All Forum Posts by: Dan Leyden

hey Chris,

I'm an agent and have been in Stamford for the last 6 years and been investing for 3. I bought my first property 5 years ago and house hacked, was an amazing investment. I'd be happy to chat sometime. Shoot me a message.

Dan

Welcome Chris!

I'm also in Stamford, have been investing for the last few years. Would be happy to grab a drink and chat. 

Dan

Hi PL,

What would jumping 100% into real estate mean for you? Flipping, Buy and Hold, being an agent? Each of these would require a different amount of time (and cash reserves) for you to start making a living. Very few people would recommend going 100% into real estate without any real world experience and without another stream of income you can live off of. 

My advice is to get involved with some type of real estate while you have your other two jobs. The positive is that you have the money to fund your first flip, so if it takes longer than expected (which it will) you won't be paying interest. 

Good luck!

Dan

Hey Perry,

I also live in Stamford, Mike is right about Stamford changing. There are some deals that pop up from time to time, but typically get bought very quickly as there are a lot of investors. Unless your teamed up with an agent, or are an agent it might be hard to find the deals that come up on the MLS. The other option is finding rundown houses and reaching out to the owners.

With all of the "luxury" places going up with various amenities you need to make sure you can price your properties under these, or offer something that they don't. 

Good luck!

Dan

Both are single family. One appraised at 120k, owned for a year, purchased at 41k, completely renovated. The second i just bought a month ago for 60k, did some renovations, probably appraise at 80k. Would be looking to either get a line of credit or cash out around 150k. 

Hi All,

I've been searching with no luck for a mortgage company/bank that works with investment properties in Fairfield County, CT. I don't qualify for conventional financing, and haven't had either of my rentals rented for over a year. If anyone has had some luck with local banks or has any tips let me know!

Dan

It's really not as scary as it seems. I think what happens to most new investors is they spend all their time thinking, and don't start doing. I'm not advocating to not learn as much as you can, but just pull the trigger and start doing it. 

Also, if you find any good properties in Bridgeport keep me in mind!

Try dwell finance. I have mixed feelings about them though. They've taken a real long time to put through a refinance for a property I owned without a mortgage, but the rate and terms are pretty good. Send me a message if you want more info.

I've had the same issue with the last unit I rented out. In a little over a week I received 100+ responses from zillow/hotpads/whatever else. I think moving forward on my next units I will just advertise an open house(s). Doing 100 individual showings would be way too much for a single unit, just to find out the prospective tenants aren't interested. With the ones that are interested after an open house I would have them fill out an application and process them all, picking the best candidate. 

I started my investments with a cash out refinance. Few things you have to consider though. 70k sounds like a lot of equity, but remember most banks will only allow you to use up to 80% of your homes value. I have no idea what your home is worth but heres an example. 300k value, 230k loan, you can only use 10k of the equity. 80% of 300k is 240k. You also have to factor in closing costs of the loan that will eat away equity. 

The downside of living and flipping is the process usually takes a lot longer then if you weren't living there. Also you might want to talk to the bank and see if they are okay with you taking out a loan, then moving out of the property. Typically I have found they aren't okay with that. 

It 100% can be done, but there are a few things to consider. 

Dan