All Forum Posts by: Ashley Cross

Hi Audrey! This is how I initially started in real estate and I quickly saw the value in becoming a lender. It depends on what you are looking to do in real estate. You can start flipping with hard money to get your income up. Once you get a few good flips under your belt you may have enough cash to retain a couple of your acquisitions for rental income. You can also finance the deals with only your husband on the mortgage and you included on the deed. Conventional financing allows up to 10 homes for a borrower so that's 9 rental properties if you have a primary home. DSCR is a great option but a lot of time the lenders require some experience.

Hi Mark!

With it being 19 units, you'll need to get commercial financing which doesn't focus on your income. The cashflow of the property will be scrutinized. The rates and terms are less favorable for commercial deals unless you have a relationship with a lender so be prepared for that. Best of luck to you!

If you are getting a higher rate of return for your investment than the interest charged for the mortgage it makes more sense to take out all the equity. However, ensure you are calculating your cashflow with maintenance, capex, and the property management fee included. You should also keep a cash reserve just in case an expensive repair comes up. 

Hi John! I'll be sure to go easy on you :). When you're looking to do a Brrr you want to make sure that all of your costs don't exceed 70% of the ARV. In my opinion, that determines if its a good deal. Conventional financing will allow you to go to 80% LTV for a primary single family and 75% for a single family investment property. It sounds like you won't be able to pull your investment out. Another concern is if the renovation cost is accurate. You should be compensating for your time and if you want to scale your business you'd want to run your numbers with an outside contractor's bid. Also, you want to ensure you'll be able to cashflow after the refinance.

House hacking is a great way to start and it will probably be your best bet. I've also had challenges in a hot market with people overbidding but the good news is that things are definitely slowing down. Great advice from Brandon Turner is be the first to the offer table or the last. I found a lot of success in both strategies. Having a realtor that is very responsive and helpful is a great asset. I would never suggest anyone overpay. That is only a good option if you have a lot of capital and a lot of time. Best of luck!

Hi Bryant,

The best way to get started is to get pre-approved. I can definitely help with that. House hacking is your best option to get a multi-family property for the least amount down. Regarding your work experience, I agree with Syed we'd like to see 3-6 months on the job but we can go around that if you recently graduated. Feel free to send me a message and we can chat more. 

The rate sounds good. You should also review the cost for the loan. Its not a bad idea to shop. If you do find a better deal give it to your preferred lender to see if they can beat the quote. 

Just to add, there is a clause in the mortgage that states if the ownership changes for the property the lender can call the note due but I've never seen this happen and this has not been the case with my properties. Do your research.

You'll receive better financing terms with conventional loans that lend to individuals only. You can transfer the property to the LLC after you close to limit your liability. You are allowed up to 10 loans under Fannie/Freddie guidelines so its in your best interest to only have one of you on the loan. If the other spouse is on the deed they are only responsible for property taxes and insurance when it comes to your DTI.

Pulling equity requires 6 months seasoning. Otherwise, you are limited to pulling only the acquisition costs.