All Forum Posts by: Dylan Haines

Thanks for clearing that up, Troy, that makes sense. 

Thanks for the advice, Alex, I was nervous about starting to reach out to the market so early, but I guess it's never too early to start networking!  

@Russ ScheiderThat would be extremely helpful.  I'd love to put myself in a position to benefit all parties, and if you can facilitate that I would very grateful.  I'm looking forward to contact between you, Troy and Robert, thank you all for your help!

One simple way for getting a rough estimate of after closing cost of repairs would be to contact a local contractor.  Be as specific as you'd like, but things like square footage, repairs desired, quality of materials, and how rushed the timeline is would certainly help him/her determine their estimate.

Hey @Troy Gandee, thanks for the reply and the reply to my initial post in the new members forum. I'm a bit confused on your comment on the VA loan. In your first paragraph you said that a lot of your rehabs end up being bought with VA funds, and then in your third you confirm that buying a rehab with the VA loan is pretty much off table. Do you mean that the initial purchase would have to be done with cash, PML, HML, or creative financing, and them re-financed with a VA loan after the rehab was completed?

Thanks for the tip on Brandon's book, and on scouring amazon!

Oh, one more thing! Regarding the FHA loan... I've read that it doesn't explicitly state that you have to be in residence for one year, but that you have to intend for it to be your primary residence. I will be in Charleston for 8 months - 16 months (knowing exactly is impossible) so would it be illegal (or unwise) for me to use FHA financing for a possible multifamily home? Thanks again!

Hello all

I've been doing my best to get educated as quickly as possible, from the forums, blogs and podcasts mainly.  I was hoping that you all could provide some guidance on how I should get started in my current situation.  

I'm moving to the area I would like to begin investing in (Charleston, SC) in about 5 months.  I'm looking to buy a cash flowing multifamily for my first investment. I'd consider buying a distressed home to live in and fix up at the same time, but I plan to use military loans and I believe the "livability"of the property requirements on those are pretty stringent. 

So what are the steps I should be taking now? Save up as much money for my down payment as possible, or should I be saving that for cash reserves and hope to use an FHA or VA loan instead of the down payment? Should I be looking on realtor.com or other property websites and running numbers on deals to get a feel for the area, or should I be looking for the right investor real estate agent that will help me narrow down my deals? What are some other sources I could learn from in the next 5 months (specific books, supremely helpful blog posts that I may have missed)? Should I look for ways to start out-of-state investing? I know the Charleston area alright, but also am familiar with some small towns in Washington state and Tucson AZ, so should I look to begin my investment career in a different region?

Reading and listening to everything that I have has been a little overwhelming.  It just seems that I don't quite know enough to just jump right in, but everything that I'm looking at is giving me the same information that I've already learned.  Maybe it's just because I have a wait period before I think I can put these new tools to use, and I'm getting a little anxious, but if anyone has any tips on other things that I can be doing now, that will help me in the near future, it would be a tremendous help! Thank you.

Dylan Haines

I just meant that I wanted to be as far ahead as possible with help from real estate by the time I leave the Navy( >7 years from now).  I haven't really considered going into real estate as a career path, hoping to use it as a tool to achieve financial independence. 

Hey everyone, my name is Dylan Haines and I'm currently living in Tucson, AZ and will be moving back to Charleston, SC within the year.  I'm in the Navy and am hoping to be able to learn as quickly as possible to get a jump start on my investments before I change careers!  

I'm primarily interested in buy and hold, but that may change with the more I learn.  Looking forward to interacting with all of you!