All Forum Posts by: Denny Moody

Originally posted by @Ryan Xu:

In Washington, it's not necessary to buy with cash for off-market. But we have to record it in MLS.

I'm doubting if there is any difference since banks and other loaners only care if the mortgage is worth it or not instead of on MLS or not.

Hey Ryan, thanks for the response. I'm sorry, I didn't word that clearly enough. What I mean is if I am going to buy an off-market deal with cash, do I need to have an agent.

Wow, I'm so grateful to the community for the spirited responses. Hearing everyone's opinions has given me a lot to think about and I love the wide range of opinions on investing OOS vs aiming for lower COC but higher appreciation/equity locally. I will definitely take my time before deciding if, where, and when to invest OOS.

On semi-related note, I've stumbled upon a local opportunity, and started a new thread about it. Check it out here. would love some of your feedback!

I recently learned my dad owns a lot in La Mesa, CA, a neighborhood about 15-20 minutes outside of downtown San Diego. He mentioned he wants to do something with it but doesn't know what.

I'm sure if I put together a plan and pay for development, he would be willing to partner on something, but I need to figure out what the best option would be. Here are 2 ideas:

- build affordable modular home on the lot for long term rental. This would require substantial costs other than the home as the property would need to be connected to utilities, and apparently La Mesa charges something like 30K to connect to water.

- buy a vintage Airstream, fix it up and decorate it super hip, and operate as a vacation rental. I am a bit more comfortable with this as I have experience with STR, but in a different neighborhood. This of course would also need utilities, but we may be able to somehow tie into his house next door to the lot. The downside is that La Mesa isn't super central so not necessarily the best neighborhood for Airbnb.

I need to do more research and run the numbers on both scenarios but I wanted to see if anyone had any other ideas or input. How can I creatively use/develop this lot to benefit myself and my dad?

@Dan H.Are these properties financed? I see you specialize in small multis in Escondido. Looks like these type properties' RTV is somewhere around 0.5% (at least with what's currently available on MLS). Just a newbie here, but it's hard for me to imagine that these type of properties would cash flow with conventional financing at current prices. Seems you would need a 50% discount on the retail price to achieve 1% RTV.

@Robert Herrera Thanks for the recommendation on Pueblo. I'll take a look.

@David Faulkner I think you have some great points and appreciate your sober perspective. I would love to invest in SD but I can't afford to make a half million dollar investment that will be cash flow negative for the next decade. The reason I'm focused on cash flow is to increase current income. I have my SD house and significant index fund portfolio that should provide long-term wealth building. But with a baby on the way and my wife quitting her job, I'm hoping to develop another stream of income besides my 9-5.

@Matt R.  excellent point about inflation eating away at value of rents, if rents stay level. 

Matt R. Are property taxes in most places higher for OOS investors? I know my dad struggled with that when he invested in North Carolina, but I haven't heard of that elsewhere. David Faulkner San Diego will almost definitely provide greater appreciation and long term wealth than OOS but I'd like to build positive cash flow now. I do think you can cash flow STR in SD but that's a full time job.

@Andrew Fidler Thanks for the info and congrats on quitting your job soon! 

@Engelo Rumora  I think you're right about success depending more on your team than your market. Once I have narrowed down which market to pursue, I'll get to work on building my team.

@Tom Ott  Yes, I've looked into Memphis Invest, and am considering working with them. Some people say their product is overpriced, but seems like you get what you pay for. I'd be interested in learning more about what you have to offer as far as turnkey.

One concern I have about Toledo is population decline. Any thoughts on that? 

@Rebecca G. thanks! I'll take a look at Dayton and Toledo.

Hey BP,

I live in San Diego, CA and would like to invest out of state. I like the idea of investing OOS because it means my investments will have to be passive and it gives me the whole country to choose from. The downside of having the whole country to choose from is it can be somewhat overwhelming. After spending some time researching various markets around the country and getting overwhelmed, I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask BP for suggestions. 

Here's the deal:

- Looking to invest this fall when I will have approx $50k cash to invest

- I also have approx $200k in equity in primary residence that I can tap into with HELOC

- interested in properties ranging from $50K - $200K

- Interested in buy and hold properties with >10% COC return

- Prefer landlord friendly cities, ideally with low property taxes

- open to SFR or small multi

BP, what cities would you recommend I take a closer look at?

P.S. I'm not interested in hearing how I should be flipping or wholesaling in my hometown. I'm only interested in Buy and Hold at this time, and even the war zone neighborhoods in SD don't cash flow.

I second @Chris Depalma . Would love to hear from more TK investors on what their actual returns have been.