All Forum Posts by: Andrew Frowiss

Hi @Account Closed here are my thoughts on your situation. 

If you can't invest in your market, then I encourage you to expand the areas you are comfortable investing in, or change your strategy. Only until you are ready to switch to a better one.

I got into real estate investing when I was 19 by wholesaling properties. I didn't have any capital, but I spent all my time learning how to find deals, and get them under contract. Even though I didn't have the funds to purchase the property, I knew plenty of Investors that didn't have deals, but had the funds and experience. I would either wholesale the house to the Investor for them to finish their deal, and I would get paid up front, or partner with them on the deal to see it through till the end. I learned a lot and was able to get my foot in the door. If your end goal is to invest in multi family, it can also be done, but that is a whole other game to learn. 

You would still be responsible to finding deals, but you would just focus on apartment complexes and bigger projects. The challenge at this point is funding the project. Look into syndicating apartment complexes to see how others manage to do this.

Perhaps start out wholesaling smaller deals until you feel comfortable enough to move onto something bigger.

Otherwise you could start out by investing out of state in a market with affordable purchase prices. There are places in Texas where you can buy single family properties for around $200k and 4 plexes for around $385k and cash flow with decent appreciation. You could do this till you have a sizable portfolio and 1031 them into something larger.

I wish you the best of luck in your future investments!

Hi @Alejandro Escalante great question! When I started out in real estate I was 19 wholesaling. If you can get good at finding off market deals, meeting with Sellers, and getting deals under contract at a good enough discount, you should be able to partner with someone else who has cash. In my experience there are plenty of Investors who have the cash and the motivation to do a deal (and hopefully some experience) who have difficulty finding deals. Go to Investor meet ups and make some connections so when you find a deal and get it under contract you are ready to go. 

Then you just need to decide if you want to get your money up front and exit the deal, or partner with them on the deal and see it through till the end. It's a great way to get into the investing game with little to no out of pocket expenses (depending on how you find deals). 

Otherwise if you can afford to buy something in your current market you could house hack. It's a great way to get into the game. Buy a primary residence and rent out the other rooms either right away, or after you move out and into your next primary residence.

If you can't afford to invest in your current market, then you could look into out of state investing. There are places in other states with affordable housing prices that will give you cash flow and decent appreciation (look into single family and small multi family properties in Killeen TX). I help lots of Investors buy in that area. Just make sure to partner with an Investment focused Realtor and get a good Property Manager you can trust in that area before starting to invest.

Run your numbers always, and pick a path that works for you. Do your research and use Bigger Pockets! There are lots of people on here and we love to help each other out! Never lose your motivation.

Hi @Steve Tran great question! My property management doesn't always provide a washer/dryer, but in may cases we do. It's up to the Owner of the property to make that decision, but generally speaking most of our properties come with a washer/dryer, and the Tenants know that if there is any maintenance needed on it, they will be the ones to pay for it. As long as the units were working when they moved in.

Hi @Kent Depwe I'm a Realtor and Property Manager in Austin and these are my thoughts on the situation. I would avoid paying for a house all cash, and use a loan to get a home. Keep building your cash and rinse and repeat. There are still secondary markets in Texas and I'm sure other states that will allow you to invest with 20% - %25 down and you can still cash flow, and bank on your appreciation + loan pay down. If you buy a house all cash you would make more in cash flow, but if you have multiple properties financed you will make cash flow + appreciation on all of them. Of course run the numbers and decide for yourself.

I help Investors buy single family and multi family properties in Killeen TX as it's still a cash flow market with similar appreciation rates to Austin. 

Hi @Christopher Sarkissian are you able to invest in your current market? If so I would recommend house hacking as it's how lots of investors get their first start. If you aren't in an area you can invest in then, perhaps look at out of state rentals. Find a good investment focused Realtor you can trust and a good Property Manager to be your boots on the ground. If you are considering out of state investments I would recommend Killeen TX as their purchase prices are still affordable. I help Investors buy there regularly (some of which are 1st time Investors).

Another great way to get into the game is wholesaling! This is how I got my start. If you can get really good at finding deals and getting them under contract (at a good price) there are tons of investors who would be happy to partner with you on the deal and provide the financing. I personally know lots of people who have the financing and the motivation, but with no deals on the horizon at all. I did this with very little out of pocket expenses and was able to make good money. It takes a person who can handle lots of rejection and confrontation. 

Best of luck!

Hi @Account Closed it all depends on what you are comfortable with! A lot of people would prefer to invest in an area they can get to, since you can manage it yourself.

That being said if you are new to real estate investing there will be a huge learning curve ahead, and you may make mistakes that can cost you money. So one could argue that it would be a good idea to use a property manager (assuming you are talking about long term rentals). It wouldn't be that big a jump to having an out of state rental with a property manager taking care of the property. Just make sure to find a really good PM you trust.

There are plenty of people doing both and you could argue each strategy so it all comes down to your comfort level. 

If you can afford to invest in your area and you don't mind learning the game, then maybe start in your area and branch out later on.

I have out of state investors that used me to purchase their first rental property in TX so I know it happens.

Hi @Brian Rudd if I were in your position I think I would rent out my primary residence, take out a HELOC and use it for another purchase. Interest rates might go up again, and I would rather try and lock something in while they are still relatively low

Hi @Wanda P. thanks for posting! I can't speak about what blogs and podcasts to listed to since i mainly am on Bigger Pockets! Forbes put out this article in December of 2020, (a little dated I know), but I'm a Realtor in Austin and #3 on the list is Killeen TX. I've noticed lots of my Austin Investors have switched to buying in Killeen and they still are. I'll be keeping my eye on Forbes to see if they put out another article like this. 

I'm curious about what others have to say on the topic.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/a...

Hi @Angel Wu thanks for posting! I think turnkey or using an investment focused Realtor and then using a property management company are both good strategies, as long as you can find dependable people you can trust. Read their reviews and interview some people! I help lots of investors analyze, find, and purchase their properties, then turn around and manage them with my property management company, so I know it works.

Find a market you want to invest in, and call a few companies and see how fast they respond to you!

Hi @Robert Raffalo this is what my company does!

$175 refundable pet deposit + $175 non refundable pet fee + $15/month in rent for the 1st pet. Every pet after the 1st would be a $50 refundable deposit + $50 non refundable pet fee + $5/month in pet rent. This way it scales with each pet they have, and the Owner gets some money up front. I haven't had any trouble getting this in my market.