Hearing about your experiences (wins, mistakes, lender recommendations, contractors, etc.) would be super valuable.Thanks in advance — looking forward to connecting with other Colorado Springs investors!

It’s super common here for landlords and house hackers to fully finish out the basement, add a separate entrance, and rent it out to offset their living expenses.

For instance, a lot of cut-rate lending shops will offer super low rates but then blow your loan up or hit you with new terms a week before closing because they botched the underwriting and it's now getting straightened out.

In Hayward, Union City, and Newark, values can swing significantly block by block, so verifying your ARV with super tight comps (same bed/bath, similar sqft, within 6 months, same zip or immediate area) is critical before committing.A few things I'd suggest given your numbers:First, stress test that $900k ARV hard.

As a backup for unexpected repairs, not as primary funding for a purchase.Let me be very blunt: if you don't have the down payment in cash, getting yourself into real estate is super risky and may not be the best choice for you. 

Any advice, insight, or lessons learned would be super helpful.Thanks in advance, looking forward to learning from this group!

While we think the conference is super valuable and worth every penny (especially with the jam-packed schedule!)

My wife is a great life partner and credit partner, but she is not "super-interested" in the day-to-day of real investing.

@Tylere Weaver this is a super important question and it doesn't just apply to lenders.

Appreciate all the replies here — super helpful.I ran into the same “tax time scramble + receipt chaos” problem and ended up building a lightweight maintenance log for myself.Lets you tie repairs to a property, attach receipts/photos, and export cleanly for your CPA.Not property management software — just a simple repair log.If anyone wants the link I’m happy to share it via DM.