Intl' Brit living keen to invest in US real estate
Hi everyone,
I am British, living in Dubai, UAE since 2014.
Before moving to Dubai I was considering investing in the UK, since then, changes to the buy-to-let regulations has made UK returns far less attractive, so the UK is off my radar.
- Keen to connect with fellow members in a similar international situation who have bought property in the USA.
- Would like to hear your story about how you secured your first deal and how it went rehabbing and renting it out.
Current concerns:
- Differential access to funding/leverage from an American. My research shows that the typical deposit size needs to be in excess of 40 % and access to low/no money down deals is heavily restricted. I appreciate that the ‘cost of doing business’ will be higher as a non-American, any tips or directions to further resources how to reduce that and enable me to spread my cash around more opportunities, rather than forced to fewer properties initially are happily recieved.
- I have not yet decided on my market location yet, I realise is an important first step. From the BP podcasts, it was interesting to hear investors from lesser known places such as Kentucky or Tennessee - I am not looking for showpiece locations (NYC, SF etc.) - cashflow is the goal. I know this decision should really be made ASAP but there is a huge amount of territory to research. I dare not ask advice where because I’ll get 320 million different opinions and I don’t think my inbox can take it.
- Purchase strategy – A single-family home is the perfect place to start/learn the ropes, some rehab and off we go. I feel after listening to Grant Cardone on show #250 that it would eventually like to move into multi-family residences (2-4 plexes etc). On the other hand, it was inspiring how Joe Martin on show #243 built up an extraordinary portfolio with just single-family homes.
- Because of non-American restrictions, I am conscious that although the budget is 150k USD, it may not be possible to afford much more than 2 single units initially if I must put a lot of money down.
- My preference is not to go with turn-key solutions as I agreed with David Green on show #257 that although you get an easy solution – it will eat into equity and I want the practice of going through the whole process myself.
However, the no.1 dilemma for a guy not 49 states away, but oceans away is building up a reliable team to facilitate inspecting/rehabbing/managing a property in a market I’ve not physically been to…
Thanks, if you made it to here, all thoughts greatly appreciated.
Harry