All Forum Posts by: Robert Leonard

@Mark Zamitalo as long as you are maintaining an adequate cash reserve, you can use leverage to access the equity in those properties to purchase additional properties.  All of the rent has to go back into the account anyway.  You can make additional contributions to your retirement account too depending on what the limitations are to accelerate when you have enough for your next purchase? 

To use leverage (borrowed money), you will have to use a non-recourse loan and there are limited lenders available who offer those, but they are out there.

This is still a retirement investment.  It's long term and if you manage it well, it will be very beneficial to your retirement!  Keep growing it slow and steady along side of your active business or income stream.

@Brandon S. Lewis welcome to BP!

I think a person with your interest would find the book "The ABCs of Property Management" by Ken McElroy very helpful.  Check out his BP podcast and his website is pretty good too. 

http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2014/01/09/bp-podcast-052-raising-millions-ken-mcelroy-rich-dad/

@Cassandra Boyett how can you possibly consider long distance investing if you are a "stay at home mom?" Won't you be stuck at home? <sarcasm> ;-) I'm just picking, because I really think the term is a passive derogatory term for "full-time moms" which is what we call my wife. 

Please excuse my "off topic" ice breaker, but you can start listening to the BP podcasts and watching some of the BP youtube videos.  A good book I always recommend is "The Millionaire Real Estate Investor" by Gary Keller.  Many of the podcast guests have really good information on their websites that you can find in the show notes or if you take notes during the podcasts.

The hard part for new investors can be information overload.  The podcasts can help with that if you just go and start from the first one and work your way through them.  Sooner or later, you will come across a strategy that you are drawn to, that will fit your market or solve your problem if none seem to fit your market.  And when you have questions, search for it before you post, there are lots of good questions that have created very informative discussion if you just search for them!  Welcome to BP!

Congratulations @Account Closed ! You, my friend, understand a little something about the stock market that a lot of people don't.  If you are still buying, volatility is a good thing, because you get the benefit of dollar cost averaging.

Sooo many people follow the media hype about what the stock market did on one day and they act like it means something dramatic.  The other day I saw one channel show in big bright numbers "if you had $90,000 on September 30, today it's worth $87,000!"  Oh my, the sky is falling, the sky is falling!  It's complete nonsense and they scare the crap out of people who should be putting their money in the stock market! 

I've always invested in the stock market and I always will and I want it to go up and down during my investing years.  That way, I'll end up with more shares at the end, than if it went straight up and never had declines.   Declines are like a sale for those who continue to invest.  A point that David clearly understands!

How would they get the full markup and all of the profits if they don't install new  equipment every time? And they don't remove the "old" equipment either. That's why you'll see two or three dishes all on one house!

It's a small pole that's 4-5 feet tall, not like the normal utility poles 35-45' tall. The satellite guys install them.

@Christopher Lawrence it's based on the total invested (purchase and repairs).  It's a self-imposed rule, not really a rule anywhere other than in some people's strategy.  I wouldn't get too wrapped around the definition.  You have an awesome deal on your hands if those numbers prove to be accurate.  Congratulations!

@Tammy Wise 

You are talking about podcast number 17.  I've listened to every podcast.    I have a healthy respect for differences of opinion, and I certainly don't agree with all of the different opinions expressed on the podcasts, but that podcast sticks out in my mind because it is the one that I think includes really bad advice. They've already been mentioned above, "don't invest in a company matched 401k" and "buy an EIUL (Equity Indexed Universal Life) policy."  Those are just bad ideas for all of the reasons mentioned above.

@Darrell Boaz you are going in the right direction getting your legal team in place up front.  Now about the property value.  Understanding how to come up with the property value is the single most important thing to know and understand BEFORE you "pull the trigger" and buy something.  Until you have a firm grasp on how to accurately put a value on a property, you won't know a good deal when you see one.  Someone can easily sell you a mispriced (it doesn't matter if it's intentional or their own error) property and you'll be stuck with it.

@Steve Gregory gave you a good open source method to come up with a preliminary valuation. When you have done that and you think you have a good deal on your hands, at that point you need to contact your friend the real estate agent who deals with investors and find out what they come up with as recent sold comps from the MLS. Those are the comps that an appraiser will use to come up with a property's value. It's never written in stone what a property's value is, so you should always be conservative on what you expect your after repair value to be.

This is THE most important thing to understand to be a real estate investor.

If you all are looking for excellent forms to "go by," I recommend you go to www.123flip.com and for the price of your name and email address, you can get J Scott's standard forms.  It's been a while since I went there, but that's what was there last time I checked.

NOTE:  They are EXAMPLES that you should have proofed/approved by an attorney in the state you plan to use them in like anything else you find out here on the Internet!

@Justin Owens 

I would.  It's just another mechanical system to add to your expectation for long term expenses.  They will have to be maintained and one day replaced.  I would consider upgrading or connecting to municipal systems if they become available.  But if it's normal for the area, it won't be drawback to your tenants or resale buyers.

I don't have any properties on a well or septic tank now, but I grew up on both.  As I remember, the well was pretty low maintenance, while the septic needed regular attention.  I'm sure others can chime in with more details on what kind of percentages you need to budget for each?