All Forum Posts by: Duc Ong

@Max Uyeda 

Hey Max, welcome to the journey! You’re asking all the right questions early, which is huge.

A couple thoughts that haven’t been mentioned yet:

• Think in terms of scalability from day one. SFRs are great teachers: easy financing, more liquid, usually simpler to manage. But the tradeoff is that once you have a handful, the management and financing side can get clunky. With small multis (2–4 units), you get efficiency per door and can still use conventional financing, which keeps things simpler while giving you scale.

• Location > asset type. Whether you go SFR or multifamily, the market you pick matters most. Strong job growth, landlord-friendly laws, and diverse industries will cover up a lot of rookie mistakes. Once you've picked a market, then decide which property type gives you the best balance of cash flow and appreciation.

• Don’t overlook financing strategy. The BRRRR works well if you can find under-market deals and add value. Turnkey is more about stability than growth. They're very different paths; neither wrong, just depends if you want sweat equity vs steady returns. Just be careful with Turnkey operators and run your numbers carefully.

• Team is everything. Especially as an out-of-state investor. Interview multiple PMs and get referrals from other investors. A bad PM can sink even the best deal.

Since you mentioned possibly putting $400–600k into one property, I’ll throw out a third path: passive investing in a multifamily syndication. That way, you can get exposure to larger-scale assets (100+ units) without having to manage the day-to-day or tie up all your capital in one roof. Some new investors like to blend: buy a couple of SFRs to learn the ropes hands-on, and also place a portion passively in a syndication to diversify.

Bottom line: start small enough that you can learn safely, but keep your eyes on where you ultimately want to scale. You’ll be glad you set yourself up that way.

@Garrett Brown 

Great list, Garrett. I'm based in Honolulu (#6 on the list), and while demand here is always strong, the STR laws are so strict that most of the "Airbnb play" doesn't work unless you're in a resort-zoned building. A lot of investors pivoted to 30+ day mid-term rentals for traveling nurses, military, and remote workers; still tapping into the lifestyle demand that puts us on these rankings.

That’s the key with these “best city” lists: they show where people want to go, but not necessarily where you can legally or profitably operate. Santa Fe, Savannah, NOLA;  all great destinations, but local rules and oversupply can make them tricky.

I see these rankings as a good starting point for demand, but the real play is figuring out which strategy actually fits the city’s laws and numbers.

@Matt Thelen 

Really helpful breakdown, Matt; thanks for putting this together.

One thing I’ll add from a Hawaii perspective: our market showed a pretty steep dip in August. That looks like weakness on paper, but it’s often tied to local seasonality. Summer is when we see peak military moves and higher tourism-related rental demand. By late August, that activity slows, and newer towers in places like Kakaʻako and Ala Moana have been delivering more units, which temporarily softens pricing.

That said, demand here rarely disappears — land constraints and slow permitting keep long-term supply tight. For investors, that means the trick is less about “will it rent?” and more about how fast you can get it leased. I’ve found a couple things really move the needle here:

• Pro-quality listing photos + broad syndication (Zillow, Redfin, Apartments.com, etc.) to reach tenants faster.

• Exploring mid-term rentals (traveling nurses, military TDY); these are becoming a strong niche in Honolulu.

This is a really exciting project, @Dustin Randy. Smaller-scale RAL models fill such an important gap, and I’ve seen demand only increase in markets I work in (I’m a broker/investor out in Honolulu).

On the financing side, a few quick thoughts:

• Bridge + SBA is usually the cleanest way to go for ground-up, since SBA won’t fund pre-entitlement. Private or local banks sometimes step in on the land takedown if you’ve got strong W-2s and some equity in.

• JV with a landowner often looks like crediting the land in as equity; say $1.1M land into a $6–7M deal = ~15–20% ownership.

• Building two homes makes sense for economies of scale, but I’d still model a one-home-at-a-time approach in case equity raising or lender appetite changes.

The fact that you’ve got alternate exit strategies (like subdividing) will help a lot with both investors and lenders. From my side of the world, projects with clear backup options always get more traction.

@Mike D.

I appreciate you laying out the math so clearly. This is one of those debates where the “right answer” depends a lot on investor goals, constraints, and even personality.

A few thoughts to add to the mix:

• Return on equity vs. scalability: Your math shows how low-appreciation/high-yield markets can juice ROE when you stop at “paid down just enough to cashflow.” The flip side is scalability; a $30–40k down payment in Memphis will let you buy more doors quickly, but the management intensity ramps up fast. Not everyone wants to manage 20 roofs instead of 5. That’s why some folks accept thinner ROE in higher-growth markets: fewer assets, potentially bigger swings.

