All Forum Posts by: John K.

Hi Doug, after reading your question again I think I misunderstood--are you asking if the local MLS can force you to be a member of the National Realtor's Association? In that case the answer is yes, all local MLS associations will require you to be a member of the national association and pay it's related dues, there is unfortunately no way around it.

John

Welcome Francis! Best of luck on your journey.

John

Congrats Beth! Feel free to use me as a resource for any lending questions in the future.

John

Hi Kerline,

Welcome! Feel free to use me as a resource for any lending related questions. 

John

Congrats Ryan! Best of luck with this new property. 

John

Hi Doug, 

Your broker may require you to be a member of the local MLS, however there any many brokerages that don't, as it is not a requirement to have a license or even practice real estate. I'd be happy to share a couple of brokerages that don't require this if you PM me.

John

Hi Matt,

I'm relatively closeby in Palm Beach and know how nice those areas are. I would just suggest thinking about what months you would be using the property yourself and make sure they aren't the peak vacation rental months, as otherwise the property won't have a chance to pay for itself. If you can use it in the off-peak times then it could make sense however. I would also make sure to know what type of financing you will be using--the traditional choice is a second home loan, but this doesn't allow you to use future rental income to qualify. Feel free to reach out with any questions! 

John

Hi Shannon, I don't have a recommendation but I will say that the small claims court process is very simple to do yourself, and the court staff is usually very willing to help out. Depending on the amount it may not be worth it to hire a lawyer. 

John

Hi Jeremy, 

I agree with the above opinions. Making money in flipping is harder than it has ever been, and the chances of getting burned as a first time investor are high. Long term rentals and house hacking are the best proven strategies for wealth creation. 

Hi Andrew, 

There's no wrong answer and it certainly depends on your personal life situation and future goals. However, I will say that it would be a shame to get rid of a property with a 3% interest rate locked in. Even if you are cashflow neutral, at 4% appreciation the property is gaining over $20,000 in equity a year, plus the principal paydown which I imagine would be close to another $10k. If you divide that $30k annual equity gain into the $175k you would be able to pull out of the property if you sold it now, you get a ~17% annual return. That's a lot better than what the stock market will yield, so I would personally keep it unless I needed the money now. Just my two cents!

John