All Forum Posts by: Melroy D'Souza

@Adam Rose, - "I would think being a RE agent, you would have more connections, see more properties available and possibly acquire more properties faster."

You don't get connections by becoming a RE agent. In fact if you become an RE agent, you have to go out and try to make connections, same as any other field.

There are government programs for police, firemen, etc that help in either lower down payment or kind of like the first look at some of the repo houses. Search for "About Good Neighbor Next Door". Why not start out house hacking like that, build one at a time and move from there. I think you can make more connections as a cop as part of your daily patrolling job depending on where you get assigned. Just drive around looking for beat up places :-)

Good luck. 

The "other" group is the Landlord's group that @Ed W. runs. They meet on the 4th Thursdays at Tommy's in Dublin.

You're selling the nicest 68K house on the block for 65K in a C neighborhood. Assume typical houses in the area may be selling for 55-60K - which on the surface might indicate to the buyers that your price is too high. 

Secondly, even if there isn't any work to be done, investors are looking for a little more discount than the 3K you offer. If it truly appraises for 68K and you offer it for 55K, the same buyers who earlier said they're not buying in that neighborhood will be jumping for it.

Definitely second Peter's caution. I am on a few of these lists and I am flabbergasted at the so called deals they are offering. Some of the rehabs are way over done for the neighborhood. I don't know how they are asking for 20-30% over the ARV and touting high cash on cash returns. Perhaps that's the only way to make money after the extensive rehab?

Hi Anna welcome to BP. I've got 3 of those "little creatures" running around so I know how it feels. One suggestion, look up the BP podcast when they had Mindy Jensen, if I recollect the name. She and her husband live in homes that they rehab and sell. They also have kids. By doing some thing like this, you can potentially lower your taxes as opposed to doing flips. Also, you can pick up some great deals off HUD, Fannie, etc if you are owner occupied. You can get in before the investors get a chance. My wife would never stand for this, it would be too much chaos for her. But if you are on board, this route might be a good start and fit for your skills and situation.

BTW, college is so over-rated these days - LOL ... yes I said it. Ping me if you have any questions.

Jon,

Many financial advisors/surveys do NOT include primary residence as part of your net worth. So don't count your primary residence in the equation. Then recalculate and are you comfortable with the new number? What are your financial goals? That answer will guide your decision. If you don't have any goals, do nothing for now. 

If you want to diversify into the stock market, do a dollar cost average method. I don't like plunking a large chunk into the market all at once. If you want more RE investing, there are a plethora of avenues to get into depending on your goals and temperament. Search BP, listen to podcasts, etc. Financial advisors tend to just do the typical asset allocation strategy like it is scripture or something. There may be a bunch of investors on BP who are 95% or more allocated in RE, but that's what they are comfortable with and it might be okay with them. Some one like Warren Buffet is 99.99% in stocks, works for him. I think you have to be comfortable with whatever you are doing.

Branden,

Having second thoughts and feeling like you should back out are natural feelings. I felt the same last year. I can just say hang in there and if your numbers are accurate, you are okay. I don't know the numbers for your area or if that is a good area or price. But if you have $300 extra, that's a good start. Your insurance cost seems a bit high. 

I think most investors would agree that their first deal was probably their worst deal or probably in their bottom 10-25% of deals they've done. For your second deal, you will naturally look for better numbers than this one. You have to start somewhere. I've been "reading" for years, but I can truly say only started "learning" after buying the first property. Then learning some more with the next and so on ... never stop learning.

Good luck and Congratulations !!!

Justin, there is no free lunch.

Going the route of Turnkey may give you instant returns, but you have to spend time researching the provider and management. Then manage the manager or self manage. Typically in the Central Ohio area, I have not found turnkey prices very attractive. They also tend to not sell homes in the suburbs, which is where I am interested. It might be different in your case.

You can go the MLS route, and pick up one of two kinds of properties - everything done up which will sell at market or slightly below market. If it is slightly below market they are snapped in a day or two. The other option is to pick properties that are beat up (to varying degrees, a little carpet & paint to a complete rehab). This will take a month to several months to eventually start cash flowing. If you buy these correctly and go through the hassles of dealing with contractors, etc. you should be all in below market value. Then refinance, cash out and rinse. (BRRR method @Brandon Turner) Higher returns than Turnkey but more work involved.

There is a 3rd method where you buy properties outside the MLS. Here is where you get the best deals and possibly more creative financing. However, you have to do a lot more work. Don't buy a $997 course and think it is going to be easy. You find motivated sellers and grab these deals. You could also work with area wholesalers.

Good luck and search stuff on BP, it's an amazing tool.

If you think the guy/gal qualifies, but they are bald or have facial hair, would you not rent to them? These days tattoos are like facial hair or an accessory. I don't like them personally, but to each his/her own.

To avoid running into issues with Fair Housing, I have a written set of criteria. The first qualified applicant that meets these criteria gets in. I only consider an application complete if they have completed the application form, paid the fee and provided any documentation that I need. I also let the next person know that they are the 2nd or 3rd in line.

I've been on BP for a year and you guys are awesome, covered most of my questions in previous posts. But no search results for Rental ADDvantage offered by "get more offers.com" (not sure if I am allowed to use a website). So I thought I'd start my first thread. They say it is a $179 flat fee to post a rental ad on MLS. Anyone used this service? Experience with something similar?

My current (just my second) rental is ready to be leased. I started with the usual - postlets.com, craigslist and placed a For Rent Sign in the yard. It's only been about a week, haven't had one qualified tenant so far. ALL the people calling so far do NOT meet the minimum income standards, which is clearly on the rental ad, but they keep wasting their time (and mine of course). They all want to see the property and I am getting to listen a lot of drama and sob stories. I don't want to be rude, but I have to learn to cut them off politely.

I thought may be having it on the MLS might improve the odds of finding a more "decent" long term tenant? - This is a large 4 Bed, 2 bath in a B, B- area that is surrounded by a lot of smaller C+, C houses/apartments. Am I over thinking this? Just have to be more patient? It is the end of January after all? My first rental was an A-, B+ area that leased in 2 or may be 3 weeks the end of last July with something like 20 contacts every week, at least 5 or 6 of these being reasonably qualified.

Sorry for the long post. I think I ended up with a couple of different topics.