All Forum Posts by: Doug Spence

@Quincy Mingo First off, welcome to bigger pockets and congrats on your success in real estate thus far! I love how you used your VA loan to buy a 4 unit - genius! My wife and I are house hacking in San Diego now using her VA loan and its such a great strategy.

You should connect with @Jonathan Klemm and @Lucien Perreault. Both are active investors in the Chicago area. Lucien is active duty Navy. 

I'm not smart on going in on an FHA loan together with a partner, but I'd make sure you and your partner have shared values and goals with regard to your real estate investing. That goes for both your personal partner and business partner, and I'm assuming those are not the same individuals, but it's not clear from your post.

I think you're smart to utilize FHA and VA loans to the max extent possible to take advantage of the more favorable financing you can get with those, but those strategies will be used up soon, and as you grow your portfolio you'll need to start using other peoples money (OPM) to grow. I recommend you document your experience and journey NOW (via social media, youtube, blog etc) so you can begin to establish credibility as a real estate investor. That way it will be easier to raise money from private lenders (usually your friends and family in the beginning) to fund purchases and rehabs.

Good luck and keep us updated on your progress!

@Stephen Rinaldi Great info. A good reminder for first-time VA buyers is that they will still need to pay for closing costs out of pocket! Some people get surprised by that fact at the closing table, because they hear its 'zero down' which is true for the lender, but the closing costs can really add up out here in California.

@Ryan Cousins This is a great question, but its a question for your lender! He/she will be able to give you good advice on the timing of it. Another thing to consider, is whether or not your personal credit will be a factor in this upcoming investment purchase with your business partners. Depending on how your entity is structured, your personal credit may not be considered. 

Good luck and keep us updated. 

@Ran Iarovich Good communication and punctuality are critical for me when working with anyone, but especially an agent. When someone doesn't do what they said they would, its a red flag for me. It could be meeting at a property at a specific time, an unprofessional email, or multiple days of not responding without any 'out of office' kind of message. 

1. How much equity do you have in the home?

2. How much could it rent for and whats your PITI? If you rented it out would you use a property manager?

3. What are your long term goals and would renting or selling get you closer to those goals?

@Jose Lucina It depends on your goals! There are lots of ways to invest in real estate, some are more active some more passive, some have higher risk but also higher returns. Do you want to invest where you live or are you comfortable with out-of-state investing? 

@James Jett You should connect with @Jonathan Klemm and @Lucien Perreault. They're both active in the Chicago area and do meetups!

@Thomas Corso Where is this property? I recommend using location keywords in your posts so others in the area will get notifications about your post!

@Robyn Murphy Welcome to bigger pockets! You're in the right place to learn about real estate investing. Here's what I recommend:

1. Educate yourself! Personally I like books and podcasts, but theres a ton of youtube content out there as well. You can do most of your education for free or nearly free (cost of books) so don't spend any money on courses right now. Once you're ready to niche down, then courses may be appropriate for you. I'm happy to recommend my favorite books and podcasts.

2. Network! Start going to as many local meetups as you can. Connecting with others in real estate is the secret sauce of real estate investing. Every future deal you do will likely be the result of a relationship you have with someone else. Seek to provide value to others first! Don't be a net-taker.

3. Give back! Once you're a successful real estate investor, (you will be) you should give back to others. Help them along their journey without expecting anything in return.

Good luck and keep us updated on your journey!

@Dennis Nikolaev Check out Serenity Stays. A few buddies of mine started the company. Happy to make the connection if you want.