All Forum Posts by: Chris Tabanico

Hi David,

If I understand your question, you have a property and you want to have do a lease agreement (with option to buy) on it correct?

If so, in order to get tenants you will have to market to them. Whether that be an ad on Craigslist, Rent-2-Own signs  (yes spelled that way as it conveys better than Rent-to-own) that have your number on it so you can get them to your open house.

There are other methods but the key thing here is that you attract these type of folks to the property. 

Hope that helps!

Chris 

@Doug Phillips sure thing. Happy to help anyway I can.

Hi Andrew, 

One thing to note on the credit score: The credit score you see in your credit card statement (if that's where you are looking) is different than the one the mortgage lenders use. I did not know then until I purchased my first property and was shocked that my score was not over 750 like it showed on my statement every month. 

Where are you looking to buy? Unfortunately as others have stated, you wouldn't be able to take a loan out to use it as a down payment. Try wholesaling first to come up with the funds if you don't have easy access to the 3.5% needed for the down payment. There is money to be made out there!

House hack with FHA loan on multi family which you rent out the other units and live for free. Look for a private money lender to fund your rehab and refinance out after 6 months and repeat. Much easier said than done but if you can save up 3.5% for a down payment and some rehab you can make it work. As the others have stated the car loan will definitely be counted in the DTI as it’s legally in your name. It’s not like a credit card where you’re an authorized buyer. Some lenders will disregard that if the payments aren’t coming from your bank account. Just try to be as frugal as possible and redirect those savings for your down payment. Your dad may be angry now but he’ll get over it eventually. It will obviously help if you get a 2-4 unit and pull off the above. Good luck! Chris

Hi Elliot, I recently embarked on my journey for financial freedom and started with out of state investments. Oddly enough, my financials are nearly identical to you. It is a little daunting but I can say with confidence that BiggerPockets has been my primary forum for networking and that is how I found my team. It may or may not be necessary to meet up in person but I find getting involved and flying out to join the local real estate investor meetings has worked well also. You come across some good deals but you can also get that just by getting added to wholesaler buyer lists. One thing that has worked well for me is joining the local REI Facebook groups where good deals are posted frequently. I stayed away from the MLS as the numbers weren’t as promising (for obvious reasons now, but did not know when I first started). I still have quite a bit to learn but as soon as deal #1 is done, your confidence starts to grow quickly. On a side note, be prepared to get addicted to looking for deals and running numbers :) Best of luck! Chris

Hi David, 

First off, thank you for your service!

As for your question, it really depends on what you are trying to accomplish. Can you elaborate a little on what your goals are?

A self directed 401k, also called a solo 401k, is really just another version of a qualified retirement plan. The benefit is that you can choose pretty much anything to invest in as long as you follow the IRS rules. 

Right now, your retirement plan most likely has minimal choices to invest in (some stock funds, bonds, ETFs if you are lucky) so you are rather limited in choosing an investment vehicle that will help you reach your goals.

From first hand experience, I can tell you that getting a solo 401k was rather easy and I have checks that I write to pay for properties free and clear or to put a down payment if I want to get a loan. You have to find lenders (and there are plenty of them in Arizona to choose from) that offer non-recourse loans where the solo 401k account is listed as the buyer (not you as an individual). The best part is that the gains, if you done correctly are tax free just like a traditional 401k (non-Roth). I set mine up through mysolo401k.net and they helped me along the way to open a fidelity account with checkwriting capability.

A good resource I used before doing this was as follows: https://www.mysolo401k.net/solo-401k/the-process/

If you can provide a little more context, I’ll do my best to help out. We can chat on the phone if you’d like as well. 

Apologies in advance for the lengthy post but I hope it helps. 

Hey Samuel,

I share a similar belief. Midwest has much better returns. Phoenix is still appreciating and will continue to do for about another year or so (imo). He could hold on to them for a little longer if he wants to see a little bit more of an increase in gains. Keep in mind that the summer months (before school starts) are the best time to sell. If he decides to pivot and divert his portfolio to the Midwest he will have to do some homework to assemble a good team as part of the proper due diligence process. I can help here if he's interested in Ohio.  

Good luck! 

I agree 100% @Greg - I realize I am late to the party but I still think there is money to be made in Detroit and neighboring areas. By no means do I believe money is falling from the sky. As with any market, it takes hard work and proper due diligence to avoid being in the red. 

Thanks Joe and Eric. I'm a buy and hold SFH guy. In Detroit, I'll be sure to avoid the D class neighborhoods. I would like to invest in Michigan (not necessarily Detroit but don't mind it if the ROI is right). I'm looking to get better returns (>$400) a door which I believe can be done more easily than in Phoenix metro area with a perk of buying free and clear sub-100K.

Hello BiggerPockets Michigan!

I am currently investing in Arizona however, the margins are not the best anymore (imo).  Therefore, I am looking to branch out to Michigan and other areas where my money can go further. Looking for some advice on the best areas that are still yield excellent returns. I am primarily looking at B/C class neighborhoods and don't mind D if crime is relatively low. Let me know your thoughts on the topic. A few of you may be very active in the BiggerPockets community so be on the looking for connect requests from me!

Thanks!

Chris