BRRRR Strategy really works! Even in the Bay Area!

BRRRR Strategy really works! Even in the Bay Area!

Ori SklootPro Member
Investor · Berkeley, CA · Member since 2016 · 242 posts · 304 votes

I am every so grateful to BP and all the great people that are part of the BP community. It was after reading extensively about the BRRRR strategy (Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat) that I was inspired to try it out on my next purchase. I have bought properties before, but I always used my own cash to finance the deal. This time I decided to do it differently.

Below are the details about the process.   Below that are the numbers on the deal.

Deal Process

  1. I found an off-market SFD in Oakland with a motivated seller.  (For those who are going to ask how I found it - it was through the usual marketing efforts that people talk about on BP.)  His tenant had been living in the property for years without paying rent.  Crazy right? 
  2. We negotiated a little bit on the price.  I made an offer, he countered, and we met in the middle.  I sent him a purchase agreement and he signed.  I am a real estate broker so I represented myself.
  3. The tenants were still in the house.  One of my conditions was the tenants would have to be out of the house before close of escrow.  Owner agreed to offer tenants cash for keys in order for them to leave.  They refused and said they would see him in court.
  4. We hired a lawyer for the eviction process, owner paid cost which ended up being around $3k.  Lawyer went through all the filings and the tenant never responded.  In about two months from when the tenants were first served I get a call from the Sheriff saying they are going the next day to evict.  I meet them at the property and the sheriff enters the house.  The tenants have already vacated!  The have left a bunch of junk and took the wall furnace out of the wall, but for the most part the place isn't trashed. 
  5. Now the interesting part with the financing.  The purchase price was $250k.  I asked four friends if they would be interested in lending me money at 10% interest.  Between them I raised $250k for the purchase.  I provided each of them a promissory note and a deed of trust against my primary residence (not the property I bought).  Apparently this is a key element that @Chris Mason explained to me ahead of time (HUGE shout-out to Chris who was my Super-Star mortgage broker and consigliere on this deal..more about his efforts below).  Chris informed me that by securing their loans against my primary property this would count in the lending world as being an "all cash" purchase.  This matters big-time because it then allowed me to do a cash-out refinance.  Read on about that.
  6. We close escrow and the next day I am in there doing clean up and a rehab. I am also a GC and have lots of construction experience so I run all the rehab myself.  Total of the rehab was about $40k (more specifics below).
  7. Once we close I immediately start the process of my cash-out refinance with Chris.  Once Chris has all my docs he is just waiting for me to finish the rehab so he can send out the appraiser.  I finish the rehab and we have the appraiser out at the house two days later.
  8. Two days after that the appraisal comes back at $400k (which is what I expected, but is probably under market value.  I think it would sell for $430-450k)
  9. I immediately put the house up for rent on Craigslist.   After a couple of weeks I rent it out to a great family for $2750/month.
  10. Some more time passes with providing all my docs to underwriting and then the loan closes a month after the appraisal (total loan time was just under 60 days).   I get the loan for $255k which is the purchase price plus closing costs.  My friends all get their principal payments back as a check from the escrow company.
  11. Bottom line - I put about $54k into the renovation from my own pocket, got about $130k in immediate equity, and I'm now cash flowing $800 per month.  From when I closed on the house it took me two months to close on the new loan.   My friends, the investors, are ready to reinvest the moment I have the next deal.  Yes, it works!  even in the Bay Area :)

