Was going with turnkey, but maybe I'll (sort of) do it myself?

[John G.]

Hi BP Familia,

I'm looking for my first RE investment! Below is my current financial status.

• Have about $40-45k cash
• FICO of 800 and a decent annual salary (low six-figs)
• No liabilities at the moment. No car loan, no student loans, no mortgage (I rent). Though I have some nominal credit card debt (approx $3,000 total)

For the past few weeks I'd been researching cities and turnkey providers. Then last week, I spoke with a guy (referred to me by my RE lawyer) who after purchasing a couple of TK properties, moved to the Midwest and started buying low, rehabbing (using contractors), and then renting his properties himself. He's saving tons of $ on the TK markup. For example, if a TK provider sells a house for at $100k, it could potentially appraise for $80 making a REFI Cashout/HELOC impossible for a while (am I wrong with this assessment?). I get it though - it's a business and they need to make money too. And for many investors, it's worth it. But I want to maximize my first initial investment!

Sooo, I've hashed out this rough draft of a plan (this is where YOU all come in!). Keep in mind that this will happen with me in NY and the property in (probably) Atlanta (possibly Indy). I'll visit initially, but throughout most of the process, I'll be remote.

• Find an investor friendly foreclosure (Zillow/MLS?) at about $80k (assuming I've done my due diligence - ie, good neighborhood, low property taxes and vacancy rate, etc). Get it under contract - contingent on a home-inspection.
• Obtain traditional financing with 25% down ($20k)
• If after the inspection, it's cost effective to rehab, I'll get some contractor bids for the work (references anyone?). This could cost me the other $20k I started off with.
• Hire a property management company that also does rehab/construction management (again, taking references! I've also found a bunch via Google)
• Boom! Now I have a rent-ready, fully-rehabbed house (I'm only interested in SFH right now). So, let's say the ARV is $110k, TK may price this at $130k.
• Have that same PMC place a tenant and manage for the foreseeable future.
• Cashflow!

The way I see it (rough numbers, I'm probably waaay off), I have about $45k cash invested (closing costs, etc) and carry a mortgage of $60k. Versus the TK route $32.5k cash (down-payment) and a mortgage of $97k

Whew! If you're still with me, thank you! Okay, so I'm not totally sure about this plan, but welcome any feedback, suggestions and experience!

John

horowitzrealestate.com