All Forum Posts by: Mark S.

@Ross Kallenberg Welcome to BP.  I organize the Plano meetup it would be great to see you there.  The next lunch meet up is on August 2nd at 12p at Gordon Biersch at the Shops at Legacy.  Best of luck!

@Mauricio Salom welcome to BP.  Texas is a great area to invest.  You can get more for your dollar than in California, at least for now.  Let me know if there is anything I can help you with!

Hi @Ross Kallenberg.  Sherman can be a great market but it is also hit and miss.  There are areas which do well but also areas which you do not want to be in.  It is very location specific out there.  I would check what elementary school the house feeds into.  There are only two decent elementary schools in Sherman and houses in those areas are sought after.  Another tip would be to put a for rent sign in the neighborhood so you can see the types of tenants you will be getting.  This will also give you an idea of how much they are looking to pay and the size of the home they want.

Best of luck!

@Cam Jimmy I feel like the main reason to do a 15 year mortgage is if you have a plan to use the full rental income in 15 years.  For example, if you have a child who is going to be going to college in 15 years you could use the income to pay for tuition or your might retire.  Otherwise I think the 30 year is a great option.  The interest over the life of the loan will be a lot higher but there is a good chance you will sell the property before the mortgage has been paid off.

best of luck!

@David Ramirez welcome to BP.  The forums definitely are a great resource to learn from.  It sounds like you are off to a great start.  Congrats and good luck finding your next property.  Let me know if there is anything I can do to help!

@Todd Dexheimer are you trying to get a conventional mortgage or a portfolio loan?  The banks should not care if you are a local investor for a conventional mortgage....

@Christy Greene

You may have more luck further away from cities such as Plano or McKinney, it is getting hard to find deals in those areas and the price point most investors target (less than $200k) has very low inventory at the moment which makes getting an offer accepted difficult.

I personally do not have a ton of experience in Arlington but I have heard good things.  There are some good areas further north of McKinney or our near Wylie as well. 

Good luck!

@Jeremy Bates.  It sounds like you are off to a good start.  Personally, I would recommend you talk to a lender prior to a realtor.  It will give you an understanding of the price point you can afford and what your down payment options are.  These are different requirements for purchasing an investment property than purchasing a primary residence and you need to make sure you will qualify for the mortgage.  

That being said I dont think it ever hurts to talk to several realtors.  As@Cindi Hoover said many realtors will be happy to talk to you and there is a good chance they will give you some ideas you had not considered before.  It will also let you see if you and the realtor work well together.

 @Kim Younkin you are correct property managers in Texas do need to have an RE license.

Best of luck on your search!

hi @Brandon Allen.  It looks like a great house in a nice neighborhood.  So I had a couple of thoughts related to your post.

1) There is a higher level of inventory (compared to potential sellers) in the DFW area for homes at this price range.  Purely because of supply and demand the homes at these prices do not move as quickly.  Not saying these homes do not sell but they may not have 10 offers the same day they are listed.  DFW has seen very low inventory levels for homes below $200k and a huge demand for these homes from both first time home owners as well as investors.  That being said, even homes at the higher price point are moving but it is very neighborhood specific.  Your realtor should be able to tell you how many homes were listed and then removed in the area, this may give you a better idea of how long it will take to offload the property.

2) My concern looking at the home is the school.  Granted, it seems that most people in Dallas send their kids to private school but it is rated a 3.  This may make it harder to find a buyer for the property since the price point is so high.

In the end you may be able to sell the home for a higher price like $600k but it may have to sit on the market for a while.  I guess it will come down to your holding costs....

Best of luck!

@Adriana Fernandez I hope you're having a great day.  I am a mortgage loan officer in Texas, if you need help securing your financing please let me know!  Thx!