I think what I am lacking is a solid plan

[Angela Jossy]

Step one was raising my credit score. I have done that. Step two was reliable income and learning about property management. I have been managing a 49 unit apartment building for almost two years now. During all of this time I have been reading books and listening to Bigger Pockets podcasts. Recently I have been looking into ways to come up with a downpayment. I only have 5k in my Roth IRA 401k. I make slightly too much for downpayment assistance and even if I did qualify, they stipulate that you cannot use any portion of the property as a rental - not even Airbnb. Speaking of Airbnb, a friend alerted me to a company in nearby Seattle who will pay the downpayment for you if you live in the home and rent out one of the rooms as an airbnb for at least 3 years and give them 2/3 of the income from it. You have to buy in Seattle proper though. I'm in Tacoma and I don't want to commute to work because the traffic makes that a 2 hour ordeal each direction. They said they are looking to expand to Tacoma in the next 6 months. If they do then I would like to buy a 4plex and airbnb one unit, rent two and live in one - if I can find the right four plex at the right price and the numbers all work ...

Other ideas I've considered doing to get the down payment include doing a couple of wholesale deals, finding a partner, finding a 1% down deal, finding a seller who is willing to finance or do a "Subject to" deal, or waiting a couple more years until I can save up more money ... also waiting for the market to come down to more reasonable prices ... 

I wish I knew which plan was the right one so I could just commit to it and work in that direction. Any advice?   

[Christopher Brainard]

Originally posted by @Angela Jossy:

@Christopher Brainard My goal is to have $5000 a month cash flow in the next 5 years. 

Well, I can at least eliminate one option for you - waiting for the market to come down isn't going to get you any cash flow and will delay your activities that can bring cashflow.

As for the other plans, there isn't a 'wrong' answer, but the success is in the execution. Here are some of my thoughts on your other plans:

About Wholesaling - this is a good way to get started in real estate, network, and make some cash while you work the market. The down side is that this is a job, a full time one at that if you're serious. There is no long term income benefit from it. The good news is that if there is an impending downturn, you aren't holding any properties that decrease in value. If you go this route, I highly recommend that you set aside all your profits for use in buy & hold properties, so you can develop some passive income in the future.

About Finding a Partner -  Partners can be great or terrible, it all depends on how you click and what you each bring to the table. I assume you need someone with capital, which means you need to find a smoking deal that will attract said capital. Just choose carefully, not fully controlling your own destiny in a deal can be very frustrating.

About 1% Down Deal - There are very few 1% down deals out there, even less that make investment sense. If you go this route, I would consider scraping together additional funds for a down payment and look for things you can BRRRR. That way you can preserve your capital after the refinance and establish equity along the way.

About Subject To - This is a viable strategy but not something you should consider until you have some reserves. If you fail while you have your own money and credit invested, that's ok. Failing with an innocents bystanders money or credit - not so much.

-Christopher