Looking to purchase our second investment property

Looking to purchase our second investment property

Member since 2024 · 1 post · 2 votes

Hi,

My wife and I moved into our current place about a year ago, and converted our prior primary residence into a long-term rental. We've saved up enough at this point to perhaps start looking at purchasing our next property. We haven't decided if we want to use it as a long-term rental or flip it, so would appreciate any advice on that as well.

We've been trying to read up on how to get started, but have a few questions we were hoping to get help with:


1) What are the key things to look for in identifying a specific area to purchase in? We were initially looking outside the major metropolitan areas, where it's significantly cheaper. However, our concern is that it would be difficult to find a tenant in those areas. Is that a valid concern?

2) What's the major pros and cons of long-term rental vs flipping? If we go by the BRRRR method, we're already going to buy and rehab it, then would it not make sense to just flip it at that point and cut out the need to deal with tenants, home damage/repairs, refinancing, etc.? Maybe it's a dumb question, but just trying to understand the pros and cons of each.

Thanks in advance for any advice/guidance on this!

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  • Lender · Lake Havasu City, AZ · Member since 2024 · 700 posts · 285 votes
    2y

    Well identifying your goal is the first step. Are you looking to make cash now or reap the long term benefits of real estate investing?

    Its hard to pick an area as all areas have different pros and cons, for example some are heavy cashflow positive but lack appreciation. Some have heavy appreciation but lack cashflow, some have high taxes, low taxes. High insurance, low insurance. These are all things you need to do some homework on and figure out.

    In terms of BRR and flipping.

    Flipping makes you more money now.

    But BRR gives you the opportunity to invest, recoup your investment, have heavy depreciation tax write offs & build a portfolio which PAYS YOU IN YOUR SLEEP.

    You only have so much time to work, but the need for housing will consistently increase as our population is outpacing or supply of housing year after year.

  • Dustin TuckerBusiness Member
    Lender · Savoy, TX · Member since 2020 · 195 posts · 80 votes
    2y

    Hello William,


    I think that if I look back at the houses I flipped, we would have made infinitely more money if we had held on to some of them and gone with the rental route.

    Today, DSCR roans are starting to come in under 6%, at my company our lowest DSCR Rates are 5.3%, and I expect them to continue to drop. A DSCR loan is a huge advantage to real estate investors, 1. You don't have to have hard pulls on your credit, which allows you to do more loans. 2. When you get a rental property, you have not just the cash flow from the rental income, but you also have the Principal payment which is also your profit. 3. You have many tax incentives to rent vs Flip, in Depreciation. 4. Once your rental property has increased in value, or the tenant has paid down the equity, now you can refinance the property, pull cash out, and that money is tax free.

    Hope this helps,

    Dustin

  • Mark MunsonBusiness Member
    Lender · Orlando, FL · Member since 2022 · 440 posts · 300 votes
    2y

    Hi @William Tse

    I would be extremely cautious on anyone telling you they are getting DSCR rates far under 6%. Most floor rates across your largest lenders are 6.25-6.5%. To get that low you would be putting down a lot of money to buy the rate down, which generally doesn't make sense unless you don't intend to refinance for 5+ years.You should be doing both flips and buy and holds. Obviously if you can do the BRRRR method do it, but that is a lot easier said then done, especially in certain markets. You should be building an assembly line of flip then flip then buy and hold. This will allow the constant injection of capital into your company while also allowing you to buy rentals, which is the end goal. The reality is a good real estate investor masters a number of strategies and let's the deal dictate the best path forward.

  • Wale LawalBusiness Member
    Real Estate Broker · Houston | Dallas | Austin, TX · Member since 2018 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    2y

    @William Tse

    Choosing the right property involves market trends, rental demand, neighborhood quality, and future development. Long-term rentals offer steady income and growth, but can be challenging due to tenant management and market risks. Flipping offers quick profits but has risks. The BRRRR strategy recycles capital, while flipping offers quick profits but lacks long-term benefits. Aligning decisions with financial goals, risk tolerance, and lifestyle preferences is crucial.

    Good luck!

  • Jonathan GreeneBusiness Member
    Real Estate Consultant · Madison, NJ · Member since 2016 · 6k+ posts · 7k+ votes
    2y

    Whatever you are thinking about doing, stop and wait a year. Your questions are so basic you are at least a year out from constant learning to have a chance of success. And the bigger problem is that you seem like you could get hustled because you would have to trust someone. You should not, under any circumstances, try to flip a house based on what you said above. Your entire demographic research is just go a little farther out until the prices are cheaper. The questions are taking a small step, but you should be going to real estate meetups at least once a month to talk to other people who are a little ahead of you.

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