All Forum Posts by: Michael Carbonare

If the tenant has already signed a lease, then renting it is.  If not, then you have options.  Whether or not to sell or rent can best be determined by you:  

1)  What do you prefer?
2)  Can you handle being a landlord?
3)  Will the rent create a positive cash flow each month?
4)  Do you need to cash out now or in the near future?

You can find much information on the FHA website. 

$5K isn't much so your options will be limited.  You'll hear many tell you start with wholesaling.  But that's ultra competitive and much more difficult than the seminar gurus say.  You can try assignments with lease options.  That's what I used to start many years ago.  Relatively risk free and minimal cash requirements.  Build up capital, gain some experience, and you can grow from there.

@Christian B.  I'm an ex Long Islander.  Grew up in Nassau County.  My very first taste of real estate was a small cottage in Bay Shore.  If I remember correctly I made about $8K on the deal and I was hooked.  I then did a deal on a foreclosure in Hempstead and made about $25K.  I was double hooked.  That was 20+ years ago, but even then LI prices and taxes made good deals hard to find.  NYS is quite tenant friendly and if you're not careful a shrewd tenant will play the system and you'll find yourself on the losing end of a long, multi-month money sucking eviction process.  My advice is to echo what others have already said:  go west, young man.  Distance deals, or virtual deals as they are referred to now, needn't be risky if you know what you're doing and choose the correct strategy.

@Landon Thompson If properties are artificially inflated,the downside potential is heavy.  Seeing that you're new to this business, a less risky approach is preferable.  Look at more investor friendly, stable markets. Doing deals virtually isn't the obstacle it once was. 

@Samantha G. Hi, Samantha.  As an ex-NYer I feel your pain.  I was born in Brooklyn and grew up on LI.  Moved out about 25 years ago.  Even back then prices and taxes were skyrocketing.  When a tax bill of $7K is considered a bargain, you know there's a problem in city hall.  Considering the cost of the area, you might be better off investing virtually, in other locations that are more affordable and investor friendly.  Also, from what I recall NYS is very tenant friendly and views landlords as the enemy.

@Tyler McCullough  I'm in south FL, but from what I know about Orlando and Tampa, as @Andrew Ashby has already noted, those markets are hyper competitive as investors are often fighting over the crumbs.  You'll need to be nimble and decisive when you find a deal that interests you.  

@Ali Suleiman  Ali, many, (most?), new investors suffer from the same malady:  paralysis of analysis.  You read books, binge watch podcasts, spend hours posting and reading various investing blogs where too many people offer too many opinions. . .and then you start all over again.  A year passes and you're still waiting until you know everything before you do anything.  Never gonna happen.  There will always be another shiny object to reach for.  Famous chop-chop actor, Bruce Lee, said it best:  "Simplicity is the key to brilliance."
How to keep it simple?  For starters, you need to settle on one investing strategy that fits your current financial abilities and your investor psyche.  Then block out all the noise.  Walk away from your keyboard.  Find yourself someone who has already been successful doing what you want to do and learn from him/her.

@Account Closed  Hi, Ian.  I have been a real estate investor for about 26 years.  Got my foot in the door when I learned about various types of lease options.  Still prefer to invest with them to this day, as well as other strategies, depending upon the specifics of the deal and the homeowner.  

@Joshua Raley  You're limiting your opportunities if you think you can only work the local market.  I'm in south Florida, a market that favors sellers.  If I limit myself to this area I'm fighting an uphill battle.  Instead, we seek out markets that are more investor friendly.  Distance means nothing these days. You can learn to do assignments, for example, far from your neighborhood which pose no risk and have minimal capital requirements.