All Forum Posts by: Hector Espinosa

 Hey @Jared Smith,

Thanks for your advice! If I understand correctly, you're suggesting that we should focus on the big picture rather than getting caught up in minor details?. Additionally, are you recommending that we should prioritize taking action and securing properties that align with our long-term investment strategy?

Cheers,

Hector

So, seller financing should be done only when the property is fully paid? Why are they advertising that seller financing is available?  Precisely today, I heard a guest in the BP podcast (Episode #956) talking about a really bad experience with a "Subject to" deal.

Thanks @JD Martin

Hi,

I'm negotiating a seller financing deal which may be my first one and would like to ask for some advise about and what are advantages and disadvantages about seller financing deals.

These are the seller financing terms:

• House Price: $330,000.00 USD​ (Sellers still owe ~$301,000 USD)
• Down Payment: 5% = $16,500 USD​
• Loan Amount: $313, 500​ (Monthly payments will be amortized as a 30 years loan​)
• Interest Rate: 4.531%
• Balloon Loan Term: 5 Years
• Monthly Payment (P&I): $1,594.24​
• Closing Costs:  ~$3300 ​
  
• Zip Code: 74105
  
• Observations:  
•      * HVAC requires an update but pending to inspection (replacing with a new one will cost ~$10,000 - $15,000 USD )
•      * Expected Rent Income: $2,000- $2,300 but this is has been really complicated to get a good estimate because is all over the place in the different sites I have checked.
• * House is a 2699 sq/ft Single Family Residence| 3 beds, 3 bathroom | Built in 1956 | NO HOA
•      * There is a chance I could pay only interests so I can start saving some cash for the incoming maintenance and annual payment equivalent to the 12 monthly payments (~$5,029.77 per year during the balloon period)
• The advantages I can identify in this deal for me are:
• * Lower interest compared with traditional loans
• * Lower down payment compared with the ones compared for traditional loans
• * House is technically ready to be rented (waiting for the inspection) 
• * Forecast - 3 yr growth (appreciation) is expected to be 8.1 % (Bigger Pockets)
• The disadvantages I can identify: 
• * I am still vulnerable to foreclosure if sellers don't make mortgage payments to the bank.
• * Refinancing issues at the end of the Balloon Payment?
• I am betting for the appreciation of the house in the next years because I don't think I can cash flow in the first years.  
• I would like to hear your thoughts and what I need to verify before making an official offer. So far, I'll be requesting an inspection of the house to know what needs to be updated/repaired.
• Thanks for your help. 

Let’s say you’re starting from zero in 2025—no properties, no deals, just the knowledge and lessons you’ve picked from BiggerPockets, books you have read and videos you have watched.

What would you do differently this time around?

I understand that everyone has unique goals, and responses will vary depending on those objectives. However, your answer could include, but is not limited to:

• Market Focus: Would you stick to cash-flow-heavy areas, chase appreciation, or go after niche markets like short-term rentals?
• Property Type: Multi-family? Single-family? Commercial? Maybe something unconventional like storage units or mobile home parks?
• Financing: Would you try creative strategies like seller financing, BRRRR, or syndications, or stick with traditional loans?
• Avoiding Mistakes: What’s the one thing you wish you could go back and tell your beginner self?
• Leverage Tech: What apps, tools, or platforms would you use to streamline your daily activities?

In my case, living in a high-cost area, I’m looking for out-of-state investment and focused on multi-family (duplex,triplex and quadruplex) but open to single family homes too. Because of this, I have been meeting with different people in different areas and building a team which helps me to find and buy my first property although it hasn't been easy. Looking for cash-flow properties is hard these days and even when I have found a couple I feel is not worth the risk. Most of the properties I have found cash-flow <3000 per year. Well, if I could have 50 that cash 3k per year wouldn’t be that bad but as a starting point I feel I should wait a little bit more. I could be wrong and any feedback is welcomed. As a side note, most of the properties I have been targeting were Neighborhood grade C which are quite old and one of my concerns is that I may need to spend a lot of money on repairs and maintenance.

I feel that I would need to wait a little bit more and maybe save more for my down payment and try to target Neighborhoods grade B.

I'm trying to do an FHA loan and buy a house in my local market but even when I'm targeting properties between < 600,000 (which would be a 2Bed, 2 Ba in a good condition), my monthly payment would be around 5,000 which is impossible to pay for me.

So, it has not been easy and it won’t be but I’ll keep looking until I find one property that meets my requirements and helps me to achieve my goals. Then, I’ll start the process for the second one, and so on…

What about you? Whether you’re just starting out or you’ve done dozens of deals, I’d love to hear your perspective. What’s your 2025 starting-from-scratch game plan?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and insights.

 @Nicholas L. what would be your recommendation if the market where you live is way to expensive or at least not in your initial budget and your best option is out of state investment?

@Mark Cruse thanks for your response.  What additional details should I share?

 @Jaycee Greene what would be or is considered a good cap rate?

Hi @Alex Craig,

This would be my first property and as I mentioned before I think numbers looks good but something is causing me trouble is the high crime rate in the area.  

My initial plan is hold the properties for at least 5-10 years so for now I'm not doing BRRRR.

HI @Jaycee Greene,

Thanks for your response. Since this would be my first property, I'm assigned 10% for each repairs & maintenance, vacancy and capital expenditures (just in case).  I thin it is a C
neighborhood.  

What additional information would you require?


 

Hi All,

I would like to hear your comments about the following property, which I think, based on the analysis I made, seems to a be a potential good investment:

* Purchase Price: $98,000
* Monthly Cash Flow: $310
* Annual Cash Flow: $3731
* CoC ROI: 15.86%
* 5-year annualized return: 15.35% (with a profit if sold of $25K)

Also, what are some of the disadvantages of buying old houses? Is there any particular maintenance that is required in a regular basis?

Something I noticed that is making me doubt about making an official offer is that it seems to be in an area with high crime.  

Appreciate your comments.