All Forum Posts by: Derek Norris

@Paul Rush Thanks!!! Talking with our PM and running comps, we are expecting around $1350. Our other one in Grovetown is getting $1250.

Thanks again! We did the deal in July and worked the closing costs in the deal. Repairs totaled around $800, which was mainly upgrades or maintenance things. One of the bedrooms upstairs had doors that led to the attic, which the doors were not insulated. So we insulated those to keep the electric bill down. Just walking in the room there was a 6-8 degree difference in temperature change. Also changed out some door knobs, mulched the yard (curb appeal), put a door on the laundry area, changed out a garbage disposal, a/c filter, and a water filter for the fridge was about all we did. We had that all done within the first week of owning it and had it rented out within the first month. We use a property manager for getting and maintaining tenants and the property. I rather do all the upfront work and get it to the rent ready status if it needs it first and then hand it over for the property management company to run. 

@ Michele Zugschwerdt, thanks! I was and still go back and forth. Focusing on real estate to stay home full-time with the family!

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Grovetown.

Purchase price: $152,500
Cash invested: $152,500

SFH 4/2 1,667 Sqft.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Mainly location and numbers. It was in my neighborhood.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

An owner in my neighborhood kept putting up a FSBO sign in his front yard and then take it down and then put it up again. I saw it one day and said "self you should go talk to him" and I did. I am limited by how many characters I can use and do not have enough room here to discuss the negotiations. There was a lot of back and forth about the negotiations, to me it is a great story. if someone is interested I will gladly share that experience. There was a lot learned!

How did you finance this deal?

Cash deal... planning to refi to get cash back for more deals.

Originally planned to finance with 20%-30% down yet CMG Financial (whom I will never use again and will not recommend to anyone) - kept giving us the run around about using a POA/which I was out of the states when I had to close that I finally had to use cash to close just to keep the deal. That was a nightmare!

How did you add value to the deal?

I did all the leg work that would normally be taken care of by the seller's agent and buyer's agent.

What was the outcome?

Bought the house!

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Where to start? Real estate agents do a lot more than most people know. Thank goodness for my research and networking over the past two years. I owe the success of this to Brandon Turner and all the other authors within BP's if I hadn't read the knowledge they put forth in their books and on this website, I would have been very lost. The owner did not have a clue what he needed to do and he was selling it as a FSBO, but I made it happen. (Not enough room to explain all the challenges)

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Lawyer/Title Company: Clint Shearouse @ Huguenin Law Office - gave some great advice and professional tips for maneuvering me through the contract process.
Insurance: Anthony Thuan - State Farm
Broker/Lender - David Holdeman (If you see this, thanks for everything you attempted with CMG and just dealing with them in general!!! You are a trooper!)

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Grovetown.

Purchase price: $142,000
Cash invested: $28,400

SFH 4/2 1,513 Sqft. Built in 2000

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

As always, location and numbers. Very good neighborhood and needed minimal work to be rent ready.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Real estate agent.
Had a home inspection done and he came across some roof damage. That allowed us to add some concessions to the negotiation. We were able to get the house for what we asked for below market value and also get a new roof and a homeowners warranty with the deal.

How did you finance this deal?

Local broker lender that I had networked with. Used Flagstar with 20% down and an easy process.

How did you add value to the deal?

Already had financing approved prior to going into the deal. Also had everyone lined up and ready for when we went under contract.

What was the outcome?

Due to the change in negotiations from the home inspections and having a new roof put on before closing only prolonged the close date by a week or two.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

The only challenge was getting a roofing company to get us a quote. I needed that to go back into negotiations with. It was middle of the summer, it rains a lot in the south and people need their roofs doing what they are suppose to do, (keeping the elements out.) So everyone I called seemed to be busy and couldn't come out for weeks, or they didn't answer my calls.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Yes!
Real estate agents: Jennifer Ramey and Vicki Flores whom are now with Maybohm Real Estate in Augusta Ga.
Roofing Company: Brighter Side - Antonio Bridges
Insurance: State Farm - Anthony Thaun
Broker/Lender: David Holdeman - American Financial Network
Home Inspector: Jeff Young - Premier Home Inspections
Real Estate Lawyers/Title Company: Clinton Shearouse - Law Augusta/David Huguenin

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Hephzibah.

Purchase price: $78,000
Cash invested: $78,000

SFH 3/2 1,463 SQFT Built in 1987

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

First and foremost the location and numbers. It was already rent ready due to a recent flip from another investor who did a great job remodeling. He took the time to pay attention to detail when making repairs and adding cosmetic updates. We had walked through so many remodeled or fix and flip homes that were "slapped together", that the workmanship lacked severely. So being rent ready was another big factor.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Our real estate agent.
We did our research on the history of the seller's purchase price and comps in the area. We wanted to buy below market value, just like all the author's in BP community advise. Since it was a fix and flip for him we felt we had some wiggle room from the listed price and put in a low offer. We kept a max dollar amount that we would spend and we came to an agreement right below that.

How did you finance this deal?

Cash deal.

How did you add value to the deal?

Having a cash deal, in my opinion certainly helped. It created a situation where we could close fast.

What was the outcome?

Closed in I believe 10 days from contract.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Not a lesson learned but maybe a something to pass on. I did about a year of research combined with networking/building a team of great individuals/professionals prior to purchasing our first investment property. Having that lined up going into this deal helped out tremendously. Knowing what had to be accomplished after the contract was excepted was paramount. I had the lawyers/title company/home inspector all on standby. Getting the title history checked seems to always take the longest.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Yes! Real estate agents: Jennifer Ramey and Vicki Flores and their entire group! They are absolutely amazing. Investor friendly and go getters.