Is now the right time to buy my first investment?

Question

Hello Everyone,

I am a first-time home buyer looking to make an investment in Indianapolis. I am looking to house hack with a duplex/SFR with an in-law suite or BRRR a low-priced SFR since I am limited in my budget (roughly 175k max). I am planning to pull equity out of my purchase to hopefully obtain an additional property in the next 9-15 months. The only thing that is holding me back from making a purchase is the current/future state of the market. If the market dips will I still be able to pull equity out of the property? My plan is to start scaling a business and I do not want to be stuck holding a property that doesn't allow me to invest in another within the next year. I also have heard conflicting stories from different real estate agents about the market. One has been saying that home values will continue to grow and there is not much evidence to prove that real estate is in a bubble. The other is saying that home prices will decline shortly and wouldn't buy anything for at least 6 months to a year with the risk of having negative equity. Is now the right time to purchase my first investment with the limited capital that I have or should I be waiting for the market prices to fall?

Also if there are any other investment strategies that anyone believes would be a good fit for me I would love to hear about them!

Austen Mueller · Answer

My 2 cents...

1. As a first time homebuyer Househacking is the best option for decreasing housing costs and quickly getting into realestate, especially when you dont have that much money and want to utilize an FHA loan.

2. IS your budget able to borrow $175k or do you have $175k cash your sitting on?

3. How quickly you can refi and pull money out of your equity will be detrmined on how much equity you build. In a year you wont have that much equity in the deal without putting money or a lot of work into it. If you put a lot of work into it your looking at BRRRRing. THis is the quickest way to build a real esate portfolio but the most time/money intensive.

4. As far as the market goes. I dont think anyone knows. somestratygies are more prone to being affected by the market than others. FOr example a fix n flip before a bubble is riskier than a long term buy n hold.

Jaron Walling · Answer

@Adam Boniface "I do not want to be stuck holding a property that doesn't allow me to invest in another within the next year." - DELETE this statement from your mind.

REI takes a long time. If you can't or don't start this year when will you? A budget of $175k can buy you some great properties in the mid west. Are they going to be cash-flow kings? Probably not. What about in 3 years as rents go and Indy continues to grow? It's pretty obvious anyone waiting on the sidelines is losing. If you're afraid of negative equity you're either not ready financially, don't have a strategy, don't have a sizeable DP, or a combination of the above.

I don't know your age, job, professional skills, education, etc. but if you're ambitious and have a 6 months emergency fund it's time to buy real estate. It just gets more expensive and wages aren't keeping up. That's a fact.

Hamp Lee III · Answer

Real estate investing is a long game. Sometimes you have hot years and others are a bit slower.

Each decision is a gamble…a risk you take based on the best information you’ve gathered from research and wise counsel. Yes, things can change wildly from one year to the next, but make the best decision today with facts, not the fear of the unknown.

I wish you all the best.

Is now the right time to buy my first investment?

Is now the right time to buy my first investment?

Most Popular Reply

3 Replies