coast, Winter Haven, Fort Meyers, or even Tampa or Orlando (open to other suggestions). Once I find the ideal 4plex (or bigger), I would need to get a bank loan, or use a hard money lender (need advice, ie Visio maybe?) to finance the rest of the deal. My plan is to rent out 3 units as soon as possible, live in 1 for a period of about 3-6 months. Then I would like to refinance the house, take out my capital, and invest it into a 4+ bedroom, 2500+ square foot house that I can live in and call HOME. Ideally, I will be using my rental income from the multi-family units to pay the mortgage.

The plan is to live in the large home, refinance it eventually, then invest in more multi-family homes. Some of the dilemnas I currently have is that I'm having a tough time finding the RIGHT property/deals (ie foreclosure, discounted properties etc..), and also, I really don't know how financing will go given that I've built my credit history in Canada only, and the fact that I'm an entrepreneur. Some good things I have going is that we've been in business for over 6 years here, and have the bank statements, tax filing to back it all up.

I'm looking for advice on how I can make my dreams into a reality.

Thanks Bigger Pockets fam, and looking forward to your advice, connections, referrals, or general comments :)

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Real Estate Broker · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2016 · 36 posts · 23 votes
7y

You should consider the Space Coast (Brevard County) - east of Orlando. Melbourne recently ranked #1 on the list of the best places to live near the beach in the US. It also ranked #8 on the list of the 25 best places people are moving to in the US. (U.S. News & World Report) We have a large network of investors and lenders. I'll be happy to get you connected and give you a hand (I'm an investor and a Realtor).

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  • Lender · Rochester, NY · Member since 2014 · 3k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    7y

    @Ali Taghikhani

    You need to start building credit in the US. Will your business still be functional without you being in Canada? Do you file US tax returns, as well? 

  • Real Estate Broker · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2016 · 36 posts · 23 votes
    7y

    You should consider the Space Coast (Brevard County) - east of Orlando. Melbourne recently ranked #1 on the list of the best places to live near the beach in the US. It also ranked #8 on the list of the 25 best places people are moving to in the US. (U.S. News & World Report) We have a large network of investors and lenders. I'll be happy to get you connected and give you a hand (I'm an investor and a Realtor).

  • Real Estate Agent · Ormond Beach, FL · Member since 2017 · 216 posts · 158 votes
    7y

    @Ali Taghikhani I'd like to learn more about your tech recruitment business.  Are you looking to recruit here in Florida?  If so you probably want to locate yourself near a university, such as UCF, U of F, FSU, or FL Polytechnic.  @Ricardo Lopez also recommends a good area that has a lot of high tech workers.  Of course I would love for you to fall in love with Ormond Beach, it is a great little city... but I may not be the right fit for your business.

  • Member since 2019 · 16 posts · 4 votes
    7y

    @Jerry Padilla yes I file tax returns in the US every year. As a dual citizen, I have to. Also, we do a lot of business in the states, but still operate as a Canadian company

  • Member since 2019 · 16 posts · 4 votes
    7y

    @Kristin Kiddy

    Hi! Most our clients are in SF, NYC, but also many other markets around the world. The way I’ve built my business allows me to be location agnostic. I can live and work in Mexico if need be!

  • Real Estate Agent · Ormond Beach, FL · Member since 2017 · 216 posts · 158 votes
    7y

    @Ali Taghikhani  Very cool.  We lived in Mexico for 2 years.  My husband is a programmer and works remotely too.  

  • Real Estate Agent · Saint Petersburg, FL · Member since 2018 · 39 posts · 25 votes
    7y

    @Ali Taghikhani. Sounds like a good general plan. There are some details that you’ll have to hammer out. At $50k (20%) down and $25k rehab you’re looking at a purchasing a $250,000 quad-plex which will most likely put you in a low rent area until you are ready to refi into your new home. At least that’s the case here in St. Petersburg/Tampa/Clearwater area. I’m a local realtor here and I’ve worked with a lot of investors. You might do just as well with a duplex and have a nicer property in a better area with that budget. Message me if you have any other questions. I love your plan!

  • Member since 2019 · 16 posts · 4 votes
    7y

    @Adam Benmbark I just sent you a connection request

  • Member since 2019 · 4 posts · 1 vote
    7y

    Ali,

    You have a great drive and I am sure your entrepreneurial experience will serve you well in real estate investment venture.

    Concerning the FL relocation. Interestingly we purchased our condo from a very nice Canadian couple. Apparently they could not spend more than 6 months of the year outside of Canada, otherwise they would lose their healthcare benefits. I don't know if this is valid or applies to your specific situation, however, considering the substantial differences in healthcare services and the (sky-high) cost in the US you may want to look into it. 

    Good luck with your relo and business. Cheers,

    Rob

  • Lender · Long Island, NY · Member since 2019 · 20 posts · 11 votes
    7y

    Hey, hard money is easy to qualify for, you can do construction and refinance once the property can appraise for more than the purchase price. It's a great way to get started, I see tons of people doing that each month. 

  • FL · Member since 2019 · 73 posts · 54 votes
    7y

    I'd suggest anywhere near the I-4 freeway in between Orlando and Tampa. Neal Bawa calls it the "corridor of opportunity". As a native Floridian, the most attractive thing to me about this corridor is it somewhat dulls the effects of a hurricane compared to places on the Atlantic/Gulf coasts. 

    Also look into a place called "The Villages", there's a ton of investment going into that area, but the area surrounding it is both underdeveloped and easy to reach (it's where the Turnpike and I-75 conjoin).

  • Investor · FL · Member since 2017 · 247 posts · 245 votes
    7y

    @Ali Taghikhani I invest in apartment syndications in Florida and I also have a primary residence in Florida. Lately, I have invested in Tampa and Jacksonville. I am currently vetting an opportunity in Orlando. I'm very bullish on warm, sunny, affordable 0% tax states. Best of luck!

  • Real Estate Consultant · Space Coast, FL · Member since 2018 · 6 posts · 1 vote
    4y

    My Space Coast STR's are killing it! Lets hope on a call sometime.

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