All Forum Posts by: Alecia Loveless

@Dennis Maynard I was fortunate to never have car debt but did get myself into card debt twice before learning my lesson. Now I pay off everything each month except for real estate debt my properties pay for and have a nice amount of reserves in case of emergency.

I say pay off high interest debt first to get your credit issues in order then invest wisely.

If you have low interest debt and can still afford to invest that is ok as long as you have enough cash reserves in case something goes wrong.

@Leah Woods I am using Venmo and so far no fees. However my preferred bank stopped accepting them so now it takes three transfers to get the money from my bank that does accept Venmo into the correct accounts. I don’t mind, it just takes a couple days.

@Alex Johnston from personal experience I’d say the house bills are yours and your personal bills remain separate and then maybe you share joint expenses that you both agree upon like groceries and internet or whatever.

Even though I owned my house when I broke up with my last partner she maintained it was her right to continue living there until I sold it at my expense as she paid nothing toward house bills and stayed living there the 3 years it took me to sell it. It was awkward in many ways but especially after I moved my new girlfriend in to live with me!

@Brady Stout I’m in a resort area in New Hampshire and we keep our decks clear of snow simply for the reason of snow load and the fear that eventually under enough weight they will either pull away from the house or collapse.

@Jose Antonio Flores Be sure to include CapEx and Vacancies and Repairs and Maintenance in your numbers!

@Diorca Gonzalez There's usually deals you just have to do some work or search off market. I've just found one in my area that should ARV for a $245,000 equity gain. Of course it's going to require a decent amount of work!

At the moment others are cash flowing $150 a door where I live.

There is a property in my Village I am interested in that has a 3000 square ft Victorian and 2 small out buildings. Bouts of the out buildings have electricity and one has a radiant heat floor.

While I haven’t toured the property yet, the home appears to need cosmetic repairs that I can do, and with work I believe the two buildings could become 1BR ADUs.

The tent from these units would cover the taxes for the property, the heat for the house, and likely the cable/internet for the house. It would only be about $1200/month.

I believe ARV there would be about $120,000 in equity. My renovation estimates may be high and the ARV equity might be closer to $150-160,000. My cost of living would go up about $500/month from where I live now but I'd be able to rent out my current space for an increased cash flow of $700/month for a net gain of $200/month.

Would you try to buy this new deal knowing in 2 years you could take your profit tax free as your primary residence or else keep living there and build up appreciation and increased rents and bigger cash flow if my partner and I love it once it’s renovated.

So should I buy it, or wait for a better opportunity to come along?

@Nellie Black Hi Nellie! Thank you for your service! From all that I read on the forums Kansas City and the larger cities in Ohio provide affordable markets for OOS investors to buy a nice beginning portfolio that cash flows well.

Anywhere you choose to invest start building your team. Use the BiggerPockets directory to find investor friendly realtors and go from there. Decide what you're looking for a SFH or a small multi family. The income from multi family leases counts toward your income needed to qualify for the mortgage.

B-to C buildings typically cash flow the best. A good realtor will be able to help you choose property in a decent neighborhood. They can refer you to a good property manager. Interview the property manager. Make sure you feel comfortable with them. If you don’t find another. Ask for referrals on the forums.

Best of luck and hopefully more people answer.

@Kevin Santiago I would say to definitely have you both brainstorm and list your concerns for your endeavor so that you can draw up the proper contract to deal with them before you start your business. Also make sure you have an exit strategy. And if you don’t get a lawyer to draw it up and notarize it where you each have a notarized copy at least go to the bank or somewhere and both get a notarized copy.

I’ve had two partnerships both with friends. One was buying apartments and the partner was stealing all the cash flow and it finally took my spouse stealing the checkbook to find out. The second was a restaurant I owned with another friend and once it opened even though she was to be the floor manager and I was to be the silent partner she went home the day after the grand opening and never went back. The bank finally kicked her off the mortgage.

If there had been an exit strategy for either a lot of time would have been saved.

@Jeremy Komer I guess I’m extremely lucky. My general labor is about $30, my last plumbing bill was $80/hour and my electrician is $75.

I do have to wait for everyday things but if I had an emergency they’d fit me in that day.

I’ve got a project I’m thinking of trying a new electrician for that just started his business that’s in my personal home but I think I’m going to have a friend call to get his hourly rates first!!