All Forum Posts by: Thomas Mackenzie

The hard lending does kind of scare me off a bit.  I think that's because the rate on my current apartment building is 3.5% (which I thought was a great rate).  I don't think that I have that much for equity yet, but I have been looking into wholesaling.  I do have money coming in that I could spend for marketing to start my career in real estate.  Not sure if it's legal in Maine (the wholesaling guide on BP mentioned that), but I'd be happy to get my license.  More experience and education is great. 

How do we determine value?  Figuring out loan isn't bad, I know what I paid for the property and what is left to pay that loan off.  But is the Value determined by what I paid, what I could get for the property, the Tax assessment, rent collected vs mortgage payment?

@Michael Webster Thank you for the heads up. Can I go to any bank for a HELOC? I went with a lender based on the advice from the CFO of the commercial development company I was working for at the time. It was a great experience, very helpful, but you don't know what you don't know... ya know?

I feel I have done well for my first time.  I bought a 4 unit and live in 1 of the units, I haven't paid rent in the 7 months I've owned it!  The amount I am collecting from rent has paid for the mortgage, taxes, maintenance, oil, utilities... etc.  I have also created a small emergency fund for the apartment.  I have just about recouped my initial investment.

@Cory Patterson I do know you. Your brother Beau and I were in the same graduating class. My roommate was Mike D. for a while, I think you guys played in a band. I didn't know you were into REI. Congratulations on the duplex, I hope it's working out well. How is the flip place working out? Where did you buy? I would love to get together a talk. I spend a lot of time at Elements Coffee shop in Biddeford. I am actually writing this from there right now.

I bought my 4 Unit in Biddeford.  It's in a nice area near the Saco River.  I was initially looking for something in Portland because I heard the demand was so high, but this also meant that the asking prices was high.  The numbers didn't work out nearly as well as other places.  I started looking in Biddeford and Sanford because they made more sense by the numbers.

Thank you for the quick reply,

I just started on BP so I am fairly un-familiar with most of the investment methods.  I guess I would be interested in flipping, but that's what I see on TV the most (Flipping out, Flipping Vegas... etc.)  Although I don't want to rule out the other methods.  I would like to see what else I could do to get started.

I would probably have to find a unique way of financing my next investment. The multi I bought was through a FHA loan, so I came up with that money out of savings. It wasn't all that much but your first savings are the hardest to accumulate. I'd have to figure out what it would cost, but I'm sure i'd be underfunded on my own.

nicely done, these are the kind of deals I am hoping to do soon!

Hello all,

I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself.  My name is Tom and I am looking to network with like minded individuals to discuss real estate investing. 

I have a 4 unit that I recently purchased a few months ago and plan to hold that for the passive income.  It's been great so far and I have learned a lot in that deal.  I recently graduated from college (USM) and I am looking for my next investment to help pay off my loans and turn this into a side career.

I am currently looking for anyone with experience to help me find my niche and discover more about real estate investing.  I have an associates degree in architectural and engineering design and a few years working for an architecture firm as well as a bachelors degree in construction management.