All Forum Posts by: Shawn S.

@Jonathan Greene,

Those are some good points that I can relate to and will keep in mind -- especially the one about tailoring your offer letter to the seller.

In response to your suggestions, I have two follow-up questions:

1.) Would the seller not try to raise the price if they see that you are approved for a larger amount than your offer?

2.) Can you elaborate on what you mean by having a "one-sheet" on me? Are you referring to something similar to a resume?

Thanks,

- Shawn

@Cody C Floyd,

A concept that I just learned about from the BiggerPockets Real Estate Podcast show 29 is something called "Peer-to-Peer Lending." They go over in detail how the guest, Dawn Anastasi, uses peer-to-peer lending services like LendingClub and Prosper to fund her deals.

Your situation reminded me of this episode because Dawn uses her own cash and these lending services to fund her deals which are cheap properties, typically bank-owned foreclosures or short sales that she gets for around $20k-$30k, that need a little bit of work.

At the time that this episode was recorded, LendingClub offered loans up to $35k per loan, while Prosper offered a total of $35k that span across multiple loans. I am not sure if these numbers are still accurate, however. They start to go over her investment strategy at 0:20:30 into the show.

Hope this info was helpful! Good luck!

- Shawn

@Henry Clark,

Thank you for your response! These are great tips. I have some follow-up questions:

1.) I have taken the steps to be pre-approved for a deal that did not end up working in my favor. The amount that I was pre-approved for was specific to that deal, and it is likely that a future prospective deal will be of higher value than my pre-approved amount. Do investors typically get pre-approved for their max value and then change the amount in the pre-approval letter to match their offer in a contract? Also, would multiple pre-approval attempts hurt my credit score?

2.) How do I find out which realtors are selling the most properties that I am interested in?

Thanks,

- Shawn

Hello BP community!

I have noticed that listings on the MLS in my area are going super quick. A lot of times they are under contract by the following day. Therefore, I know it is important to be able to act fast. What are some ways that a newbie investor, such as myself, can be competitive against other buyer's by acting fast? What are the prerequisites that allow a buyer to act fast?

Thanks in advance!

- Shawn

@Rene Owczarski,

Good point -- I failed to mention that my goal is to eventually have enough rental income to pay my bills so that I no longer need to have a full-time job.

The 'big route' you describe sounds similar to the BRRRR strategy. Is that correct?

Hey BP community!

I have a question regarding investing capital in one property vs in multiple and am interested in learning what the community's perspective is on the topic. What I would like to know is what things should be considered when investing the majority of your capital in the purchase of a single rental property vs in the purchase of multiple rental properties? For example, if you had $100,000 in capital at your disposal, would it be more wise to use that capital to purchase a single rental property for $100,000, or would it potentially be a smarter decision to take that $100k and use it as a down payment for multiple rental properties (e.g. 20% down payment for five rental properties that each cost $100k)?

Any thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

- Shawn

Hello BP community!

As a newbie investor who is currently in the educational phase and has zero deals under his belt, I am exploring the many directions I can take in real estate towards achieving my goal of becoming financially independent before the age of 45 (I am 30 years-old now).  I currently have a full-time W-2 and would like to build my portfolio so that it provides a reliable source of passive income. One of the variables, I have noticed, that likely has a large impact on the reliability of income from rentals is the specific demographic(s) that the properties in one's portfolio is/are tailored to. From what I have gathered, it seems as though each demographic is affected to differing levels by variances in the local, state, national, and world economy.

The local markets in my town are comprised of a number of different demographics which include but are not limited to: government employees and contractors that work for the D.O.D. and NASA, military members, blue-collar workers, and college students. Lately I have been contemplating on the feasibility of using the local college students as one of my targeted demographics. And in doing so, I have discovered a few things that I think should be considered, but I am not too sure on how to go about approaching them. They are as follows:

1. Number of Enrolled Students
The number of students that are enrolled in the college/university could directly affect one's ability to successfully target college student tenants.

2. Fraction of Students Renting
From the total amount of students enrolled, a certain portion of them will be living on campus or in student housing, commuting from parents' home, doing online classes from outside of the area, and renting near campus. Is this data typically available? If so, where can it found?

3. Property-To-Campus Proximity
How close is the property to the campus? Is there a typical radius from campus that an investor should stay within if the intended demographic is college students?

4. Time of Purchase
After purchasing a property, one may need time for renovations and advertising, among other things. Additionally, I would imagine that one should time the purchase of the property such that expenses associated with the initial holding/vacancy after purchase and prior to the start of the next semester are minimized. What do those time windows typically look like and how do I account for that holding time?

These are just some of the factors that I have thought may play a role in successfully targeting college students as potential future tenants. I am sure I am leaving a lot out, so if any other BP members have any thoughts or suggestions on what I have presented or on any other factors that I am leaving out, please feel free to chime in!

Thanks in advance!

- Shawn

@Catherine Emert,

Great advice! Interviewing multiple agents seems to be a common approach. And I am sure, as in many other professions, not all agents are created equally. Additionally, I hear a lot about the importance in finding an agent that is "investor-friendly", as they are more familiar with applying the concepts that yield a higher ROI, larger ARV, etc.. Once I have my long-term goals more clearly defined, one of my executables is to locate then interview local investor-friendly agents.

@Mason Hickman,

Great info! Especially regarding how a new pre-approval is written by the lender to match the offer amount -- that is new information for me.

Thanks!

@Tony Angelos,

Thank you for your perspective!

Your comments on utilizing a wholesale approach are valid points, and perhaps could allow me to find more profitable deals. However, I am not sure how applicable it will be to my situation.

Now, I understand that there are always exceptions to the norm, but I have read in the BP's UBG that wholesalers typically sell to house flippers who are cash buyers. As appealing and fun as it seems, I am not too certain that house flipping will be my strategy of choice -- at least maybe not as my first deal -- as I am currently working a full-time W-2 and do not anticipate that I will have the time and resources to manage a flip. I am aware, however, that this does not 100% exclude house flipping and buying wholesale deals from the list of strategies that can lead me towards my goals.

Cheers!