All Forum Posts by: Sam Ally

@Yan Linwood if you are in Tampa you should be connecting with TB REIA and the other 5 subgroups there. A host of investors, knowledge and networking to be done there. If you are looking for deals you should be working with those who can help you identify off market opportunities as your realtor may not be able to serve you adequately. Connect with Greg Simpson owner at TB REIA or Jeremy Kloter who is an investor friendly realtor they can certainly share insights and connections to help you move forward. Good Luck and remember this is a relationship business!

I'm not sure which comment you are referencing @Jose Hooker but I am pleased you found value in it. All the best in your endeavors and feel free to reach out anytime.

Sam

Off Market is where you will need to go to secure the most favorable acquisitions. Success in any profession is dependent upon the execution of tried, proven techniques practiced daily to gain/maintain an edge with in your market. Our current economic cycle requires today’s active investor to go off script, or “off market” and utilize what is often referred to as guerilla tactics, or “old school”. Well in my book there ‘aint no school like the old school to gain an edge.

Direct mail is now today's "hottest new old school tool" and few other marketing mediums can deliver your message with the precision at such nominal costs. If you don't believe it, just look in your mailbox every day. True success will come from creating and scrubbing a zip code specific list & putting a 12 month plan in place to execute daily fundamental actions. If you do not have the where with all to put this into effect you must align yourself with individuals or a group or groups that can feed your pipeline with opportunities. Visiting REIA groups can be an opportunity to find out who's who in the area but please watch out for the inevitable "pitch fest" that often takes place. Bottom line you must identify and thoroughly "vette" the players within the market that can add value to you and your investing goals. Good Luck

There are a host of issues Martha. There are an abundance of Private lenders in your neighborhood. Just check with Jeff Green @ Palmbeach REIA. The biggest issue you may encounter is funding with your SD plan. Pending your administrator or custodian, they have certain requirements and language they expect to see within Mortgage documents you will need to clarify that before moving forward with any lender. In addition, most Non-Recourse loans only qualify for a maximum of 65% funding. In addition if you are buying it tenanted the lender's loan parameters will be dictated by the Debt Service Coverage Ratio. In other words, it is valued like a commercial asset (based upon the income). If you are going to use an alternative funding source you must also find a suitable "long term rate" or have a plan to exit out of the Hard money loan within a year or two. There are some hard money options that may get you a rate under 9.9% but that will be dependent upon a host of variables. When choosing a lender you must never "pick one out of the air". But you must have a solid plan in place, understand your restrictions with your SD plan before you approach any lender & interview them. Are they setting you up for failure or truly interested in your plan to build your wealth. Consider this the readers digest version as there is more to know. Bottom line as long as you have the ability to repay and the valuation of the asset is sound you won't have an issue finding a lender willing to work with you but your first question will be "do you offer non-recourse loans". I welcome the opportunity to speak with you anytime.

Title Team & SE Pro Title two investor friendly companies.

Always welcome the opportunity to speak and if you would like I will send you our 1st Qtr 2017 economic report which is due out within a week or two. Sent you a connect request since I cannot share my number here. 

From a lender's perspective zip code specific data reflects overall the area is experiencing double digit appreciation and it looks like it will continue thru 2017.  Contrast that with Jacksonville which is still a so called "hot" market however, appreciation is now acting rationally and back into single digits compared to 13% thru 2015.  While it is still below Port. St. Lucie in ppsf it is climbing. Not a great deal of foreclosure activity seen in this area either.  With an average sales price in the 190's Flipping is the current trend & we've experienced  an uptick in deal funding throughout that market, as secondary home sales have risen as well. Real estate truly is local and here is an interesting fact, "institutional" investors now only account for 2% of all purchases nationally. They've picked the low hanging fruit. Get it while you can!

