All Forum Posts by: Craig Curelop

@Josh Koett - Ray Harrell makes a great point. If your goal is financial freedom through real estate investing then I would recommend you seek synergies in your life. That means working in the field you're interested in. 

Nursing will delay your financial freedom by 20 months and tens (or hundreds) of thousands of dollars in debt. 

My recommendation would be to pursue your passion in real estate. The money will follow. 

@Jim Keplinger - I am not in your market so it is tough for me to make a decision on if that's too high or too low. $129k seems like a pretty low offer, I would think you'd be good here. 

Sounds like the property needs a little bit of work. Once you get it settled though, it looks like you'll be able to raise the rents and can cash flow nicely. 

In the WORST case scenario, you will be over budget in your repairs and have over estimated the amounts you can get for rent. Maybe you lose a couple of bucks in this deal? But you will definitely gain invaluable experience through taking action! So Congratulations man! Even if you don't get this one, keep making offers until you can get in the game. 

@Marcus Coleman - Can I ask, what is your reasoning for trying to house hack with a property manager? 

One of the biggest reasons why house hacking makes so much sense is because you're right there and can save that 7%-10% property management fee. If something happens, you simply just go home and fix it. It involves a little more up front work in terms of finding and screening the tenant, but that is certainly worth the 7%-10% you'll save. 

I am doing a house hack now and am happy to give advice in your process of finding and screening tenants. Shoot me a message if you're interested and I can go into further detail. 

@Marshall Easlick - That's awesome man!!! Congratulations!! If you find yourself in Denver, let me know, we can grab coffee and talk real estate. 

@Paul Fagot - If you have little to no experience flipping, I'd suggest reaching out to Biggerpockets members in your area who do flip. Invite them out to coffee and just talk/pick their brain. When the conversation is over, maybe you can ask them to help them on their next flip? Don't ask for any compensation. You won't earn a whole lot, but what you'll learn will be invaluable. 

If you would rather jump right in. Then hard money or private money will probably be the way to go. I wouldn't expect favorable terms as you're an inexperienced flipper going at it by yourself. There's inherit risk there and the lender will make you pay for that. You will likely not get rich off this first flip, but it would be a great start and will give you experience. That way you can get more favorable terms on your next one. 

Hope this helps!

Love this podcast! 

@Scott Trench - What's Joe's Mom's basement like? This is not to be confused with "your mom's basement."

@James Carlson is THE man.... and it just so happens... he's in Denver. 

He actually helped me through the process of getting my AirBnb listed. It all depends on what you're looking for. AirBnb can offer higher returns than a long term rental, but it's a lot more work. 

Like the answer to almost any question, it depends on your goals. If you are willing to hustle a little more for higher returns, AirBnb might be what you choose. If you want some up front work and then coast for a year, long term rentals might be more beneficial. 

Also note that long term rentals are a lot more predictable in terms of rental income. AirBnb suffers from seasonality. 

@Steve Kirsch - I'm not a CPA and do not have any qualifications to give tax advice, but here is my two cents. 

You seem to be talking about the taxes of your rental income, NOT property tax that you must pay. 

You pay tax on your net income amount. This is your rental income minus all of your expenses. These expenses includes mortgage interest, insurance, capital expenditures (amortized appropriately), depreciation, etc. If you end up with a net gain (or loss) on the year, that will be carried over to your W2 income and you will be taxed at the appropriate rate. 

Often times, because of depreciation, real estate investors realize a loss that can be carried over to their W2 income. This is one of the big reasons why real estate is such a wise investment. You can cash flow, but the IRS thinks you lost money on the property so you save on taxes. 

I suggest you run your numbers and figure out whether or not your property will end up with positive or negative net income from the IRS' standards. Then multiply that number by whatever tax bracket you're in to get an estimate on how much you will owe in taxes. Set aside that each month and you should be okay. 

Hope this helps!

@Jennifer Wyatt - You are going through a phase that most newbie real estate investors go through. I went through it myself. 

I settled on concentrating on buy & hold investing because I love my job and don't see myself focusing 100% on flipping or wholesaling anytime soon. 

@John Ingram is right for the most part. However, I do know someone who wholesales deals off of the MLS in Denver. They are just up front with their agent so he is fully aware the deal may not go through if they can not find a buyer.

As for the finder's fee, it's different with each deal. From what I have heard, the average is ~$5k, but that can be different in any market. If you get a good enough deal and someone is willing to pay you $20k more than what you bought it for, you'll make $20k on it. 

@Brian Heimerdinger - If you are cash flowing on the condo, keep it. If it is in an area that you are bullish on, then definitely keep it. 

In my opinion, the only time you sell is when the property is a HUGE pain for you. That can be from the inability to pay your mortgage or constant repairs. 

Your condo went from $260k to $300k in one year? That is a 15% return! Good luck finding that kind of return elsewhere. If you are expecting the same appreciation in the next year (or close to it), I would suggest you hold on. 

If you expect the area to decline and it isn't cash flowing, sell it. 

There are plenty of people that do well with purchasing condos. Just because many people do not like it, does not mean it can not work. It just means less competition for you.