All Forum Posts by: Salvatore Lentini

@Jessica Piff - I never recommend starting off investing out of state unless you are in a super high priced area and it's impossible to cash flow on rentals.  Even then I recommend buying in state or bordering state that is within 2 hours away (so you could drive there if you had to)  I have a portfolio of rentals in Dayton OH and have had mixed results.  This coming year will determine whether I continue to grow my portfolio there.  So far I much prefer investing in my state, the closer the better.  In the past couple years I started buying commercial deals within 5 minutes of me and it's even better than I could've imagined.  So much easier and it saves me a ton of money and keeps my properties better maintained.  I drive by them several times a week because they are on my way to or from any errands or family stuff I have scheduled.  I can take care of small things (light bulbs, tenant leaving something in front of dumpster, parking lot timers, meeting a contractor, inspecting how well cleaning crew at night is doing their job etc).  It also was a major factor in making sure I received 100% rent collection from my commercial tenants (long story but I would've ran into issues if the properties were further away and I wasn't as familiar with the daily business going on).  So, you're in MD.  Why can't you find something closer than upstate NY?  Low priced - high cash flow properties look good on paper but the real world scenario is usually much different.  The numbers on your paper don't factor in the drug dealing tenant that causes DEA to knock down the front door and condemn your rental leading to considerable repairs and 100% vacancy for months.  It doesn't take into account the tenant that stops paying rent, doesn't show up for the eviction court hearing but instead destroys the apartment and disappears.  Or bed bugs, cigarette smoke, cat urine.... ok you get the picture.  The horror stories you hear happen more often in the low priced - "high cash flow" properties.  You need to find the sweet spot in your area.  It can be "lower" priced properties, just not the "lowest"  or somewhere between low to middle.  It's different in each state/county but there is a segment of every market where you can decent priced homes, decent rent and fewer problem tenants, leading to less repairs and less turnover.  Look at where you live on a map and draw a circle around it 20-30 minutes in each direction.  Unless you are in San Diego or Boulder or Boston etc, you should be able to find plenty of opportunities without having to go several states away.

@Jackson Babcock - I've enjoyed it every step of the way.  Right now I am enjoying commercial real estate but only because I worked my way up to it.  If I would've jumped right into commercial I think my chances of success would've been much lower and I wouldn't be enjoying it as much.  I like it because the stakes are higher and the rewards are greater.  

@Stephen Solano - there are whole books written on this topic so there's no way to answer this in a post.  It's not super complicated but there are A LOT of steps.  You need to find land or a property that you'll knock down.  You need to figure out what you'd build, whether the town will allow it, if you'll need to change the zoning, how much it will cost, what kind of financing you can get, timeline, how much it will cost you based on the financing and the timeline, a good architect, a good engineer, what it will be worth when it's done, what your plans are for when it's complete etc.

@Tre Irvin - it took me 9 years from the time I read my first real estate book and decided I wanted to invest.  Seriously...9 years!  I thought exactly what you're thinking.  There's always one more book, one more podcast, one more seminar etc.  I actually created an online course for aspiring investors for this exact reason.  Fear is definitely a huge hurdle to overcome on your first deal.  Fortunately, there is actually a good amount of risk mitigation you can deploy that will nullify those fears.  But it all happens after you get a property under contract.

@Jessica Piff - happy to respond but I need a specific question in order to provide advice.

@Rebecca Bailey - I got started with wholesaling.  It takes a lot of work but it's one area in real estate where you can substitute your time for money.  If you have some money to invest in marketing, it makes wholesaling easier but you can also just use the brute force of time to make up for what you lack in funds.  You need a purchase agreement with an assignment clause in it so that when you find a property that you want to wholesale you can get it under contract.  Then you need an assignment agreement so that you can assign that property to another investor.  You don't need a title co to get started.  That can come after you get the property under contract and after you have an assignment in place.

It's that time again...The light is on and I'm taking questions.  If you've read a real estate book, gone through some real estate forums, watched some videos and you KNOW you want to become a real estate investor but it's been months or years and you haven't done it yet... tell me why and I can point you in the right direction.  I have 127 rentals and soon to be 154 (fingers crossed).

I've done everything from single families, multi families, commercial, office, triple net and land development.  What's your biggest question?  Happy to give back.

Hard money is expensive but it's not yours.  It's also quick and interest only.  And depending on the lender, you're only being charged on the amount you draw.  Just map out both scenarios and see which one is cheaper.  And maybe the question isn't which one.... maybe you do both and get 2 properties :)  Depends on how much your rental cashflows.  If you can do a refi, or LOC and it still cashflows or just breaks even, that's like free money in terms of investing in another property.

@Cathy S. - partner with a money partner?  There are lots of people out there with money but no time.  Provide the time and they provide the money.  I've received millions in private lender money from individuals that don't have the time to invest but have the money.  And contrary to what many people think, these are not super wealthy individuals.  Many of them are just regular middle income people that have saved up money over the years.

@Steve LeBlanc - I've worked with investor friendly lenders to build my 127 unit rental portfolio.  No W2s needed.  They fund based on the property not the borrower.  As long as you have liquidity for down money and a credit score above 600 you're good to go.  Message me if you want some names.