All Forum Posts by: Zachary Cummings

Hey James!

I am a mortgage consultant for Wells Fargo. You are correct on the using the income after 2 years, however, if you have a lease agreement and or it is on the tax returns (hence at least a few months or a year of income) you can still use the income to offset the PITI payment just nothing above and beyond this. This will still help with your DTI.

I have no knowledge on the 2nd part of the post LOL just wanted to confirm this for you!

Hey James!

Regardless of vaccinated or not, there's no guarantee of safety from any virus. Sure will it help, possibly, but not sure how this is relevant to real estate. Other than forbearance on mortgages, and not being required to pay rent, which is long past, we are through the worst of it and can get back to normal life with the adjustments that are necessary.

Hey Svend!

I would find this hard to believe but unless you were required to get a permit to pour concrete this should be a fairly straight forward task to complete. If you reach out to a couple local concrete companies, they will be able to confirm this with you. And if you want to go the cheaper route, you can simply take out the grass and use matching pavers to fill in that wouldn't look terrible. 

Hope this helps!

 Sarah, This is a good point and thank you for your feedback. I have been in 100% commission sales since entering into mortgages so I know I can make it work but I also now it is still different at the same time.

Good Afternoon BP!

I am stuck between a rock and a hard place. My career path is what got me interested in real estate investing to begin with but I am no longer accomplishing what my mind is seeking through my Job. I have been a Mortgage Banker since I graduated college in 2017 and I have been investing in real estate for the last few years. I have come to a point in my career where there is no longer any growth unless I take on a management position in which I am not interested in doing. As the years have gone on I have become more and more fascinated with every part of the real estate transaction from analyzing properties, to underwriting, to acquisitions, to development, to management, etc. In all of my spare time I find myself reading books, blogs, articles and watching webinars, etc.

The problem is, my professional resume doesn't have any real estate background other than mortgage sales. Commission based income has opened my eyes to financial freedom. I have done a lot of research lately and noticed from what it seems, that a good introduction to the industry seems to be in commercial real estate brokerage. This way I get the knowledge, exposure, and experience to be able to accomplish my goals financially and mentally. I like the flexibility in sales and I like the uncapped potential it can provide.

With that being said, I have a personal goal of being financially independent in the next 8 years (I will be 35), but I am gun shy to make the jump to CRE brokerage knowing that I will be taking a step back to take a step forward. Having to learn a new industry and knowing this will slow down my real estate growth in the short term makes me nervous but with the hopes it will be accelerated once I have built the relationships necessary to succeed and accomplish my goal of being financially free in 8 years.

I know this isn't directly related to real estate per say but I would really appreciate any advice anyone can provide as I am trying to figure out the next steps in my career.

Thank you so much!

@Nathaniel Williams I don't know of a specific PM in Coloma but if you invest in Kalamazoo, Jakobson Management is stellar!

1. Lowering your expenses which increases your income. This is easier said than done but with a little self control and determination, this is doable. Get rid of unnecessary expenses, cook meals instead of eating out, get rid of subscriptions you don't use, maybe try app streaming services instead of cable, drive a used car with little to no payment, etc. Invest in yourself first.

2. As you lower these expenses you can pay off these larger bills such as credit cards, student loans, the car payment you may still have, etc.

3. Househack. Getting your #1 major expense even lower. Whether it is buying a single family home fixing it up then doing it again, buying a single family home and renting out the other rooms or buying a 2-4 unit and renting the others out. There of course are other options but this allows you to save as much money as possible.

4. Invest in real estate.

Hey Khandbari! I think this all depends on your investment strategy and what your future plans look like. I have never done a 1031 but it obviously entails more work than just selling the house, paying taxes on it and buying another house to flip. If here is a way to 1031 into a bigger property to delay the taxes and create more wealth while simultaneously finding a creative way to obtain the funds for your fixer upper this would be ideal. 

Hope this helps a bit!

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Lansing.

Purchase price: $65,000
Cash invested: $21,029

2nd SFR purchased. Needed about $5k in renovations.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

This is right around the corner from my other property and with a little bit of work can rent this one out for nice cash flow as well.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I found this deal through my agent Jamie Fox. This was an estate sale and we low balled at first at 45k. They came back and said there were over 10 offers and to come back with best and final. So we came back at 65k because we knew what the property was worth (appraised at 70k), and they accepted, after inspections got 2% in sellers credits to go toward improvements.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional

How did you add value to the deal?

we added about 5k in renovations for items that needed done but that would also add value and maximize the rent

What was the outcome?

we are renting out for nice cash flow

Lessons learned? Challenges?

ALWAYS have reserves for your properties as you do not know what will come up.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Lansing.

Purchase price: $62,000
Cash invested: $22,756

Purchased home for 62k, appraised at 65k. I added a bedroom to maximize the space and rent. I plan to keep this home into retirement for cashflow.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Wanted to get my foot in the door to start working toward Financial Independence

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I researched the Lansing market and found a great property manager that has a great team of real estate agents on board.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional Financing

How did you add value to the deal?

I maximized living space and added a bedroom

What was the outcome?

We re renting for good cash flow

Lessons learned? Challenges?

So far the main lesson learned is to close on your conventional financing as early in the month as possible (vs late in the month). The reason being, you will skip your first month mortgage payment so this will give you about 70 days to have to make a mortgage payment since you aren't required to make the payment until the 15th of the month, which will give you time to do your remodel, and get the place rented without having too many holding costs, etc.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Jamie Fox with Trubrook realty in Lansing, MI is very knowledgeable and works very hard for his investors. He found me 2 great properties within a 45 day window.