All Forum Posts by: Ray Negrete

How valuable is your time? Being a GC is a full time job - most of us work 60-80 hours per week. If you think it's as simple as making a couple calls to some subcontractors and then kicking back and relaxing you're in for a rude awakening. 

Also consider the laws in your state and if it's worth it to put in the time and money to get licensed. A lot of investors throw around the "owner-builder exemption" very freely. In a lot of states, AZ included, that exemption only applies to homeowners working on their primary residence. If you plan to rent or sell within 1 year of completion (aka an investment property), you must use a licensed GC.

Bottom line I think it depends on how much effort you want to put in and if you're in if for the long haul. If you want to get into the construction business and do a bunch of renos/flips for the next 10-20 years then it may be worth it to get proper licensing and learn how to do it yourself. You probably won't save any money at the start though - there's a steep learning curve and lots of start up costs. If you're just doing it to save a buck - don't - just bite the bullet and hire a pro.

You can have a standard 10 total loans or some lenders may say 10 total financed homes. 

loans 1-4 can be 20% down and loans 5-10 are 25% under the conventional purchase model.  After then you will need to find smaller local banks in the market you are investing in as most will make loans but wont be as good as your normal conventional loan. 

My wife and I own 20 total homes.  I purchased 10 and she purchased 10.  Best way to maximize our ability to take homes down.