Numbers on the Deal

  1. House in East Oakland.  Officially a 1200 sqft 2/1.  
  2. Bought for $250,000
  3. Rehab for $63k - $9k rebates = $54k
    1. Clean up and Dump: $2k
    2. All new electrical, lighting and service panel upgrade: $10k
    3. Hardwood floor refinishing and repairs of 120 sq ft.  $4k
    4. Kitchen: new flooring, quartz countertop, all new appliances (bought all the appliances from Craigslist) $5k
    5. Addition of 1/2 bathroom: $5k
    6. Conversion of garage into 3rd bedroom: $5k
    7. Sheetrock work and Painting: $12k
    8. New high efficiency central heating: $6k
    9. New high efficiency tankless water heater: $4k
    10. New Sewer lateral: $4k
    11. Misc carpentry, landscaping and plumbing: $5k
    12. EBMUD rebate for sewer lateral: -$4k
    13. PG&E rebates for efficiency upgrades: -$5k
  4. House is now a 3 bedroom / 1.5 bathroom
  5. Holding cost (10% interest to friends) $5000
  6. Cash out refinance at $255k = $1,950 per month (PITI)
  7. Rent of $2750 per month, so cash flow of $800/month.
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Most Popular Reply

Chris MasonPro Member
Moderator
Lender · CA · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 10k+ votes
9y

Thanks for the shout out @Ori Skloot, much appreciated. :)

Non-owner occupied, $430k value, total of $59k out of pocket including rehab, is a super cool thing to help execute. 

And, not super hard to be cashflow positive on a $430k property that you picked up for $250k. $2750 rent... I think we have here a 1% rule SFR in the Bay Area.

Ori's networking efforts were also huge part of this. I'm guessing he went to his friends with money earning 5% on Wall Street, and offered them to double their ROI at 10%. Now that he paid them off, they can put it right back on Wall Street earning 5%, and it's a private bank he can draw on the future. Wall Street cannot guarantee you that if you put your $70k with it for 2 months it will become $71k (& you'd be lucky if it did that well in 2 months), but Ori just did exactly that, and proved to his network that he's a better place to park your money than Wall Street, to the extent that you are fortunate enough that Ori is in need of funds. So from the POV of his friends, this was a huge win to double their ROI for a couple months. 

For Ori, hard money would have wanted 3 or 4 points upfront ($250k * 4% = $10k in the garbage) even though he is an experienced and licensed GC, so this was a huge win for him too. I did a little blog post about how it might look to pitch this to people with money sitting on Wall Street doing nothing for them.

For people that only have access to $15k or $25k in capital saved up, but want to get into Real Estate in the Bay Area, this model is also an opportunity for them. I'm certain that if any of his private investors had wanted to see the property, the plan, the numbers, etc, he'd have shown it to them, and knowledge is money.

See this reply in the discussion

133 Replies

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  • Rental Property Investor · Oakland, CA · Member since 2016 · 25 posts · 11 votes
    9y

    @Matt Pendleton @Ori Skloot - I'm curious about that too. I need to pay for one very soon. The only thing I understand from having done  is that you need to pay a $4500 deposit into escrow during the purchase which goes to EBMUD. Then once you've had the inspection and work done - and pay for it out of your own pocket, EBMUD refunds you your deposit. It's how they ensure you don't just blow them off after you buy a house.

    But if there's something else that I don't know about, I'd love to hear details! Thanks in advance.

  • Rental Property Investor · Oakland, CA · Member since 2016 · 25 posts · 11 votes
    9y

    @Ori Skloot - Thank Ori. Looks like you responded right when I was typing.

  • Real Estate Investor · Flagstaff, AZ · Member since 2017 · 5 posts · 6 votes
    9y

    Thanks for the detailed step-by-step description! Very inspiring.

  • San Diego, CA · Member since 2015 · 9 posts · 4 votes
    9y

    Inspirational! I appreciate the details you and your mortgage broker provide. It builds so much confidence to see how many tools can be employed creatively to get a great result in a difficult area. 

  • San Ramon, CA · Member since 2017 · 13 posts · 4 votes
    9y

    Awesome! I wish I could be like you one day!!

  • Castro Valley, CA · Member since 2015 · 2 posts · 0 votes
    9y

    Thanks Orli for a great post

  • Investor · San Diego, CA · Member since 2017 · 54 posts · 30 votes
    9y

    That is really solid @Ori Skloot.  Well done, and thanks for putting this out there for others to read, learn, and build confidence in this system. 

