All Forum Posts by: John Walter

@Brian D Gleason As asked earlier, your goals should steer you in the right direction. How conservative do you want to be? Ultimately, without any specific information, I would recommend the VA loan above all else.

My strategy: I am somewhat conservative. I am closing on a triplex using the VA loan. After all is said and done, I will be out of pocket about $12k (closing costs). I have more than enough cash reserves, but after I close, I will then have the option to put money down on another property (still having some cash in reserves), or waiting a few month to refinance my current property or get a HELOC (I plan on having over $100k in equity at closing). I'll use that cash as my downpayment for an additional property.

My point is that I am giving myself multiple options, and because I am using the VA loan first, I don't need a ton of cash.

As @Jay Hinrichs advised, commercial leases are not like residential. On the short side, you're looking at five years, and you have leases that go 25+ years. Fact of the matter is, in the short term, the majority of office owning/renting companies will be locked into their leases.

I am seeing some negotiations currently going on, mostly with regards to tenable square footage; however, ultimately that is up to the owner/landlord. Fact of the matter is, retail isn't going anywhere anytime soon despite what is all over the news, and neither is office space. At most, I can see companies (for both retail and office) gradually reducing their overall footprint. That said, this mass migration away from cities, in my opinion, is a fallacy.

@Matthew McCormick Sounds like you're planning multiple strategies, which is fantastic. Good luck with the refi and let me know if there is ever anything I can assist you with. I'm in the Bayonne, Elizabeth, Newark area.

Hey Tim, from my understanding the moratorium on evictions only relates to anything COVID related. I'm assuming you have already had your agent speak with the seller's agent about delivering the unit vacant?

To answer your question, yes, that would definitely be a reason for a discount. Just ask yourself, even if you can get a discount, is it worth it? Keep in mind, whenever the courts reopen, they will have a MASSIVE backlog and odds are, you will be waiting months to get a date. It may be better to take a breathe, and move on to the next deal. There's always another one around the corner.

Congratulations on your first deal! So crucial to be able to have that additional strategy after the flip fell through. Going forward, do you want to stick with flips, refer to buy and hold, refinance soon, or something different?

This has all been fantastic. Thank you all for taking the time, I really appreciate it.

I should take ownership of my first property (a triplex) in either July or August and want to make sure I have everything ready by then. That said, I have been watching another triplex for about two months now that still has not sold.

One of my family members has a couple dozen properties, and I really enjoy talking to them about their rentals. They have been very successful, but they are a bit "old school." They use the exact same, one-page lease for everything, and pick up their rent checks from each property every month. I want to use my time better than that, especially because I want to scale to at least their size.

I will start my research on these companies and take it from there. Thank you all again!

There are a lot of services out there that offer a ton of services for DIY landlords (tenant screening, background/credit searches, rent payments, maintenance scheduling), all for no (or a modest) fee. I have heard of Rent Redi, Zillow Rentals, Avail, Cozy, etc. My question is, are any of these services worth it? If so, what would you recommend? Or, avoid all the above and just do it myself?

Hey Marina, I’m in Elizabeth and Bayonne. Both obviously close to Staten Island, but not what I would call the best schools. Cranford has some great schools but is a bit more expensive. Since you’ll be house hacking, a neighborhood  really enjoy may be higher on your priority list. 

@Jonas Garcia Personally, I am a fan on Elizabeth, NJ. Granted, there are quite a few areas that aren't great, but certain parts have really turned around the past few years. That said, like many cities, you can have a nice section, and then the next street over is.... let's say "rough".

There has been a ton of investment as of late. The second of the train stations is under a $71 million renovation, set to be completed in 2022. The old Elizabeth Medical Center has been demolished and the 'Jersey Walk' development has officially begun, new home development has steadily increased several years in a row, and renter ship is over 50%.

All that said, taxes are increasing, and home prices have skyrocketed, even during this pandemic. It isn't a market for everyone, but since I live close by, it works for me.

@Nate Hayes There's quite a bit to unpack here, but luckily you've received a lot of good comments.

One thing to remember, "big-time" investors, those with millions to throw down, (most likely) aren't looking for one duplex, or a lone triplex or quad. Most people searching for their primary residence aren't looking for those either. So the "competition" isn't as crazy as you might think.

I'm still very green, but here is what is/has been working for me. I have been wanting to get into real estate for years now. I have been putting money away, saving as much as I can for quite some time. Now, I have more than enough for a downpayment that, in most areas, would be enough to buy an entire home (but that's NJ for you).

Since I wasn't born with money, I have relied on hustle. I don't have a mentor, and I move constantly, so finding one is nearly impossible. Again though, I have hustle. Since January, I have devoured seven real estate/business books, probably 200+ hours of real estate podcasts, honed in on a target market, and am figuring out exactly what my requirements are.

Currently, I am closing on my first "duplex." I put that in quotes because, by reading through my counties bylaws I figured out I can legally inhabit the basement level and live there, effectively making this a triplex. When searching for this property, everyone told me that wasn't possible, but I like to research things for myself. Again, hustle.

Next week, I'm starting a real estate program with some of the top professionals in my area. All of my money is being set aside for investing, so I found a way to get this all paid for through different sources such as grants and assorted programs.

The point of saying all of this is as @Brandon Turner puts it, find your "unfair advantage". For me, it's the unrelenting amount of research I put in. For you, it may be friends in the industry, or the ability to talk to anyone about anything. Find out what it is and run with it. Don't worry about everyone else, just focus and you will find your success.