All Forum Posts by: Sarah Shockley

I'd be pretty cautious about handing over a rental to someone in that situation.

With that being said, I'd ask if he were willing to pay the year's rent in advance. If so, great! As long as he's law-abiding and takes care of the place, no worries. After one year if you have no issues and he wants to stay, I'd ask him to either provide job/income information again, or pay another year in advance.

Hi Al,

Yes, 1031 exchanges will be part of the plan - I just need to own the houses first!
When the time comes, maybe you can give me some pointers. At this point I'm still trying to learn - there's so much to know!

Hi Shuai,

Long story short - it depends.

Rental rates in Jacksonville are different for different neighborhoods (as with many towns, I'm sure.)

I don't know how familiar you are with the area, but Jacksonville is the largest city in area in the contiguous US, and there are many neighborhoods, all with varying rental rates.

Getting SFHs for 30k (one way or the other) is one of my goals/rules of thumb - reality is much more complicated.

For example, in the Murray Hill neighborhood (middle class, not too ghetto), it's possible to pay 30k for a fixer that doesn't really need a huge overhaul. Total expenses including reno could still be under 50k.
In the "good" section of that neighborhood you can expect $750-$900/month in rent, depending on the size of the house and how nice it looks.

Alternatively, in the Avondale/Riverside/San Marco neighborhoods (more upscale/artsy) it's very hard to get a SFH for less than 100k. More likely you'll see houses that would qualify for a conventional loan, under 120k if you're lucky. So, you're putting down 20% (around 30k), but these places usually need less work.
Also, rent for a 2/1 is around 900, and for a 3/2 you can expect closer to $1200- more if it's larger or really nice.

Well, first of all, market conditions here are awesome. Property prices are low because of all the foreclosure activity (among other things), and rental rates are high.

For 30k you can usually pay cash and get a fixer.

Alternatively it's possible to get a conventional loan on a house where the seller is asking 100k or less, and you're putting down 20-25% (which would be a down payment of less than 30k).

Hello!

I'm getting into real estate investing in Jacksonville, Florida.

Bought our first house with my husband in 2010, and got hooked! I've spent the past four years combing the mls listings, and really learning about the market here.

Right now I'm under contract on a 3-unit property, and should close before Christmas. (And spend the holidays painting and laying tile! Woohoo!)

My "strategy" is to buy and hold multi-family properties, primarily for the rental income stream.
Alternatively, I'm also looking at single-family homes I can acquire for less than 30k, and rent out for a few years (still with positive cash flow), then sell when prices have recovered a bit.

The purpose of all this work is financial independence - I want to replace (and exceed) my current job income with rental income.

Also, I'll be doing something I love - owning and rehabbing lovely homes!

This is a very broad question, so I'll give you the very broad answer:
Because the price is too high.

There can be a lot of reasons why the price is too high - ie the property is not in good condition, not a good area of town, area values are declining, etc - but it all comes back to the price.

There are a few exceptions (but very few). For example, Fannie Mae Homepath properties do not allow investors to bid on a property for the first 15 days it's on the market - to allow owner-occupants a better chance of getting into a house.

Getting started!

A few months ago I had this "week of serendipity", where I had the revelation that REI could give me the financial independence I've been seeking, and the universe simultaneously provided the capital I needed to get started.

What a rush!

Now I'm under contract on a triplex. Here we go!

Thanks for the feedback!
Sounds like not much to be worried about.

Hi Jon,
The property is in very good condition - basically there's nothing to hide.

I was just thrown off guard when the bank indicated they wanted our inspection report, because I haven't come across that scenario before.

Still, I didn't think it was customary to give them a copy, especially before the appraisal has been done.

Sorry for the confusion -

I am purchasing the property.
I am having an inspection.
My lender is requesting a copy of the inspection report.

Am I obligated to give them a copy of it?