Danny:  There are a few things a lender likes to see and you working on a project yourself is not one of them.  Track record, your team, exit strategy but most of all ability to repay.  You are going to have to put skin in the game and anywhere from 20% to 1/3 in most cases.  Everyone says they want to build a relationship most do not, they simply want money for their deal. What are you looking for in a lender and why would they put up their capital to fund a novice?  That's the question you need to come to grips with and have viable answers for.  Many say what's the difference if I fail, the lender gets the property.  While that may be true, there are lenders who have no desire to take over your failure they want you to perform & keep coming back, not fund your education.  You would be wise to "intern" with a seasoned investor in your market and then perhaps partner on a deal or two with him/her after you "cut your teeth" a bit. 

It is great you have friends in the business, but that doesn't mean you should work with them. Realtors rarely have access to "off market" assets and that is where the deals are. Anyone can search the MLS and if you want to buy @ retail prices there will be plenty of action there. Your goal is to surround yourself with the best at each respective position on your power team, have a pipeline of viable assets coming in to your funnel and be able to analyze, evaluate and close quickly as those deals will not last long. Again for the resale portion of your deal if the realtor you choose is not the top seller in the specific market you are fishing in, you do yourself and your partner (Lender) a dis-service. I am not trying to discourage you but prepare for something that as it appears you are not as ready for as you think. You want to chat off line call or message me anytime. Good Luck!

@Krystal Thomas  if you are in Key West and want to hook up with a Pro's Pro seek out John Dessauer ..look him up.  An amazing dude I learned a great deal from years ago, I believe he has a brokerage as well. You would be well served to know him.

Good stuff everyone.  As an investor and lender I am always intrigued by what motivates you and what is your "WHY".  All too many jump into this business after attending seminars working with various guru's watching reality television etc yet do not fully understand what you are getting into.  This is a business and it takes a great deal of knowledge, massive action, and for lack of better words, blood seat and tears to make it work.  This is a relationship business, and if you are serious you will have to have skin in the game as well.  

Building your team is imperative and it is a must that you surround yourself with those that know what you do not, and can do what you cannot.  I've had many beginners say to me. "so what if I fail you get the house anyway".  Some lenders will gladly set you up for failure and that is simply the way they do business while others don't want your failures their job is to deploy capital responsibly, they want you to come back for more. Your ability to perform, credibility of your team, and ability to repay the loan is what we truly look at then we'll look at your deal.  Using leverage responsibly to grow is great but all too many will over-leverage and if your memories are still intact our last crash was a great example of over-leveraging.  Market cycles & knowing what strategies to use in each cycle, what economic indicators should you focus on to ensure you are staying ahead of market conditions is all part of the diligence process you need to understand. That is if you intend on making this a career.

Your exit strategy and ability to handle plans B C & D if necessary will be scrutinized and should be. This isn't childs play though for some veterans of this business it may seem that way due to repetition. They have their systems, tools and resources and operate in machine like fashion which is what everyone aspires to do yet so few actually accomplish.  

  If you are not using an entity it speaks to your lack of knowledge which is also an alarm for a lender. Someone gets hurt on your project and files suit against you they can come after everything you have not just the asset. Building wealth is just as much about preserving it gang. Even if you are wholesaling set up your entity get the right "counsel" involved to guide you and operate it like the business it is.  Reach out to a local flipper or whatever strategy it is you wish to engage in offer them some value in return for knowledge about how things really work maybe partner on a deal or two.  

Here is an excerpt from a friend & newbie "flipper" Beth Franken who is documenting her journey through her rehab/flip for Tribune newspapers, 

"No doubt I wonder what the heck did I get myself into sometimes. So many things I cannot control both global and personal, inflation, bubbles in the market, the ups and downs of my day job, all those unpredictable elements that threaten the promising outcome I was so excited about at the beginning of the project.

Not to be melodramatic, but with the wrong combination of forces I could not only lose the flip but my own home too since I took out the HELOC to do this. This I'm learning is what you must have to flip a house:

"Good math skills (or a brother with them). A trust in the market and/or faith in witchcraft, and finally you must have nerves of steel.  Certainly the risk is calculated and I did my due diligence, but the gamble of it all comes from the forces and phenomena I have no control over"   

Good Luck to all and don't be afraid to fail, those who learn from their mistakes and continue to push forward will succeed.