All Forum Posts by: Eric Campbell

Yeah, tile on that kind of floor is asking for trouble. There is some really nice vinyl out there now, some of which is nearly indistinguishable from ceramic or wood until you touch it. 

I used Pentagon Federal Credit Union. I believe they did up to 80% LTV on non owner occupied.

You can also join if you have a sibling, parent, or child who is a member. They also serve Local Govt Federal Credit Union, where you have to be a loval government employee to join. However, LGFCU also accepts volunteers for city/county government (such as libraries, schools, volunteer FD, etc). They should have a form at the credit union that you can get signed by whomever you're volunteering with (or just have them write a letter). I know it's a bunch of hoops, but once you're a member, you're a member for life. They will do 1 personal residence, 1 vacation home, and 2 investment properties per person. So double that if you have a spouse and finance them in one name only ;-)

I know one guy who has 8 or 9 properties financed there because they will always do a new loan for a personal residence. So he just keeps moving every couple of years! The credit union doesn't sell their loans either. 

You should be able to join Pentagon Federal since you're a federal employee. They did a HELOC on one of my rentals last year.

Don't overlook SECU. I know they don't offer the 30 yr fixed, but their 5/5 arm isn't a bad product. Closing costs are kept down, and they don't ask a lot of questions. I've never had a delayed closing with them either, and I've done 4 mortgages there on primary and investment properties.

Just make sure you can carry the debt without the rental income, because they won't count any income from the new property, regardless of how much experience you have or even if the subject property is fully leased. That's what I'm running into. I have a 4-plex under contract, and they wouldn't count any of the income, even though all units are occupied and have written leases. 

I live in NC, and am not a fan (ha). They're great as long as the temp stays above freezing. Once it's below 30F, it seems like they're running constantly, and heat it produces isn't warm. I've been seriously considering getting a propane heater or logs to supplement the heat pump for the month or two it's really cold here. 

I have a kerosene heater in a small rental in the mountains, and I love the heat it puts out. I know it's more expensive, but with some new R-30 insulation in the attic, it should help out the new tenants quite a bit. 

I ended up using Google Wallet for payments. It's free, and it gets deposited into my account via ACH the next business day. Tenants can pay via their smartphone, and I can deposit via my smartphone. I can send a reminder to pay as well if it's day 5 (only had to do that once). 

I'm digging up an old thread again, but what's the verdict on cork flooring? I just purchased a small 1950s built house, and the kitchen has some unlevel floors. It's mostly a gradual slope across the entire room (the rear entryway is lower than the rest of the room), but with a few wavy spots. It's got peel-and-stick 12" square vinyl tile right now, but I'm planning on taking that up soon. Someone on another board suggested cork, since it's pliable. I've just never used it before.

The rest of the house is hardwood (or carpet over hardwood), and has no issues. Not looking to spend a fortune here since it's a rental in a rural area. If I ever sell it, I plan on taking everything up and fixing the leveling issue. 

I just got a HELOC through Penfed (Pentagon Federal CU) on a rental of mine. They'll do up to 80% LTV on a non-owner occupied. Pretty painless actually. They actually declined me at first, but I received a call the next day saying that they could do it. I guess they have a human look over every "decline" the computer does, and mine made sense to do. I know my DTI is high due to having several mortgages, but they worked with me and got it done.

Yes, rental/investment property. I own 3 SFH properties right now, but would love to purchase more & maybe look into duplex/quads in my area.