Will a cash-out refi business model work?

[Christopher Aleman]

Reading through the forums has definitely gave me a lot of information and I finally feel that I am ready to take the leap, but wanted to see if any of you had any feedback on my prospective business model.

I want to use cash to purchase SFR's in Atlanta, GA for under $30,000 (which includes the purchase price and renovations), preferably to tenants who have as close to 100% "Section 8" vouchers as I can get. As long as the properties have an ARV of at least $40,000, I can then refinance for 75% LTV, which should give me my money back, and allow me to repeat the process.

As long as the rents bring positive cash flow, the loan will be paid off after a few years and the passive income should start accumulating.  I have tried my best to do my due diligence and I'm pretty sure I have a good understanding of the risk/reward of having low-income properties and Section 8 tenants.  My main concern about this business model (even though I have a few!) is that if one of these properties becomes too expensive (from being vacant for too long or the maintenance/upkeep gets too expensive) it would dramatically effect my ability to pay the loan back and could end up causing me to default on all of the other loans.

Do you have any advice on how to improve this business model or how to avoid this potential disaster?!

[Paul Choate]

I am basically doing the same thing. 

Here are my issues:

Refinancing is difficult and I am getting loans at 50% LTV so it is taking longer. I have to look harder for houses that I can buy and fix up for price I need.

You need to plan on going slow or having outside cash flow (your job) if you want to grow this model quicker. Be very conservative on vacancies and repairs.

The positive is the cash flow from the rental itself. It can make up for a lot!

Good Luck!