Looking for financial advise and strategy for first investment.

[Jonathan Peters]

Hi all,

I am new to the investment game and would like someone I could connect with in the area to help me develop my best strategy. I live in Trenton, OH so I am between Cincy and Dayton. 

My dad owned 16 rentals at one point and witnessed first hand the troubles he had to the point he sold all his property off. I want to avoid his mistakes. 

I have some money set back for investing as well as equity in my house that I plan on refinancing next month. I had to file bankruptcy two years ago. The banks I have talked too said Refi will not be an issue as my Credit score has bounced back to almost a 700 and my debt to income is not an issue. Main reason for Refi is to get my ex-wife off the homes financing. I could pull an additional 80-100k out for investing.

That all being said I was initially going to pull some equity out and pay off remaining debts so I would only have my house debt and only have the one payment. and use my cash on hand to put down on a rental. But the more I learn and dive into this on a serious level the more I am unsure the direction to take.

The second thing on my plate is that I have the ability to purchase a lot and build  new construction and ether keep it and rent it out or sell it and invest into another build or rentals. My father has built custom homes his whole life and has subcontractors that work for him plus I used to build houses with him also. 

He wants me to purchase a lot large enough to build a few multi unit apartment buildings but I financially could not swing that on my own. My end goal would be to own a few 12unit apartment buildings and a portfolio of single family homes.

Any advice on helping me start out on the right path would be greatly appreciated. 

[Mateo Oquendo-Chandler]

You mentioned that you wanted to avoid your dad's mistakes, but didn't mention what those items you wanted to avoid were.

Also as far as paying off your debt. I would use your cash to pay them off and not your home equity. The equity in your home is what will allow you to sleep at night knowing no matter how the market turns your house value will not immediately go upside down. 

You have options but none of us can really tell you what is best for you because you have to decide for yourself how you want your future real estate business to look like. New construction is nice, but has a longer time frame than a light-moderate remodel for a rental, so it depends on what speed and goals you are wanting to achieve in your desired time frame. 

Side Note: If you are interested in meeting other Cincinnati investors, you can find a local meet up in the Event & Meet up forums for Cincinnati. We meet on the first Thursday of every month and bring in a different speaker to educate and network with the group.