All Forum Posts by: Jay Walker

Hmmm. I will look into that, thank you. I was more looking for something I could edit online and print out. I've heard there are sites you can do this for free.

I'm renting my house due to necessity, and it will not be a high-earning rental. My wife and I divorced and I don't need the house (or mortgage payment), but it's way too early to sell. I would just like to rent it out and re-evaluate sale in a couple years.

Having said that, money is tight, and I am preferring to leave my savings for any emergencies or repairs necessary on the home. Paying a property management company, lawyer, monthly website fees, etc. are all options I'd like to leave off the table, if possible.

Hey everybody!

So I am jumping headfirst into renting out my home. I've done lots of research on BP and elsewhere as to what I'll need to do it effectively. I even have some great prospective tenants interested via word of mouth.

Unfortunately, I do not know how to go about getting a contract agreement that I can print out for them to sign. I was recommended to on-site, but I don't see anywhere for a contract I can edit. It looks to me like it's just multifamily/apartments and they sell you software.

Does anyone know where I could download/edit/print a (preferably free) contract agreement to legally protect myself and my property?

Also looking for suggestions on ways to setup online rent payments. Again, the ones I was referred to seem to be for large complexes, or charge really high fees.

Thank you for the referral Justin. I'll wait and see what Guild says - we've both put in a lot of effort so far and I'd hate to just toss that aside and start over. Unless of course, they can't put it together or make me a garbage offer :)

I'm gunna read more on house hacking. Regina, if I can get the bank to see a renter in the duplex and factor that into the DTI they use somehow, I'd be golden!

I'm not against something that's just a bit dated and needs paint, carpet, etc. We can paint and do very small jobs. Carpet (or even laminate or hardwood) isn't terribly expensive, either. So yeah, anything that's "livable" as is, and a good deal with potential. I'd actually enjoy that. 

Duplex is still where I'd love to start, I just think it'll be difficult (read: near impossible) to find one in our price range (read: what the lender will loan me). Still going to look for ways to make that happen!

If not, I think I will get in touch with a guy I know who has done some flips previously and ask him about the pre-sale idea. That's a really good idea I would've never even thought of! 

Also - just to put it out there - I should clarify that my wife and I would not just be renting out a room to any old person off of Craigslist, we have numerous friends and family that we could rent to (even after we move out!)

Second question - if there was a duplex with an existing renter, is there a way to get the bank to factor that in so that I can "afford it" on paper? To elaborate - I can't put my wife on the app, so were limited to my income/DTI on the loan. That puts some tight restrictions on the amount I can be approved for. I'm not thinking I'll be approved for much outside the $150-180k range. Which means duplexes in Tacoma are out haha... But if there's an existing renter who pays, say $1000/mo, and the monthly would be $1500, is there a way to show that to the bank? Or do they have to prove that id be under DTI completely on my own?

Thanks for the feedback! Very good points! The other lender I spoke with was Clear Choice, who was actually really prompt and professional. The lender sent me fee sheets and even a pre approval letter for a place I was interested in. They weren't as extensive on requesting info - guild asked me for TONS of stuff like college transcripts, prev address verification, bankruptcy discharge, etc. While it's annoying, I'd rather have that done up front instead of going to closing and getting that "oops, we need all this to close" I'd love to get a duplex actually! Zero down lenders refuse to work with multi family though (from what I've seen). Also, many are either out of our price range or in areas we don't necessarily wanna live in. I'm trying to keep that option open though

Very true, Justin. This is my first venture into seriously looking and I couldn't believe it when I asked the realtor to go look at a house that just posted, and by the time they responded several hours later, it was already pending!!!

How am I supposed to get in a good walk-through and really feel out the deal?? lol

Yeah, I'm working with Guild Mortgage, who is the most local lender that works with WSHFA to do the zero-down, first time buyer loans. 

We could have ~ 3.5% down payment by late fall/winter, but like I mentioned, it would only make the difference of about $8-12 on the monthly. Being that it's our first home, and I plan to buy another in a few years and rent this out, I don't think that'll be too big of an issue if I can find the right deal. 

We're also planning on renting a room while we live there to family or a friend. So with the cash we've saved, when it comes time to look into another home, I'd probably refi out of the zero down, give them their 3.5%, and get that first house into something with a lower monthly - then use any other money (hopefully equity) towards a bigger down on the second home (hopefully over the course of 2-3 years, we can save up enough to just do a conventional loan and not worry about PMI, etc)

Maybe rinse and repeat. I have a really good friend who works for a developer. It'd be nice to look into buying land and having a duplex or triplex built through them one day. Hopefully at that point we'll be in a house we like ourselves, and can just do that for positive cash flow. 

