All Forum Posts by: Christopher Ray

Hey everyone! My name is Dr. Derrick Allen, and I'm excited to join this powerful community of investors and real estate professionals.

I’m a full-time educator with 14 years of experience and a business owner for the past 3 years, currently based in Birmingham, Alabama. While education is my passion, real estate is my next chapter—and I’m diving into fix-and-flip opportunities across the South.

Right now, I'm looking to partner with active or aspiring investors who are open to 50/50 profit splits once the initial investment has been recouped and the property is sold at ARV. I bring transparency, hustle, and a strong network of local contractors and real estate professionals here in Alabama.

If you’re interested in collaborating on some low-entry, high-upside deals (I’m currently evaluating properties in the $20–25K range with ARVs around $85–100K), I’d love to connect and explore how we can build something profitable together.

Thanks for welcoming me into the space—I’m here to learn, grow, and win together!

📍 Location: Birmingham, AL

💬 Feel free to DM me if you’re interested or just want to connect!

Hi there!

I'm Justin Lewis. I've been listening to Bigger Pockets off and on for years but have always wanted to get into real estate investing. For a while, I've felt like I just couldn't find the pieces that fit any given situation. This time around I'm coming at it with a mindset to learn everything I can. In my day job I do SEO for a digital marketing agency and I am more than happy to talk SEO with anyone who has questions.

I'm interested in Long-term rentals, though admittedly, finding deals below market value and funding those deals (not to mention I honestly have no idea have to put the deals under contract in the first place), are problem the first things I'll need to learn. I think in the past, I've let what I "know" get in the way of what I can learn so this time, I'm just going to learn everything. Happy to meet you (though also working on getting past being shy) and talk.

Hi everyone, I'm Dustin Rabon and my wife and I began our real estate journey in November, 2024. We bought our first buy and hold property in the Birmingham, AL area using the BRRRR method. The only thing left to do is to refinance and repeat! We went conventional for this property, so there is a 6 month seasoning period until we can refinance, but I'm not waiting until then to find our next property lol.

We are currently in the process of finding a fix/flip or our next buy and hold, whichever comes first. We plan to use hard money or a private lender for the next one so that we can sell a flip or refinance sooner. 

My goal is to continue this process until we reach financial freedom. I'm glad to be here to network and learn as much as I can, and eventually be a professional providing advice to new investors. 

Hey Andrew, I currently go to Jacksonville State University studying Manufacturing Engineering with a concentration in Management and I'm entering my senior year. I live in Oxford which is about an hour away if you aren't familiar and I'm also beginning my REI journey. I'm still trying to learn as much as I can and I'm hoping to find a mentor soon but I'm also trying to surround myself and build up my community with people my age with some of the same goals like yourself. It'd be great to stay in contact as we both continue on and who knows, we may end up partnering on a deal in the future!

Hi everyone,

My name is Andrew and I am a junior finance major with a real estate concentration at Samford University. Originally from Nashville, TN, I've been living in Birmingham for the past couple of years and have noticed what seems like a major upside in the local real estate market. While I'd consider moving back to Nashville if the right opportunity arises, I'm particularly interested in learning more about Birmingham's potential in REI.

As I prepare for graduation next year, I'm exploring where to live post-college and how to get started in REI. I have zero hands-on experience but have been researching the industry for a few months and want to take the next step. From your experience, does Birmingham offer strong opportunities for new investors?

I'd love to connect with someone experienced in the area and even work on a deal together just to gain some hands-on experience. If anyone has insights, connections, or opportunities they think I should look into, I'd really appreciate it. Also, any advice for someone looking to get their start in the industry would be fantastic!

Looking forward to learning from you all.

Many lenders avoid loans under $100K, as smaller loan sizes can be challenging to structure efficiently. Especially, if you don't have a balance sheet like @John O'Leary mentioned.

At Malve Capital, we consider deals starting at $50K and do our best to make them work when possible.

FYI - For lower-priced rehabs, it’s important to ensure your numbers still make sense after factoring in loan costs. Happy to chat if you’d like to explore options!

Hey Christopher,

Most lenders have a minimum loan amount between $75K and $100K, typically covering 85-90% of the purchase priceand 100% of rehab costs. If any lenders offer lower amounts, they likely still have a minimum origination fee or higher interest rate and are usually individual private lenders rather than institutional private money sources. Having said that, there are a ton go great lenders under the find a lender tab in the resource hub. 

Sounds like a good investment. What is your COC and cash flow?