  • Investor · Milwaukee, WI · Member since 2016 · 35 posts · 26 votes
    9y

    Great job here 

  • Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2017 · 23 posts · 7 votes
    9y

    @Ori Skloot @Chris Mason Thanks for sharing. This is awesome!!!

  • Herriman, UT · Member since 2017 · 1 post · 0 votes
    9y
    Originally posted by @Ori Skloot:

    I asked four friends if they would be interested in lending me money at 10% interest.  Between them I raised $250k for the purchase.  I provided each of them a promissory note and a deed of trust against my primary residence (not the property I bought).  

    2 questions:

    1. I assume you need to have at least 250k of equity in your primary residence for this to work? 

    2. Did you pay someone to draft the promissory notes?  1 per friend?  

  • Rental Property Investor · San Diego, CA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    9y
    Originally posted by :

    I am also worried about  my income. My credit is great however I have been writing off so many expenses the past couple years it doesn't look like I make anything. :(

    lol, if you're in real estate, and are a seasoned investor, you're going to get to the point where you have no IRS "income".  Might as well realize that now :)

    I've given up trying to get a conventional loan.  I can get a $4m loan for an apartment building no problem (just did another a few weeks back).  But trying to refinance a $200k single family home?  Not going to happen.  Tax returns are $0 or worse (and that's with my adding $5m in equity last year).  All a SFH lender cares about is credit score and "how much income on your taxes?".  It doesn't matter what I take as a draw, or what I pay myself.  My companies are in LLCs and those LLCs = me when it comes to tax returns.


    Once you have a large portfolio of properties, there are simply too many deductions (even if it's just depreciation, which becomes an enormous number).   The IRS is not setup to understand how "income" works for anyone that isn't a typical 9-5 W2 worker. 

  • Rental Property Investor · San Diego, CA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    9y
    Originally posted by @Robin Boyer:

    great post everyone a lot of us can learn from this. That's what I am wondering can members people make money at this method if you are not a broker and a gc ? I am neither but would like to try this method. 

    Yes, but it's hard in California. I started buying SFH in Houston (before "BRRRRR" was a term). Cash flow is easier on a ~$100k house that rents for $1200 (which is where I found the sweet spot to be in terms of rent:price ratio while still getting good tenants)

  • Rental Property Investor · San Diego, CA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 4k+ votes
    9y
    Originally posted by @Sam Kim:

    Awesome! I wish I could be like you one day!!

     You can!

  • Seattle, WA · Member since 2016 · 2 posts · 0 votes
    9y

    Wow. Thanks for sharing @Ori Skloot! Great inspiration for newbies like me to see detailed steps of someone pulling off a BRRR in a hard to cash flow area!

  • Chris MasonPro Member
    Moderator
    Lender · CA · Member since 2015 · 9k+ posts · 10k+ votes
    9y
    Originally posted by @Ben Sycamore:
    Originally posted by @Ori Skloot:

    I asked four friends if they would be interested in lending me money at 10% interest.  Between them I raised $250k for the purchase.  I provided each of them a promissory note and a deed of trust against my primary residence (not the property I bought).  

    2 questions:

    1. I assume you need to have at least 250k of equity in your primary residence for this to work? 

    2. Did you pay someone to draft the promissory notes?  1 per friend?  

     Hi Ben,

    1. His mortgages were private, people in his network. A private lender can make up whatever "guidelines" or "criteria" that they want, including not ordering an appraisal... we also didn't appraise his property, so I don't know either way if he actually had that equity.

  • Investor · Hercules, CA · Member since 2015 · 208 posts · 47 votes
    9y

    @Ori Skloot Nice job! It's nice to hear there are BRRRR possibilities here in the Bay. Although there are very few far and between and lots of eyes on these types of properties so the competition is fierce. They definitely don't come every day like in other areas (ie. midwest).

