All Forum Posts by: CJ Witmer

Josh, good point, but that one always confused me.  I've heard many times on BP about partnering, but I'm cloudy on how I know what's a fair deal.  I'd be bringing no money, so do we do 25/75, 50/50...  How do I know I'm not getting shafted?  Also, I am very untrusting of others, so a partnership would be tough for me.  Not saying it's off the table, but would probably be a last resort.

We are coming up on our first full month of rental income and it's nice.  The tenants do seems to be a bit whiney and once a week seem to have a new gripe and I'm going back and forth with the property manager on some of that, getting contractors setup with PM so I'm not the middle man and just getting the "team" in place.

As a quick summary, we formed and LLC and under that, bought an over/under duplex for $59k and did about $6k of renovations. Mortgage is $375/month and income, after PM is paid, is $1242 so I think we found a decent deal.

So I'm on here because I REALLY want to keep going, but the bank recommends waiting at least 6 months for this one to "season" and show stable income.  Also, we're kinda "tapped out" at the moment financially.  I think I'm already answering my own question, but I wanted input on what you guys have done.  I want to just keep chugging away, buying more and getting to financial freedom more quickly, but I don't want to do too much too quickly.  My mind says that leverage isn't bad as long as income is covering expenses.

Help me out, should I keep going?  I do keep an eye out for deals, but it's almost like torture because if I do see a good deal, I'm afraid to act because the bank wants us to wait.  I know I could check with other banks, go with hard money, private money, etc., but I want to be smart.  Currently, I'm 35 and if I do 1 a year it'll take quite a while to get there.

Our goal (my wife and I) is for me to quit my job and we both do aspects of real estate investing full time and use the time/income to spend time with our kids and perhaps do some charitable work.

Could be a crafty competitor rattling your cage.

Steve Salvini you'll have that experience for life and be better for it. Wish you all the best. Go Steelers!!!

Steve Salvini that's how I'm getting into the real estate investing world. A friend wants to cash out of his duplex to get a new truck and help his kids with college. He's made a lot of money on the property and is willing to sell at a pretty nice discount. All done off the market. Home inspection went well and a friend I consider a mentor went through the property with me and said it's a heck of a deal! Feeling good about it and we should settle by mid/end of Feb. I've been keeping things under wraps about REI, but I heard @BrandonTurner talking on a podcast about how he got a lead on an apartment complex, just by mentioning it to a friend who happened to be selling an apartment complex. Juan Carlos Gutierrez talk to friends and family and find someone whose been successful and pick their brain. Help them clean out a property, just for the price of their advice or find a way to bring value to them and they should return the favor!

Juan Carlos Gutierrez check out the 203k loan. It allows you to roll repair costs into the loan. I did this on my primary residence and I won't lie, it was a bit of a nightmare, but I owe $151k and the house was just appraised 3 weeks ago at $175k. I'd have never been able to get money for the $63k we did in repairs without the 203k. It also gets you a bit of insurance from scamming contractors as each "draw" requires a certified inspector to sign off on the work and THEN the contractor gets paid. Read up on it and if you're a patient person with good record keeping, it should work out well. Best of luck!

Hey guys, I'm a little south in Chambersburg, but I work in Hershey. About to settle on our first investment duplex with our LLC. We're buying it privately, but it's because we know the owner. The next properties will most likely not be private, so we're already looking for a recommendation in this area for realtors who know what investors are looking for (and not looking for). Would love to get recommendations.

Michelle Madtes will you be doing all of this privately (in your own name) or through an LLC? Just curious how others are approaching this.

Got a commitment letter from bank A and the unsigned sales contract is in my inbox. Hoping to start the formal loan process next week!

MarieChele Porter talk to a good lawyer, preferably one who specializes in landlord/tenant law and start a conversation about an LLC and the benefits. As some have mentioned, transferring a property from a person to an LLC after the fact can have some sticky consequences. I didn't know, until I asked my lawyer why I shouldn't. He set me straight, so we moved ahead with the LLC as the first step.