All Forum Posts by: Steve B.

@Cheryl P. If you are looking in the Albany/Saratoga areas let me know.

@Michael Ablan Welcome to BP! The podcasts are very informative and will teach you a lot. And congrads on getting your license, I just got mine myself and its already opening a lot of doors that were unavailable before. I used to live in Watertown myself and sold my rental last year, has the rental market up there improved at all?

Really good ideas here to target veterans for your marketing, very few Realtors are knowledgeable on VA loans outside of military towns.

I used 2nd tier entitlement to purchase my current home. First of all stay far away from USAA, they are basically bank of America for the military now. Their mortgages are actually handled by a 3rd party that will mess everything up. I got tired of it and went to Navy Fed and everything went very smooth. I went to a couple of local credit unions initially and I had some loan officers tell me I can't have a 2nd VA loan so it's helpful to find a mortgage broker or banker that is familiar with the process if you don't go with one of the big military banks.

If you already have a VA loan then the 2nd VA loan must be a minimum of $144,000 and a max of $273,000. If your 1st loan was more than $144,000, then subtract it from $417,000 and that's the max they will approve. In very simple terms thats the way it works. If you live in high cost areas like SoCal or NYC then the loan limits are higher. Also remember if you have a disability rating from the VA, the funding fee is waived.

All VA loans can only be used for primary residences. Don't cheat the system and buy an investment property, if you get caught it's mortgage fraud. Also people can refinance their 1st VA loan into a conventional loan if they have built up enough equity, and they get all of their entitlement back, rinse and repeat.

@Marci Stein Where at Upstate? Are they single-family or multis? 

I am in the other Upstate up in Yankee land but what I've noticed with a vacant that has a pile of paperwork from the bank at the door is that the house is already in the forclosure process and not worth the time since it most likely has a mortgage Balance higher than the value of the property. Try googling the address and you might find a legal notice from the local paper regarding the property.

@Alison Koenig If you can find a deal in Saratoga Springs, NY near the horse race track, you will have a very profitable vacation rental. The higher end homes within walking distance rent for more than $8,000/week and people are waiting in line to rent these homes. Lake George is another very high dollar rental area. Both locations are pretty hard to find off market deals for cheap but its possible if you dig hard enough. For a cheaper entry point find a cabin in the Adirondacks somewhere, preferably near water AND ski resorts for year round rental income. Cash in on the retirees moving South and wanting to liquidate. Good luck!

@Stephanie Jacobson From what I understand the back taxes can be paid right up until the auction. This has nothing to do with a mortgage or a short sale with a bank, if its on the county tax auction then its because they are 4 years behind on paying taxes. The county doesn't care what the house sells for they just want the back taxes. Most likely there isn't a mortgage at all on the property since most banks require taxes be paid out of escrow. There could be other liens though, IRS, mechanic, etc, ask the sellers.

Its too bad its already listed with a real estate agent as you can't cut them out of the deal. The agent is really doing a disservice to the family if it really is only worth $100k and the agent has it listed at $179. How did you arrive at your price?

I would do what @Jason Hirko says, great advice. If they don't bite now people have a way of changing their mind the day before an auction and they realize they are going to lose the house.

@Maribeth Saccone Welcome to BP! There are lots of wholesalers in our area, I'm one of them. I'm just starting out but already I am going on 2-3 seller lead appointments a week as a result of my direct mail marketing. No deals yet but you never know when one will come, you just have to have the willingness and persistence to keep going. Probably at least half the sellers I have met thus far I knew I couldn't put under contract for a variety of reasons but I went and met them anyway just to get experience talking with sellers and looking at houses. 

The AIN group has a few wholesalers but I haven't met any from there that are really full time into it and experienced. But I'm not really seeking them out either, I focus on finding and networking with the cash buyers. I have met a few very experienced local full time wholesalers but none of them are AIN members or even have websites. Most of the wholesalers at AIN are also rehabbers so I don't count them. Good luck finding a "we buy houses" sign in Clifton Park, I've never seen one there. I'm guessing the town really frowns on bandit signs. 

@Serena Salvato I am currently taking a classroom course for my real estate license. I work full time, run a real estate business, and have 2 little ones at home, so time is limited for me and understand your situation. I was going to do it online but after signing up to do it in the classroom I'm glad I did. I know people that opted for online and 5-6 months later they are still doing it. 

The material is very boring and dry and I doubt I would have ever got it done. Its nothing about sales, it all about what you need to know in regards to the law. The classroom forces me to be there and get it done. Also its great to network with other brand new agents. I am willing to bet I will do business with some of them some day just from having that connection. When we are done I am going to start a private facebook group for all of us to stay connected and bounce ideas off of each other. It's also great to interact with everyone as each person comes from a different background and some have dabbled in various forms of investing. The teachers will also let you know what topics you really need to know for the test. Some of the teachers I have had have shared valuable information about being in real estate that you would not get online.

Whatever you decide to do download the scribd app for your phone. I paid $8.99 for a 3 month subscription, and I discovered a very good NY Real Estate Salesperson study guide. I was looking for something completely different but I'm glad I found this too!

@Dolores Waldron The tax levies are the TOTAL tax burden spread out across the entire town or city that the property is located in. For example the school district determines the yearly operating budget and the levy is the amount that will be paid for through property taxes. It is then spread out through each taxable property across the school district. It is not a tax lien against the property if that is what you were thinking.

The tax bills in NY show the levies and then should show the amount that your individual property has to pay. I can't say what that amount is as it can vary widely depending on what town the property is located in. Typically for a $240k property in my area in the suburbs the total property taxes will be around 5-6 thousand a year. Remember that investors get no tax breaks such as STAR or veterans exemptions. Read the tax bill carefully as they most likely will have STAR if it was owner occupied. STAR is a reduction in the school tax bill for owner occupants only. It is not a tax lien against the property if that is what you were thinking. Hope this helps. 

Welcome to investing in NY, where the taxes are higher than "Taxachusetts"