All Forum Posts by: Jim Genis

@Paxton J., I agree with @Andrew Syrios that $100K is not upscale in KC. For upscale renting, you can go to $200K in areas like Prairie Village, Mission, etc. and rents may press to $2000/mo, but you're starting to skim renters at the higher end. If a renter can afford that rent, they may choose to buy unless there are other circumstances that would prevent them from doing so.

A bit late in entering this, but I also use Bridge Management (@Nathan Brooks) and also Voepel Property Management (contact Brent Voepel). Both are excellent.

Good luck!

Jonathan, please send me the information on properties in Kansas City metro. Thanks.

@Brian Langdon, congratulations on making the decision to move into real estate investing. It can be hard work but well worth the effort and fun along the way!

I'd suggest you connect with @Nathan Brooks, or @Karen Barber who help people build buy and hold portfolios.

If you are looking for construction work in more of a wholesaler model, you may want to speak with @Jason Hawk.

Good luck in your budding endeavor!

Jim

@Chad Hotovec, that's awesome! Go get 'em!

Marei.org is a good start. Then Winvestors.

@Sean Casey, welcome to BP. Congratulations on making this choice and being so willing to learn and work hard. 

Getting into this business is not an easy get-rich-quick scheme, so it's good that you're willing to work at it. It also requires tenacity and a never-give-up attitude. Mistakes and problems WILL happen, it's just a matter of how you roll with it.

I posted on a similar question here:

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/55/topics/299...

I'd also add that you should read voraciously. There are a number of great books and Josh and Brandon have done a post on the top real estate books to read. My personal favorite for people just staring out is "The Millionaire Real Estate Investor" by Gary Keller; a great foundational book. 

Best of luck on your budding business!

@Adam Dinneny, I have a few suggestions for you:

• See if you can qualify for a rehab loan from a local bank. If your job is steady, income is good, and debt is low, you may qualify for rehab loan. Typically they will fund 75% of the purchase + rehab but not a whole deal. If so, you can use this to partner with another beginning investor: you provide the base financing, he/she provides the gap financing and the work, and you split the profit. This will allow you to build capital.
• Also look into if you can get a personal line of credit. This may provide the gap financing for above. Both of these are best from a local bank who can get to know you.
• Look at free methods to find deals: (1) connect with wholesalers; (2) go to local real estate investor meetings (e.g., marei.org); (3) network with active realtors... you may need to ask around to find ones who are really good at investor deals; (4) talk talk talk to everyone you know about what you're looking for... there's always a deal that's off-market and just one can make a difference.
• If your personal/family situation supports it, look into house hacking. Lots of threads and podcasts/blogs on this topic. This is a relatively low-risk way to get started.
• Get good at residential before you tackle commercial. Different animals, and commercial is much more complicated. Also residential is relatively lower risk if you have a ... er... "learning experience."
• Guard your cash like a rabid dog. Be very selective about signing up for gurus and experts who will charge you for their "unique" whiz-bang methods. Not usually worth the money.

It may take awhile to get traction, but if you stick with it, it'll catch. Good luck!

It definitely comes down to your goals and the numbers.

If your goal is to house hack (live in one unit and rent the other), it won't work, obviously. If your goal is a flip, an SFR may be a quicker sale than a duplex since your buyer's pool is bigger and the fact that the neighborhood is aready SFRs.

In either event, you need to run the numbers. Does it still produce the right sale price? The right rent? What are your returns? Use the deal analyzers here on BP to give you a good sense.

One other thing: If you take a duplex architecture and layout and make it an SFR, it needs to look like an SFR when you're done. Otherwise, you lose buyer's appeal. That's purely your judgement.

Good luck!

I'm out of town this weekend. How about we all meet Saturday 3/12 at 9:00a at the Starbucks at 135th and Blackbob? This is for @Jonathan Heather, @Jason Hawkand @Chad Hotovec