All Forum Posts by: Seth Ciminillo

@Peter Wellman

Well it looks like you have a plan moving forward. Seems like the VA loan would be a great tool if you are willing to wait. I'm with Nicholas - I don't think it will be a waste to rent for 4-5 more months until you can buy a home. Sometimes finding the right home or right deal can take a couple months anyway. If you are trying to accomplish your long term goal - then I don't see how waiting 4-5 extra months will inhibit you for future investments - especially when you will save a bunch of capital with not having a downpayment on a VA loan.

Have you looked into a skip tracing service to try and track this elusive owner down? 

Hey Peter,

Good questions! The first question that comes to my mind is - what is your investment goals/strategy? Are you looking to househack this property that you would purchase with a VA loan? Typically for a VA loan or any other government loan, they want to see that you are actually going to be living in the house.

Also, another idea, if you have the income capacity - could you buy the house now with 20% down and then possibly use your VA loan 6 months or 12 months down the road for a second investment property or househack?

Just some questions to consider. 

Hey Nicole, 

I am an agent in Lima, OH - an hour west of Bucyrus, OH. I work on a commercial team that focus on multi-family and investment properties - But I also work the residential side. What city specifically is your client looking to buy in? 

The Midwest and Ohio markets are a good place to look. Dayton, OH would be a great area to checkout. Very stable job market and population. Columbus, OH would be another solid city to check out. I am located in Lima, OH and our region cashflows really strong - but a much smaller population and opportunity than a Dayton or Columbus. 

Hey Blake, 

As with many people, sometimes that first deal is a big hurdle. I know for me I consumed a ton of content, podcasts, books, and looked at quite of few properties before buying my first deal. I STILL didn't feel completely ready. If there is one thing that I learned from Bigger Pockets - just getting started, and buying that first deal, is so important. It is easy to get caught in analysis paralysis and just wait for that "perfect" deal to show up. The experience and confidence you get after you finally get your first deal under your belt is huge for your real estate journey! Even if the deal turns out to just a "good" or "ok" deal instead of a "great" deal - the important thing is that you took the big step and did something. Good luck with your future endeavors/investments - you are going to do great! 

@Peter Davis
That is good to know! Any of these property management companies that you can recommend? The ones that I have found don’t really work with short term rentals, but will do seasonal rentals/long-term leases. 

@Stetson Miller @Robert Alpizar @Jonathan Greene

Thank-you guys so much for your responses! Invaluable information as I move forward in this research! 

Hey Bigger Pockets Fam,

My colleague and I @Garrett Gatton are looking to break into the Florida market, specifically around Naples, FL for seasonal and short term rentals. Anyone have any experience in this area? We were looking at some condos in the area, but have found that a lot of condo associations and HOAs have 30-day minimums on rental lease agreements and also only allow 3-4 turns on a unit depending on the specific rules. This excludes weekly rentals through Airbnb (or other similar sites), and leaves the option of seasonal leases or a one-year lease option.

The goal for this investment would be a way for us to break into out-of-state investing, invest in an appreciating market, and essentially use it as a house-hack for a vacation spot.

For those in this area, would we be better off looking for a single family home or a small multi (2-4 units) so that way we have more freedom in how we want to structure our leases and have the ability to do weekly rentals?

Any thoughts or suggestions for us? Thanks!

@Taylor L. Thanks for sharing! What was the biggest challenging when shifting to passive investors? Do you work with investors out of your area, and if so, how did you start networking out of your city/state?