All Forum Posts by: Pat Lulewicz

Depending on the type of original note you get, there may be a requirement to live in it for a year. However, many institutions in the Triad, and overall NC, will require a 12 month reasoning period anyway. Some will allow 6 month refi though, but then will give you LESSOR OF: 1) 100% or purchase + 100% rehab, or 2) 75% appraisal. Just have to call around to all the institutions in the area. They all view investors differently based on what the rest of their financial/portfolio picture is.

@Rachel Smith @Chad Spurgeon

Great rent on a property in HP. Wonderful curb side appeal, so well done on the lawn maintenance portion. Where is the property in HP? How old was the house? How quickly were you able to find a tenant?

Welcome to Raleigh, Rachel! I just moved here in November, 2018, so feel free to PM me with any questions or advice on the area! I knew the market was intense here, but you're definitely moving into one of the most competitive markets possible.

To your point on seller financing, there are generally so many offers on any reasonably priced property that seller financing is generally never an option. Off-market deals would probably be your best bet if you want to go the seller finance route, and would have to be a strong deal at that as sellers know the strength of the position they have in this market.

A suggestion - look over next door to Durham, or even a little farther over to the Triad (Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point). This is one of the few places left in NC where you'll be able to find deals that give you the cash flow you probably desire.

Welcome Dimitri. Love t he ambition to chase down these kinds of largest properties. Like Jason said, it is definitely difficult to find this kind of multifamily property in the area; anywhere in the Triad or Triangle really. You'd have to go outside of town quite a bit. I invest in a few properties in the Triad, and if you're trying to live for cheap or free, I would recommend buying a larger SFH (home, condo, townhome) and rent out rooms instead (aka house hack). A 4/2 - 4/3, which could also have a value-add play in the form of upgrades, could serve this purpose and would fit your budget in the Triad market. Happy to connect or talk on this more.

If you have a slab, I would be of no help. But if you're sitting on a crawl space or basement, I'd say you should be able to get plumbing, assuming all materials are up-to-date, for about $5k. Electrical should be under $3k. Add another couple thousand for the HVAC connection. And then the actual fixtures and touches are based on preference, but the bones should get in for about $11-12k after permits and drywall. If you pay for everything to be installed, painted, and finished...yes, $15k sounds right.

Thanks for the tag @Nathan Faucett

@Justin M. I live/work in the Triangle (Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill) with investments here, and also play in the Triad (Greensboro/High Point/Winston-Sale). Happy to help/discuss in any way

PM'd you some info.
Drop ceilings wouldn't be a tough few-hour project on a weekend.

@Nathan Faucett Correct!

In my experience, that 1-year rule is only in the context of completely moving out and using it as a "100% rental". The concept behind it is that the Bank will sell the note off, and those agencies which buy the note want to make sure they're actually buying a loan for a primary residence. They never would, but they have the ability to come by the house and make sure you're actual residing in it, and haven't turned it into a 100% rental. Otherwise, everyone would be taking out 3% DP loans on houses, claiming them as primaries and renting them out completely. 

So as an example, if you have a cousin who wants to rent your basement because they've fallen on tough times and pays you $X, would this be considered a "rental property"? Obviously not since you're still upstairs and using it as a primary residence. Same concept behind renting the basement out while you live there (Airbnb, ST or LT). That's why 1-4 unit multifamily properties can also apply for residential loans. You live in 1, rent out the rest, but its still owner-occupied by you.

From an insurance perspective, you walk a fine-line. If you don't tell insurance you're conducting business at your rental, any potential damages could be declined if you make a claim with them as a result of a renter destroying the place. Notify insurance, and you're definitely going to have to pay more in premium as a result of the increased liability. So therefore you're PITI goes up. Its a personal decision. There's also the requirements of Airbnb that i'm not familiar with and what exact type of insurance and supporting documentation they'll need. Definitely all things to look into.