All Forum Posts by: Derek Jackson

I've been reading a lot about the benefits of getting my own license so I can get access to the MLS. What do you think are the pros/cons?

Originally posted by @Jamie Oliver:

@Derek Jackson

Welcome to BP and thank you for your service! I moved here about 4 years ago. Lived in Gilbert for 2 years and now live downtown. Although I'm about 10-14 months out from my first investment, I've been analyzing deal after deal here for several months now, and have seen the same thing you have been seeing. Crazy thing is, even not-great deals for 2-4 units were getting scooped up within 3-4 days of being on the market! Now I am seeing them stay a lot longer, and many have dropped their prices.

Something else I noticed recently - there are LOTS of SFH homes that have guest houses, and the only way to find them is to read the descriptions because they aren't classified on Realtor.com or Redfin as multifamily. You can do keyword searches but even then you will miss some, which drives me nuts because I'm obsessively thorough. My plan is to find one of those and live in the guest and rent the main house. Given the family, you could do the opposite, maybe going with AirBnB for the guest house and get just as much cash flow, depending on the part of town you live in (of course assuming covid doesn't lock us down forever).

Anyways, once things open back up I'd love to connect sometime and chat. Good luck out there!

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@Dimitry Fomochenko

Thank you for the tips!

@Ryan Swan

I've been talking to a lender about refinancing. We might do that since we have about $50k in equity in this place. But you're completely right, any of the properties I'm seeing around the Phoenix area require at least 25% down to make them a reasonably acceptable cash flowing property.

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My name is Derek. I spent 5 years on active duty in the US Army as an intelligence officer before moving back to the East Side of Phoenix. I'm married, have an almost 3-year-old son, and I'm incessantly focused on how I can replace my income, and become completely financially free while my kid is still young.

We bought our home up in Lacey, WA, and sold it before moving back here 3 years later. We purchased the 5 bed 3 bath 2700 square foot home that we are currently living in but will be renting it out next month. And we'll be moving into a 3 bed 2 bath in South Gilbert. Everything I've done has been on VA loans (since my wife and I are both veterans, we have dual VA benefits).

Now I'm reading a ton of books, listening to Podcasts, analyzing deals, and trying to get ready to dive into more rental properties and other real estate investments.

I've noticed that it seems like the entire Phoenix metro area is extremely competitive and it's difficult to find anything that remotely resembles a "good deal" for a rental according to any of the benchmarks.

Regardless, I'm not deterred. I'll find something. Data analytics is a game the government trained me for, so I know I just need to be patient.

I'd love to connect with anyone, but especially with people who are local to the Phoenix market or have expertise in this market.

2 Votes

All Forum Posts by: Derek Jackson

Derek Jackson has started 3 posts and replied 5 times.

Post: New investor. Should I get my own RE license?

Post: I'm just starting out. Is it worth it to get my RE license?

Post: Arizona based newbie vet looking to connect

Post: Arizona based newbie vet looking to connect

Post: Arizona based newbie vet looking to connect