All Forum Posts by: Nicholas L.

@Mark Hargrove welcome.  Do you own or rent?

@Jennifer S. good point.  Prices have "dropped" in some of the most unaffordable areas in the whole country, like San Francisco.  But this is only a tiny portion of the market.

@Maria Luna I know you've said you don't want to continue to rent... but renting in the short term is a great deal.  No closing costs, no agents, no commissions... just monthly rent, and when your lease is up, you move out.

@Karl B. do you think it will actually drop, or just cease to rise?  It does seem overvalued but there is also such an inventory shortage.

@Tiffany L. I agree with the others in the thread here, this seems like it will tie up a lot of your cash.  But, if you're just looking to buy one investment to get started, and you really like this specific property, there is nothing wrong with that.  Here are some questions I'd ask:

Is the $1800 based on actual, rented comps?

Will you self-manage?  What happens to your cash flow if you need to hire a property manager that charges 8-12% of a month's rent?

Will having $75-80K tied up in this deal impact anything else you want to do in the near future?

What does adding the mortgage do to your DTI?

@Marco Coleman do you own or rent?  Do you have any savings?  Do you have a W2 job?

@Klint Ruud does he own or rent? 

@Mario Cuartas check out "Evicted" by Matthew Desmond.

@Jeffrey Evans what is your general financial situation?  How much savings do you have?  What is the worst case scenario if things go totally sideways?

@Ashley Keeler it may have been implied by some of the responses you've gotten, but there is typically a seasoning period before you can refinance (6-12 months). This will vary by lender - hence why it's good to ask lenders before you even make the purchase about how the refinance will work. So all of this will depend not just on your W2 income, your DTI, your assets, etc. but the property - what it's appraised it, whether it's rented or not, etc.