• Rent growth matters long term: Several folks touched on this; appreciation and rent growth are coupled. A market like Honolulu might look ugly on year 1 cashflow, but over 10–15 years, if rents double, that early negative is washed out and the IRR looks very different.

• Taxes and depreciation: One wrinkle often missed in these comparisons is how depreciation shields cashflow in high-yield markets versus how appreciation can be harvested tax-deferred via 1031 exchanges, cost seg, or even refinancing. The after-tax net worth picture can flip depending on the investor’s tax strategy.

• Syndication / passive options: For folks who like the math of low-equity/high-yield markets but don’t want the “20 roofs” problem, one path is to go passive in multifamily syndications. That way you still get exposure to cashflow-heavy markets while letting professional managers handle turnover, maintenance, and scale.

• Local market dynamics: Living in Hawaii, I see the opposite end of the spectrum daily. Our cashflow here is often terrible, but the long-term appreciation plus scarcity factor has built generational wealth for families that held on. It’s a reminder that each strategy has trade-offs and there’s no one market or formula that’s always right.

I think your thesis could be a good framework for people who want to optimize short term ROI without touching negative cashflow, but as others pointed out, adding in rent growth and scaling considerations can really change the outcome over 10–20 years.

@Max Uyeda 

Max, congrats on taking action so early, that puts you ahead of the game already.

SFRs are a great way to start if you want something simple and easier to manage remotely. They attract stable tenants, are more liquid if you ever want to sell, and with groups like REI Nation you can lean on their management to keep things relatively hands-off.

Small Multifamily (duplex–fourplex) gets you scale and better cash flow. Even if one tenant leaves, you’ve still got income coming in. The trade-off is a steeper learning curve, more upkeep, and fewer exit options.

Syndications are another option with your budget. They let you pool capital into larger deals — 100+ unit apartments, new developments, etc. The upside is diversification and access to institutional-quality projects without the headaches of management. The downside is illiquidity (you’re often locked in for 5–7 years) and the risk depends heavily on the operator you choose.

Since you’re new and investing from Hawaii, I’d suggest a hybrid approach:

Start with 1–2 SFRs to get comfortable owning physical real estate.

Keep multifamily on your radar for cash flow and scale.

Consider syndications only for a smaller slice of your portfolio (think “venture capital” money) until you’re confident with operators and the model.

End of the day, the property type matters — but who you trust to manage the asset is the bigger factor, especially when you’re thousands of miles away.

@Bryn Kaufman 

Bryn, thanks for sharing this. I think a lot of people underestimate how different syndications are compared to stocks.

For me it comes down to control and liquidity. With stocks, you can sell anytime. With rentals you own directly, you can refinance, sell, or change the strategy. In a syndication, once the money’s in, you’re just along for the ride.

That’s why the sponsor matters as much as the deal. Some operators are conservative and protect investors, others over-leverage and disappear when things go bad.

I don’t think passive investing is all bad, but it needs to be the “venture capital” slice of your portfolio, not the core. And the check size should match your risk tolerance. $5K–10K at risk is very different than $100K.

Bottom line: syndications aren’t inherently good or bad. They’re just a tool. The key is who you invest with, how much you put in, and whether the risk profile fits your bigger strategy.

💥 Join us on Friday, August 1, 2025 at 5:00PM for great networking opportunities and learn about multifamily real estate, wealth building, and more!

🤝 For this meetup, we are going to be networking in small groups, so bring your business cards and connect with other investors!

📍Hawaii Loa Ridge Community Center

🔗 We are limiting this event to 35 participants, so please register at this link: https://bit.ly/HMM080125

🍻 Bring snacks and/or drinks to share.

💥 Join us on Friday, June 27th, 2025 at 5:00PM for great networking opportunities and learn about multifamily real estate, wealth building, and more!

🤝 For this meetup, we are going to be networking in small groups, so bring your business cards and connect with other investors!

📍Hawaii Loa Ridge Community Center

🔗 We are limiting this event to 35 participants, so please register at this link: https://bit.ly/HMM062725

🍻 Bring snacks and/or drinks to share.

💥 Join us on Friday, May 23rd, 2025 at 5:00PM for great networking opportunities and learn about multifamily real estate, wealth building, and more!

🤝 For this meetup, we are going to be networking in small groups, so bring your business cards and connect with other investors!

📍Hawaii Loa Ridge Community Center

🔗 We are limiting this event to 35 participants, so please register at this link: https://bit.ly/HMM052325

🍻 Bring snacks and/or drinks to share.