I dunno if that's the best strategy, just what I've put together from my research. Open to any opinions from more experienced investors!

Thank you @Bishoy Girgis. Yeah, common sense keeps telling me that in ANY investment the main point is to buy low and sell high. So buying when homes are pending within 4 hours of listing (and often for well over the asking price) seems to be counter-intuitive. 

I'll try to stick it out with this (annoyingly difficult) lender - as your advice is synonymous with what a couple of different realtors have told me. Plus, they're the only lender offering zero down programs through my state. At least, that I've found. 

It makes more sense to me to just go with a zero down loan and save the money we have for any sudden emergencies, repairs, etc (or towards our next home in a couple years). The difference in monthly payment between zero down loan and FHA with 3.5% down is literally only a few dollars per month.

I think you're right on not buying a "Fixer upper" for my first home, especially when my family will be living there with me for a couple years minimum. Little things like some paint, or maybe a functional kitchen/bathroom that's just ugly and outdated would be fine - because we can always do basic stuff as we go (or paying for renovations on a single room wouldn't be so astronomical and could help us learn).

It is tempting though - as there are a LOT of properties in my area for $100-120k and I could easily just get on a 203K loan and have 40-50k to hire contractors. But again - may not be the safest bet for now.

Thanks for your response. All excellent points.

sorry to hear Catherine. Hope it all works out for you!

I'll be approved eventually, it's just taking this lender forever :)

And I guess it'd be better to wait and get a loan at 4% or less rather than a pml at 10% or whatever. Also, as this is our first home were paying the down payment out of pocket so 20% won't work unfortunately.

Also not against a single family home instead of multi if that's what helps get us started

So it looks like I will be financing the home on my own, since my fiance's credit isn't going to cut it. A duplex may be above what I can get approved for, so I think we're looking single family for now.

In the Tacoma area everything decent I'm seeing listed is pending within hours. My realtor states that summer in this area is a seller's market, and any good listing will have several offers above asking, within hours of listing. That makes sense, but I'm also seeing that from the opposite side of the coin. If I'm a seller, I'd be listing in summer. So as a buyer, wouldn't that narrow my options if I wait until fall/winter?

I'm trying to do a zero down loan, but the lender is dragging their feet and (IMO) being fairly unprofessional by continuously asking for more information every couple days, and pushing things back. I was approved quickly by another lender, sent quotes and pricing sheets, etc. but was told by several realtors that they'd never heard of the company and not to trust them (???)

I initially considered the potential of a property that needs some work, but I have ZERO experience rehabing, dont know many contractors (I know one plumber and one electrician), and have never really done any construction work. I think I might be putting myself (and my family) in a bad situation going that route.

I would love any feedback, resources, articles, or advice that any of the more experienced investors here could offer me.

Should I wait till the fall/winter so the market isn't so insane? Or am I just letting good deals pass me by?

Are there any other investors/flippers in the Tacoma area that wouldn't mind me picking their brain and asking questions?

Should I go with the lender that got me approved right away, or is that asking for disaster during closing? I've heard lots of horror stories about deals falling through because one or two items were missed.

What do you guys think?

Hey everybody! I'm a first time buyer and looking to do a buy & hold. The ultimate goal is to find a home that's livable for my wife, son, and I, with an extra room or two we can rent, and then in 2 years, look into renting that home out entirely and purchasing a multifamily or second home. Rinse and repeat.

I'm looking in the Tacoma area, but everything decent I'm seeing listed is pending within hours. My realtor states that summer in this area is a seller's market, and any good listing will have several offers above asking, within hours of listing. That makes sense, but I'm also seeing that from the opposite side of the coin. If I'm a seller, I'd be listing in summer. So as a buyer, wouldn't that narrow my options if I wait until fall/winter?

I'm trying to do a zero down loan, but the lender is dragging their feet and (IMO) being fairly unprofessional by continuously asking for more information every couple days, and pushing things back. I was approved quickly by another lender, sent quotes and pricing sheets, etc. but was told by several realtors that they'd never heard of the company and not to trust them (???)

I initially considered the potential of a property that needs some work, but I have ZERO experience rehabing, dont know many contractors (I know one plumber and one electrician), and have never really done any construction work. I think I might be putting myself (and my family) in a bad situation going that route. 

I would love any feedback, resources, articles, or advice that any of the more experienced investors here could offer me. 

Should I wait till the fall/winter so the market isn't so insane? Or am I just letting good deals pass me by?

Are there any other investors/flippers in the Tacoma area that wouldn't mind me picking their brain and asking questions?

Should I go with the lender that got me approved right away, or is that asking for disaster during closing? I've heard lots of horror stories about deals falling through because one or two items were missed.

What do you guys think?