All Forum Posts by: Sam Sagor

Old secret but good secret. Plastic jungle and other such sites have gift cards at a discount. I think they are relatively safe as they verify before reselling but I'd would check that. Ebay has gift cards cheap. Pawn shop works but again be aware that theses are possibly the result of lifting and use caution in any deal where you will be buying without verifying. Also credit rewards are good source of getting discounted cards as the points taken can very sometimes a lowes card that goes for 10000 - 30000 points goes for 5000 etc.
example: Citi thankyou rewards ran something 4 days ago 'Redeem Lowe's $50 card for 4500 points' and they gave extra 1500 back if you got randomly selected for an email. This goes to March 31st 2012 the actual points people have obtained them for ranges from 3000 - 6000 points. Point in case if you pass a lot of money through a rewards card and time it for the sale you could get quite a few cards.

In the end research for yourself to where you feel you know the direction you want to go and then do it. My 2 cents get an OO loan now and get in on something in Hawaii (that you do thorough due diligence on) FHA and VA are awesome for someone starting out provided you're getting yourself a good property that you (and significant other) could live in. They are OO loans as you live in them. You can use VA when you get moved it works for that just read up on all rules as this is a military program and you need to know your benefits to use them to maximum potential.

Advice 2 : We live in Hawaii it's expensive here. Get a multifamily but make it a duplex triplex or separate ohana you don't need to make it a 4-plex as these are rare and topheavy in terms of ROI. If you see a four plex that does rent well (it gives you a decent CAP) then sure go for it. Ask military contacts if they are trying to sell. VA Loans are assumable and they may have a good multi-unit. Just know your market before you buy.

The next loan is the one you just bite the down-payment for.

"Professional" is not who they want to be dealing with. I vote for write them and good job. Never ask for anything at anyone's convenience if you want it to get in front of their list of all the other clamoring priorities. They have them - you are competing make it simple and clear. Post results of this campaign weekly if possible.

Thanks for all the great replies. Your humor is always welcome.Perhaps I should have asked 'what are the top 3 on your ideal realestate bookshelf'. The original purposes was to put together a list to go on my RE devoted bookshelf. I have inspiration shelves for Art, Architecture, Business dev and felt the need to create a new one for realestate investing. The few books I have would look lonely. I like to put the real gems up there so if I ever get some lag time I can just get dive in on something worth the read. Hawaii can sometimes feel like a desert island in terms of isolation from things going on in the mainland so the recommendations can help the island fever.

I am not married and planning a move from Hawaii to the mainland so if I joined streamline Refinancing loans would be the relevant information. Links were advertising laced so I just included this.

"VA loan requirements include strict rules about occupancy. When a VA loan is issued, the borrower is required to certify they intend to live on the property as their primary residence. But the military lifestyle includes uncertainty; deployments and permanent change of station moves can be ordered unexpectedly. In spite a military member's best efforts to plan for the future, sometimes the needs of the military interfere with long term plans.

We've already covered the fact that the Department of Veterans Affairs is sympathetic to military deployments; in the past VA guidelines for lenders included the assumption that deployments and temporary duty assignments were exactly that–temporary and not in violation of VA occupancy rules. But the military member who gets permanent change of station orders to a different state or an overseas location has a serious problem; VA occupancy laws don't support the buyer living out of state.

Active duty VA borrowers without a spouse or fellow military co-borrower would seem to be in a serious set of circumstances if they love the home and don't want to part with it. VA occupancy laws don't allow an absentee borrower and the VA mortgage holder can't simply rent out the property. What's a homeowner to do?

Fortunately, the VA-to-VA refinance mortgage, also known as a Streamline Refinancing loan, can help in these instances. When a VA borrower applies for a VA Streamline Refinancing loan, they are NOT required to certify that the home is their primary residence, only that the home has BEEN the primary residence under the terms of the original loan. Technically, this gives the home owner an out–refinance the original loan, keep the home and make arrangements for it to be looked after in the meantime while the borrower is serving at his or her new assignment.

VA-to-VA Refinancing loans are simpler and easier to get because of the underwriting requirements–the buyer qualified for his or her original VA mortgage and that qualifying data is used to process the refinancing. There are limits on this type of refinancing–the buyer cannot get any cash back. There are other rules; according to the VA, "The loan may not exceed the sum of the outstanding balance on the existing VA loan, plus allowable fees and closing costs, including funding fee and up to 2 discount points. You may also add up to $6,000 of energy efficiency improvements into the loan."

For those who truly want to keep their homes, VA-to-VA refinancing loans are an excellent option in the face of a new military assignment that takes the homeowner out of the area."

If you had to pick three books to take with you on a desert island ...

What would they be? Particularly real estate books that you have actually sat up and got excited about putting that last bit into practice ... Taxes, development, business development just 1, 2, 3

I'll start:
From Janitor to Multi-Millionaire - Wesse's book
Ben Franklin (biography of) can't remember which
Creative Business Development - Jeffrey Pfeffer

Where is that? East Austin?

An obviously statistic I look at : Do I want to move there, now as a business. You determine this by looking at the commercial space are they giving it away or is it starting to fly on its own?

Tax advantages are huge. Look at the top rated cities for moving a business to it's online or somewhere in the form of top 10 lists. Texas has looked good from my perspective for the past 4 years because they give grants and are cooperative with tech startups - If I was a tech company it would be the place. Is your city attracting a business that will up the disposable income?

Artists will move anywhere we get cheap rents and are allowed to modify the structure. Art supplies are expensive at the end of the day we need to have enough to buy them so living conditions budgets in last. Are they living in houses, apartments or colonies? This is a good question before you go using artists as the proverbial canary.

Didn't see that in our post / profile ... my mistake. Local REI club maybe you are new you might want to show you are now open for investors to work with. Even if you are already in the club put it out there you now have inventory! Does this house have equity? Considered turning the deal into rent to own? Those signs get calls.

considered posting it here? properties --> investment listing up there ^... maybe some pictures? You need to spend the $10(ish) under your account to go pro first.

I was going to mention VA. There's some basic information on their site about how to qualify and the restrictions. Here's 2 you should know you have to sell if you move ... unless you refinance under VA. It's not that hard but being aware of that can help you to not sell your property when you get moved. Research this stuff and you will come out ahead. A word of caution, you cannot get a 700k multifamily unless the rent roll justifies it (bank only counts 75% of the gross rents) So aim for less expense ones ... maybe you can find a 400k or 500k that will cashflow. 700k is going to be to high rent for you to secure a loan on unless you can find an real gem that nobody can finance. I live on the big island you might want to check other islands too it's cheaper but beware coquis here. They are causing vacancies on the Hilo side.