All Forum Posts by: Ryan Blake

I have dealt with 2 hard money lenders. One in DFW, DFW Hard Money Lender (not sure if they lend nation-wide), and one in Houston, Zues Mortgage (they do hard money nation-wide). Both of these groups don't charge an application fee.

DFWs current rates are 2.5 points and 13% interest up to 90% LTV (this is loan to value which means you will always have to have 10% in the game as the project progresses) and up to 75% of the total project.

Zues' current rates are 2.95 points and 10.95% interest (interest is only paid on money that has been drawn - only place I have seen that does this). They follow the same LTV and total project ratios.

Hope this helps. I would only go this route if you can't qualify for a regular conventional mortgage or if you don't have someone you can privately lend from.

@James Yancy II Upfront fees will almost always be applied to your closing if you choose to go with that company. In Texas we typically see 2.5% points and 12-13% interest for new investors and down to 2% points and 11% interest for more seasoned investors.

I personally have never had to pay an application fee. What amount are they trying to charge?

@KJ Miller It could still be a good deal. There are investors everywhere but not every deal gets snagged right away. Things that I would look for are:

1 Condition of the house

2 Ask for receipts of payment of rent, if the LL says they were cash I would be highly suspect that you have an eviction on your hands which can be profitable for you if you negotiate down the price

3 Make sure there is clean title

Those are the bigger issues I could see causing investors to stay away.

@Richard Howell How long is your liquid cash sitting untouched? I don't know of any account that you are speaking of outside of certificates of deposit that would be at 1+ year terms.

I would continue to invest. I am not sure of your investment strategies, but if you are aware of any flippers in you area you could do some hard money lending backed by the property. You could invest in another REI's syndication if you are a qualified investor and are willing to tie up the money for 3 - 5 years. Those are my best options that I can think of. Hopefully someone smarter than me comments and gives you even more info.

@Cheng Chan I am curious to hear the answer on this one too.

Anyone have any good ideas or advice?

@Jason Piper Welcome back to Cowtown. You will want to be very selective. Multifamily is very expensive all across North Texas but a little more affordable outside the Metroplex in Parker County. I don't know much about Wise County. I would consider sending out mailings to multifamily owners in the area. Also, network to find agents that specialize in multifamily in Parker county. I know there is a good REI group for West DFW that meets the first Saturday of every month and pulls a lot of people from Tarrant and Parker Counties.

Good luck on your search. Don't be discourage but do be patient to make sure you find a good cash flowing property. Don't be dependent on appreciation.

@Michael K. We should team up and go back to the DFW REIA and then separately walk out when they make it obvious it is a sales pitch.

I really highly suggest you go to DFW REI Network (this is the link to their meet-up). I am not sure if I can make it to the meeting this month but it is every second Thursday of the month in Hurst and has a strict education policy. The lady speaking at this month's is a super fun insurance lady.  It is based mostly on a Q&A basis and has free food (no recommendation needed). And just for full disclosure, I have no affiliation with the group other than the lady that runs it is a broker and I am going to be using her to sell a flip that I have coming to the market in two weeks.

If you ever have a first Saturday of the moth free, try the West DFW REI Group. I know less about this group but plan on going next month. They do charge $15 but it goes to pay for breakfast.

In case you are heading to another one, let me know and I would love to join you.

@Shirley Frias What is the strategy you are specializing in to start with? If you don't know you, I would spend about $100 in books on real estate investing (look at Brandon's guide to books to read). You don't need a guru or paid mentor to start out. It will detract from what you are really focusing on. If you do look for a mentor, bring value to them by bringing them deals to split. You do the legwork but share the profits and they share their knowledge.

If you are looking to wholesale - right away I would spend it on developing and mailing out your marketing pieces.

If you are looking to flip - find some reputable wholesalers and start reviewing their deals and also spend some on developing and mailing out some marketing pieces to highly targeted houses in your neighborhoods you are specializing in. Best way to find the targeted homes is driving for dollars.

If you are looking to buy and hold - find a reputable wholesaler and a multi-family realtor that specializes in the neighborhoods you are looking in.

For the last two, you will also want to make sure your finances are in good shape. Make sure you have all your documents including tax returns, W-2s, and current bank statements so that when a project comes around you can work to get what ever kind of financing you are going after.

When deals come around. Run a quick analysis and then ask the BP community to check your numbers. You will get the support you need from group think and save a ton on not going to a guru.

I don't know much about the Chesapeake market but I am guessing it is pretty expensive so I hope this helps and gets you started in the right direction.

@Christopher Ward I agree with everything being said above. You aren't going to be able to make them pay. I wouldn't leave something so costly in the tenant's hands. In regards to your questions about cracks in the walls or movement in the foundation, this would all be found out pretty easily during quarterly or semi-annual announced visits to the property. If you aren't doing this, start doing it. It will hold your tenants accountable and it will keep small issues from becoming big issues.

@Michael Plante I plan on doing that. Apart from some crazy rehab issue, I feel like I know exactly what I can offer once I walk the property.