All Forum Posts by: Marci Mayes

Look north of Houston at Conroe, TX ~ Check out this recently published article. . .

HOUSTON, Texas -- Thriving and offering a robust quality of life, Conroe has fast become one of America's top boomtowns.

The Houston neighbor ranks No. 6 overall among the top 100 U.S. cities for economic and population growth in a new study from personal finance website SmartAsset. The north-Houston city also ranks highest in five-year housing growth and secured the No. 22 spot for that specific metric. It has also seen a considerable five-year population growth of 14.71 percent

Conroe, the report notes, is in Montgomery County, which ranks in the top 30 for both its annual GDP and business growth rates.

Boasting myriad natural attractions, Conroe is surrounded by 22,000-acre Lake Conroe, Sam Houston National Forest, and W. Goodrich Jones State Forest, making the area a no-brainer for outdoor lovers.

You are in the right place. It so easy to get caught up in Analysis Paralysis and never move beyond that. I am glad that you have set a 90 day goal. Now it is time to make it happen! Let me know if you have any questions along the way. I would love to connect. Best of luck! 

If you are buying a small home with only one bedroom, one bathroom is ok. If the home has two bedrooms or more, there is a great demand for two bathrooms. Buy a two or three bedroom home with only one bathroom at the price discount then add the second bathroom. In most cases, it is worth the investment. 

You now have knowledge and experience that you can use to help find the next deal. I would start looking for another place that you can house hack. Once you find it, move there. Rent out both units where you are now. Keep repeating this every year. You should gain more knowledge and experience each time. You will eventually have a nice portfolio of small multi-family homes! 

It sounds like you have $50K of the $100K needed for the seller to owner finance the rest. Suggestions for the remaining $50K include: private lender, HELOC on personal residence, personal loan, or 401K loan. Make sure you still have adequate reserves after closing to cover expenses that are sure to come up (repairs, maintenance, vacancies, etc.). Good luck!

@ Jordan Banks

I applaud any 16 year old who is thinking about real estate or their financial future. I recommend getting a part-time W2 job now. If you are still living with your parents, you should be able to save a lot of what you earn. This goes against the grain for most teenagers. To quote Dave Ramsey, "If you live live no one else now, later you can live and give like no one else." While you are working and saving, learn as much as you can about real estate via podcasts, local meetups, books, etc. One book that I highly recommend is First to a Million written by Dan Sheeks and published by Bigger Pockets. You're on the right path. Stick with it! Best of luck! 

No, I would not try to get an owner-occupied loan if you have no intention of living in the home. This is considered mortgage fraud. I would look for a home that you could house hack and move into it using an owner-occupied loan for financing. I would rent out the house you live in now. 

To prevent the home from going to auction, the $12,000 property tax bill must be paid in full. It may be a good time to find out how you got in this situation. Will you be in the same situation next year when the tax bill comes out? You can sell the property before the auction and pocket quite a bit of money from the equity. As you stated, you could also find someone to pay the taxes for you in exchange for a lien on your property. However, if you are going to be in this same situation again next year, this is not something that I would recommend. 

Most investors take depreciation on their yearly taxes.

Most traditional lenders will not allow a second mortgage on the property for the downpayment especially is the combined mortgages equal 100% of the purchase price. I would ask the seller if she is able to finance the whole thing. If so, you could always refinance down the road with a a traditional lender if you find better financing terms than the seller is offering. In the refinance, you will be able to use appraised value in determining LTV rather than purchase price.