    What did you use for the floors?  It looks like laminate.  What brand, color, and price did you pay if you don't mind me asking?

    Thanks,

    -Leo

  • Orem, UT · Member since 2017 · 4 posts · 1 vote
    9y

    My brain is spinning! Excellent work! All the high fives. This is really, really inspiring!

  • Tempe, AZ · Member since 2017 · 27 posts · 8 votes
    9y
    Love this post! Amazing deal and strong CF. Thanks for the details....very helpful!
  • Real Estate Agent · Woodstock, GA · Member since 2017 · 58 posts · 28 votes
    9y

    Well, you just inspired me.  That is an awesome story...start to finish.

  • Oakland, CA · Member since 2014 · 5 posts · 7 votes
    9y

    I didn't see anyone talking about the insane property taxes in Oakland. They are at about 2%, compared to 1.1% in most other parts of California.

    So that's about 5k to 6k per year. 

    Oakland also randomly decides to re-appraise some new home purchases to a market value. That happened to me. I tried to go through the dispute process to reduce that, but failed. So if they choose to do so, your annual property taxes may end up at $9k.

    Oakland also has city tax of 1% on all rent income (regardless of your expenses!), which will come to $320 / year.

    Also, the owner must pay for the garbage, which is $400/year.

    Just these expenses add up to $6k to 7k / year, which eats up most of the 800/month (10k/year) of cash flow.

    You understand now why positive cash flow is a dream in the bay area...

    Cheers,

    - Ivan

  • Investor · Jackson, MS · Member since 2014 · 1k+ posts · 769 votes
    9y

    Location of property is near 73rd and Bancroft. Near Eastmont Mall.

    @Chris Mason  Thanks for your thoughtful input.  You continue to impress

    @Ana Marie B.  Here are some pics.  All my work was on the inside of the house.  Outside still could use some upgrades and new paint.  But that's down the line.

    Kitchen Before                                                Kitchen After

    Is that laminated flooring you put down in the kitchen? 

  • Investor · Portland, OR · Member since 2014 · 65 posts · 46 votes
    9y
    Originally posted by @Chris Mason:

    @Rob, there was a reason we didn't do it that way. This project started like 5 months ago, so I'll be damned if I can remember what it was from that conversation 5 months ago.

    @Brian Buckley, six month wait for that one, but yes.

    @Chris Mason: Ok... I brought up the rate and term refinance so that readers who are unfamiliar with the BRRRR strategies know that they can achieve same or similar goal by using the subject property as collateral for the loan and not their primary residence. And unless Fannie Mae recently changed their rules again, I think the rate and term refinance can be done without any seasoning requirement

  • Investor · Richmond, VA · Member since 2017 · 32 posts · 12 votes
    9y
    Great job!
  • Fairfield, CA · Member since 2017 · 98 posts · 84 votes
    9y

    @Ori Skloot Nice job Ori. That's a great deal.

    A word of caution about the word "cashflow". It has a specific meaning and I've seen people flamed on the forums for using it incorrectly. $2750 monthly rent - $1950 mortgage is $800... Not $800 cashflow. Cashflow is after additional expenses and capex are factored in. Even if you are self-managing, you need to factor in a management expense as if you had a property manager to come to a proper cashflow number.

    From experience, a liberal estimate of your expenses is (conservative here is 50%) 30% of rent for capex, management expenses, and repairs, that puts you at break even cashflow long term. Despite that, I would buy that type of deal any day in the bay area because I know the way these properties appreciate (I have 1 in suisun and 1 in fairfield too) and obviously a big win in the forced appreciation department.

  • Kelowna, British Columbia · Member since 2016 · 1 post · 0 votes
    9y

    This is great news! I like to hear success stories like these. 

    I live in British Columbia, Canada. Kelowna specifically, which is a area many want to live which is driving the price of homes through the roof. It's been proven quite difficult to buy a home under 500,000 to rehab. 

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