All Forum Posts by: Kevin Mcilnay

@Edward Holland  Thanks for the tips! I'll definitely keep that in mind for future reference.  Right now I'm all in on trying to master the numbers game.  I need to be able to trust my numbers when I'm looking for these deals.  Luckily I've got my wife to help spot check my math.  

Thanks for the replies everybody!  Every little bit helps.  These numbers get me cross-eyed after a while.  

@Michael Kinsella Yeah man, that definitely helps! I knew it had to be somewhere in working the numbers.  I'm not very mathematically inclined and I tend to get a little "gridlocked" when I'm working with too many numbers.  I appreciate your help.   

So I'm a little confused about how BRRRR works with financing. I understand that the preference is to buy and rehab with your own money, but obviously that isn't realistic for the majority of people. SO, if put a little of my own money down, then finance the rest with a hard money/ private lender, how do I ensure I'm able to pull enough cash out of that house to pay off the investor plus financing and still have enough left over to roll over into your the deal? I'm assuming it's all in working the numbers prior to the purchase, but I feel like this part is getting skipped over in a lot of the podcasts. Or maybe I'm just misunderstanding something. Anything you can share would be a great help! Thanks.

@Jon Kelly  Hey Jon!  The community that my wife manages is actually a military community built and managed by a private company.  Rent comes in automatically from these residents (service members) as BAH (Basic Allowance for Housing), so it's not necessarily the same as being out on the local market.  However, she spent years as a property manager on the local market as well for various apartment complexes.  

You're absolutely right about all the options and trying to bring things into focus.  I'm working on that as well, and it's a conversation we'll need to have in order to make a "5 Year Plan", or something along those lines.  I certainly don't want to get in over my head.  But I trust my wife, and I'm trying to learn from her as we go, but she just doesn't have a lot of time.  Right now my wife is hesitant to buy anything on the local market because everything is overpriced.  Not to say there aren't some deals, but they seem to be few and far between.  Again, she doesn't have the time that I do to invest in looking, which is why I'm trying to hone my skills and learn how things work. I want to get things rolling ASAP.   

@Anna Laud  Some very good points in there!  Really appreciate the input.  As I was telling Justin, my wife is pretty knowledgeable about all of this, but I'm just now starting to learn the business.  She has 20+ years in real estate (agent/ property manager) but her current property management position keeps her very busy (community of 1.470 four bedroom homes).  We also have 3 young kids to think about, so we're all about mitigating risk as much as possible.  We certainly have some things to think about with the options we have.  Thanks again, and I welcome any further input you might have.  

@Justin Melendez  So here's the deal. My wife has been in real estate for 20+ years.  She spent several years as a decently successful agent, and many more years as a property manager, which is what she continues to do today, managing a community of 1,470 four-bedroom homes.  She's very familiar with the local market and all the local trends.  However, she just doesn't have the time that I do (I'm a school counselor) to really dig in and start looking for local deals.  Which is why I've decided to start learning the business.  I've been reading a lot and listening to every podcast I come across hoping to get a better understanding of things.  My biggest struggle right now is learning to recognize value.  I'll find places, send them to her, and she'll tell me why it's not a good deal.  I'm trying to develop those skills so that I can be an integral part of getting things moving.  I need to be able to trust my own abilities in that area.  

As far as mountain properties, my expertise is really limited to our experience renting properties up there for the occasional vacation. I can tell you that there are places all across western NC from VA to SC that offer some prime vacation rental real estate, and I also know that we typically have to plan our trips early because a lot of places stay booked for the majority of the year. AND, we just really like it up there. We thought about a beach house, but that's way too seasonal.

Thanks for your input thus far, and I'm thankful for anything else you can share.  

So the wife and I are looking at getting into rentals, and we have a few options. Right now we're looking at a VA Cash Out Refi which would give us about $50k to put down on a vacation rental in the mountains. These rentals (if chosen wisely) can easily net $150/ night rates and stay booked for the majority of the year. On the other hand, we might find a more local property to buy and go Air B&B. We're in Fayetteville, NC and there is a large military population here. Air B&B would be ideal for soldiers and their families who are PCS'ing into the area. OR, we may turn it into a straight rental. Another option is to do a conventional refi on our current home to reinstate my VA benefits, and then purchase a new home so that we can rent out our current home. All of this while I'm actively pursuing the possibility of a flip. However, the market in Fayetteville is currently "hyper" and available product is few and far between. Everything is also going for above list due to low interest rates. Just wanted to see what the community might have to contribute on this. Thanks in advance!