All Forum Posts by: Jacob Pereira

Hi @Prasanna K.,

I don't know whether they'll be able to check all your boxes, but lately UFCU has been blowing all my other lender's rates out of the water. They're a non-profit, so their compensation structure is much more transparent than at most others. If you'd like a specific recommendation, PM me and I'll send you my guy.

@Wala Habiby, if you post to a real estate focused site like this one, you'll get real estate answers, and if you post to a stock focused site, you'll get stock answers. That said, here's my take:

Historically the stock market goes up about 10% per year before inflation, so at a minimum you should be benchmarking your real estate returns to that. Factor in all your costs and benefits, including the cost of your own labor. If you can beat that with a similar or lesser amount of risk, then by all means, go 100% real estate.

For me personally I like to diversify so I put $1000 a month into an S&P 500 index fund which I'll look at when I'm dead. When I had a W-2 I also took my employer's 6% match. I'm still weighted much more heavily towards real estate, but that's a function of leverage and how hot my local market is. Whenever I sell one I'll look at re-balancing

@Peter G. there's a lot to consider here. First of all, why do we invest in housing? To make money, yes, but if you look at it truly fundamentally it's really to improve our lives. If you want to start with your primary residence, I'd HIGHLY recommend moving here and renting first. I realize that as an agent I'm supposed to push a purchase, but I thinking being honest is a much better long-term business strategy. If you don't want to waste the money on renting, then I'd suggest you look into buying a fourplex to get the loan subsidies from living in your rental for the first year, and by the end of that you will know the area well enough to find your home. A few words of caution, however; fourplexes tend to be in the rougher parts of town, and they're also in very high demand right now.

I retired at 34 from my job as a data scientist (to be fully transparent, I still managed my properties which averaged 5-10 hours a month). After two years of essentially doing nothing, I got bored and became a Realtor. Much happier now, although I probably work more now than I ever did in my W-2.

Great find, Jordan! That type of deal is getting harder and harder to find in our town.

You're looking for two conflicting things, from my point of view. If you want to speculate on appreciation, SFRs are the way to go, but you'll be far from break even in your first few years. Personally, I've invested in 2-4 units, and while I did lose out on appreciation v single-family in the area, my properties have always been safe bets with strong cashflow. That's harder to achieve now, but still quite possible in the area. I think @Danny Webber hit the nail on the head that the easy money is on surrounding markets. You might lose out on the safety and appreciation of Austin, but you'll have something that cashflows from day one.

I used to mentor someone who now does a fair amount of wholesaling in Austin-adjacent markets like Leander and Elgin. I can put a feeler out to see if he'd be interested in paying it forward if you'd like. Also, I've never been a wholesaler, but I've bought wholesale and I'd be happy to offer feedback from the buyer's perspective.

Hi Roman, what part of DC? I grew up in Springfield VA (where 395, 495, and 95 meet up), but moved to Austin after a stint in the military. I see from some of your other responses that you're specifically interested in the Houston area. I know a great agent I used to work with who has been working the Houston market for many years now. I'd be happy to introduce you if you'd like. I don't know much about H-town, but if you ever want to talk about Austin, I'm happy to talk your ear off.

Not the technical definition of "multifamily" but I have a few duplexes and fourplexes. Definitely interested in buying a smaller complex or two, but I haven't found one I've been able to make work yet.

I've decided to use the forbearance option on all of my properties due to COVID-19 related hardships, and it has really helped to pad my bank account. A recent conversation with a client/friend of mine made me question whether I really have a correct understanding of how it works. For you lenders out there, are there any cons for borrowers to use this option? For those of you with loans and eligibility to use forbearance, are you doing it? Why or why not?