All Forum Posts by: Andrew Postell

@Salvatore Amato I mean, you are correct (and so are the posts above) that better neighborhoods would appreciate more. But what choice do you have? If your can't go one route, and only have the choice of doing this other route - I mean, then you don't have any choice. My first BRRRR Property was a $7,000 home. That's all I could do. My 2nd BRRRR was a $23,000 home. That's all I could do. Now, I don't own any of those homes anymore...but I couldn't be where I am without starting down there.  There's plenty of people who do make money on lower valued homes.  There's people who make money on mobile homes.  There are certainly challenges with ANY strategy.  The main challenge to just about any of us is money.  Even if you have $1million...your limit is just higher than mine - it's still a limit though.  Work within your means.  That's usually a pretty safe practice.  

Reach out with any questions.  Here to help!

@Jabril Womack thanks for the post! Let's try some local real estate meetup groups. Meetup.com is a good resource for those but some of the groups will also post here on Bigger Pockets Marketplace too. Even facebook might have some good local groups for you. Some of those facebook groups have thousands of members. The priority is consistent recommendations from active investors. Oh, eventbrite too. But post locally for this. That’s the best bet.

@Keaton Vols just because you buy something doesn't mean you are slowing down.  Plans change and so do goals.  I will say that building is usually a little (maybe a lot) harder than most people think. But in a forum setting it might be a little hard to know EVERYTHING about your finances, career objectives, relationships, etc.  So, it might be hard to provide concrete advise so maybe I'll just say to trust your instincts on it.  If it's a great deal, you'd be really exited about it, right?  The fact that you already have reservations...again, hard to say but your instincts might be telling you something.

Hope all of that makes sense.

@Ashleigh Di Toro congratulations on your journey into the military.  I served in the Marines and glad to meet a future family member.  Now, in the military you may never have a stable plan.  Things change depending on your job and world issues.  And even with the most stable of positions...things can change.  So, I would suggest, if you are going to sell your home, to keep it in something simple that you don't have to manage.  Possibly like a high yield savings account or even just keeping it in a S&P Fund that you can leave it and forget it.  Stay safe and stay frosty.  Reach out if you need anything else.  Semper Fidelis.

@Sean Kaczmarczyk check out this podcast I was a guest on HERE.  Might have some helpful hints for you. Thanks!

@Cody Maldonado I would definitely recommend taking a 30 year loan every time.  You do this long enough and you will always want more cash now.  Your mortgage is tax deductible.  It's paid by someone else.  Having more cash each month allows me to acquire more income producing assets.  I can't tell what type of mortgage you are getting but if it's the type that goes on your personal credit a 15 year might hurt you qualifying for other things because the payment is higher.  You can always just put more money towards the payment on a 30 year loan.  And if things get rough in the economy, then go back to the 30 year payment.  If things get tough and you have a 15 year payment...across 40 properties...that might make it even tougher.  Just take the lower payment and keep that money in the bank.

@Sean Kaczmarczyk I invested out of state for over 15 years.  I would HIGHLY recommend to do whatever you can to try to find somewhere in state first.  So, Denver is pretty tough...but what about Castle Rock?  Or Colorado Springs?  Or Boulder?  Fort Collins?  Even if it's a bit of a drive that means you can still go and visit your property.  When you invest out of state, you may never see your property.  That's an ENOURMOUS amount of trust to put in a stranger.  Now, when we target a city/area to invest in out of state, the right place to start is in a city where you know someone.  Where can your existing network help you find trustworthy vendors to help protect your asset.  So, any 1% or 2% difference between areas can be erased easily by a bad contractor.  So, invest where you know and do everything you can to be local.

Hope all of that makes sense.

@Michael Santeusanio holding properties has always been the slower gain.  It's hard to keep $20k in a property sometimes if you are needing that money to make more money.  Some people have even gotten out of flipping and just wholesale now.  It all has it's risk but usually, if you are a full time investor, you flip more than you hold.

@Ellisa Riddick thanks for the post.  I have been an investor for 25+ years now and while I am a lender as well, I've never received a deal from a lender.  Usually, relationships with lenders are transactional.  That doesn't mean there can't be an exception but by in large, our deals come from wholesalers.  Having a lender is a lot like having a title company or plumber.  It's ok to have your favorite but you need 3 others just in case.  Yes, I do have contractors and contacts and networking groups that I share with my clients...but I'm an investor.  So, that is really rare.  Most lenders are vendors and that's how I would recommend for you to treat them. 

@Jason Renze VA loans 100% allow this. As long as you qualify for the mortgage, you can buy a 1-4 unit property with a VA loan. No issue with this strategy.