All Forum Posts by: Jamal Fontenot

Hey @Stanley Ezeadi that does sound awesome. My only worry with house hacking is finding a reliable contractor for the big ticket items I can't do myself. My rent is fairly cheap because i live where I work

Good Morning BP Family, 

I hope everyone is staying safe and doing great with their investments. These past 5 months I've built up an obsession with real estate investing. Waking up at 5am to drive for deals, reading real estate books, listening to podcast, before work, into the late times of the night. I will admit because I haven't found anything it has discouraged me a lot, I refuse to give up though. I just wanted to ask the BP community for some advice or direction.

Little background Info:

1. * little over 20k in cash reserves specifically for real estate
2. * pre-approved for up to 250k
3. * I'm in the Houston, Texas market. 
4. * looking to use and FHA or 5 to 10% Conventional

I've looked into areas like Katy,cypress, and inter loop Houston for buy and holds but the numbers don't make sense from what I would get on my monthly mortgage compared to what the rents are. I would either break even or be left with a very small margin. Any ideas of what my next steps should be? I've heard about the ability to buy down my interest rate, I've looked into lower class communities like the sunny-side area, I've even looked into the 203k but haven't a broker who can find a lender to fund this loan. Those anyone have any advice to an eager newbie in the real estate game? Any advice is welcomed and appreciated.

Hello Girish!

I'm also new Investor in the Houston Area. My realtor David Floyd has been doing a great Job of helping me analyze deals, understand potential red flags, and hook me up with other investors with more experience, Look him up on the MLS and tell him i sent you. Real great, down to earth, family guy!

David Floyd

Davesellshomes.com

Hello @Edward Andrews! I am from Beaumont, Texas and although I'm now in Houston, I do know the area really well. Let me know how I can help you and get you connected in!

@Chris Mason 

Hey Chris, first off thank you for taking time to my post, I really appreciate it! I tried calling when i first started and she informed me that email works best for her. I started off by gathering my own information and presenting it to her, She then told me I should go to her because "It's easy to get caught up in wrong information on the internet". The problem is less of the time, and more of when I ask a question about learning how something works she just tells me things like "I need to go to her". How will I ever grow as an investor If I can only gain knowledge from what she tells me? I do understand you guys are very busy and have millions of things going at once, that is why I tried not harassing her with investor questions at first. 

Hello BP Family, I need some help. So I was connected with a lender when I first expressed my interest of investing. For the most part I think she has my best interest in mind, but when I ask questions wanting to learn more about the process her answers seem to be real "crippling", implying that the only way I can figure that out is if I go through her to get the answer. If there is anyone willing to give a helping hand I would love to connect and get an outside opinion on the conversation. I would like to forward you the conversation that was had between me and the lender via email so if anyone has some free time I will personal message you! Thanks again!

@Nathan G Thank you so much for the insight Nathan! I I figured that would be my best bet.

Hey BP Family! So I've been running comps, trying to get my first rental property under contract. I was wondering if any of the vets would be willing to share some insight and tips! Im looking to use a FHA loan, stay in it for maybe a month or so, then get it rented out. My issue I keep running into is that because I'm using a FHA, PMI is eating away at my cashflow and I'm having trouble finding anything with a big enough margin to jump on it. Some things I have thought of was 1. Finding something I can put 20%(very few options) to avoid PMI. 2. Find a fixer upper( If anyone has any contractor referrals please let me know!) 3. Finding underpriced homes. If anyone has some helpful ideas it would mean a lot! Thanks BP family.

@Julio R Gonzalez

Hey Julio! I’m a big believer in market cycling so I don’t define myself by one area. I’m open to whatever the market gives me at the time as long as it fits my buying criteria. I will surely be reaching out to you to connect!

Hello BP Family, my name is Jamal Fontenot. I'm a young real estate investor looking to get started in the Houston area. I recently graduated with my MBA, and have commercial real estate experience from working with a Forbes top 100 company. I've always been fascinated with real estate when getting the chance to speak with our owners at company events and want to start working towards my own success, as well as motivate others. Any tips or advice on where to start? Been doing a-lot of studying, pre approved, know how to run CMA's as well.