All Forum Posts by: Rick Novotny

Wow that's excellent. I wish I had discovered real estate at such a young age. The earlier you start, the better! I suggest reading real estate books, listening to podcasts, and simply asking questions on the forums when you might have questions about anything.

This community is extremely helpful so don't feel like asking questions is a bad thing. There are no bad questions here!

@Clifton Harp

Call around to some local property managers or contractors for some estimates. They should know the area really well for things like that. Each area is a little different. Sorry I couldn’t be more specific.

Wish you all the best in your investment journey!

-Rick

@Jatsons Mateo

Yes, but the rules are typically that you must live in the property for at least 12 months after purchasing.

@Greg Stetz

Does everything count? After buying 21 units and becoming an agent in 2 states, I can’t get enough of it. I’m working two careers while building my real estate empire.

Welcome to the BP community! I think you'll find a lot of useful information here. The people here are very helpful, so don't feel bad about asking questions.

Be careful about quitting your job too early, especially with lenders tightening restrictions. They like to see W2 income.

Interesting read. Thanks for sharing this.

Hi! I don't know the Boston real estate market so I can't really talk about specifics in that market. It sounds like you're eager to get started. You're going to want to narrow down your criteria. Really learn the ins and outs of specific zip codes or neighborhoods. Run numbers on a bunch of properties. As you do that, you'll start to know what is close to a good deal an what isn't a good deal before you even review it in detail. This will allow you to send offers immediately on properties.

When I am searching for properties I write offers within a few hours of listing. In a hot market, this is the way to go. You may even have to do things like offer over listing, escalation clauses, ect. Remember that just because you pay over list price, doesn't necessarily mean it's a bad deal.

Hope you find the right property for your portfolio!

Feel free to connect with me if you have any questions.

I've been buying at all kinds of prices and they work. I'm not sure how many deals you've been running numbers for, but it might be a lot before you find a good one since the market is so hot right now. You might even need to buy something that needs work because the "turnkey" properties are the ones that don't seem to work right now. When you do find the right property for your portfolio, make sure you're ready to pull the trigger and write an offer immediately.

I bought a duplex in November of 2019 for $147,000 in Grandview, now worth about $180-190k. I bought a 4-plex in Blue Springs for $425,000 in December of 2019 which is now worth nearly $500,000 and rents are increasing. I also bought 2 duplexes in Belton for $145,000 each in November of 2020, worth about $160,000+ each already after renovations. The mortgages are about $700 per month each and 3 units are rented around $900 per month while I live in one of them. So it definitely works!

I hope all the best for your journey!

Feel free to send me a message with any questions you might have.

I'm not sure about how it works in TX, but I did this same thing in Denver when I started. I bought a townhouse for 298k with 3 bedrooms and 2.5 baths. I rented my extra two rooms, and even my couch for some time. After I moved out, I tried to keep the property rented by the room, which I did successfully for a couple years. However, at some point the tenants started verbally fighting with each other and they were constantly calling me. I knew at that point I didn't want to self-manage anymore so I sold the property ($50k profit, excluding all the rent received) to invest it in my KC market portfolio. While the househack in Denver didn't work out long-term, it turned out to be a great investment.

I hope all the best for your journey!

Feel free to send me a message if you have any questions.

I'm always interested in meeting like-minded people! Let me know.