Philly investor, 200,000+ in liquid assets, can't get a mortgage

[Mike Girard]

This has doubtlessly been covered all over the place, but most of the posts I've read on alternative financing apply to different situations than mine. 

Though my credit rating is good, I don't meet the income requirements for getting a mortgage.  I retired when I lost my job a couple years ago (I'm 56 in a field where age is real barrier) and have not generated much in income from investments. 

I would like to invest in Philadelphia -- I live in NYC right now -- and I am inclined toward getting a multi-family property in which I would live and which would produce income with one or two other units. 

I am not looking to get rich, but I would like to be generating around 50,000 or more in annual income in a few years. Ideally, after two years of producing rental income I will be able to finance other properties by traditional means. 

Here are my questions: 

1. First of all, am I correct in assuming that I won't be able to get a mortgage even if I find a property that is almost certain to generate enough income to cover it?

2. I would like to be able to qualify for a mortgage on other properties after a couple years of real-estate produced income. How much income will I need to produce and is this even feasible?

3. How limiting is seller-financing on choice of property and location? Is seller-financing readily available with multi-family units?

4. What is the best kind of alternative loan? Borrowing from friends and family is not an option.

5. Is paying cash ever a good idea? I am thinking perhaps if I buy a fixer-upper I can retain a little more leverage for other investments. I would have to pay someone to do the renovations.

6. I am quite happy to partner with someone who can get a mortgage, but I don't know the first thing about finding a partner I can trust and work with nor how long it takes. This option seems to have a lot of risk.

Sincere apologies if all of this has been covered again and again.  Perhaps having all these questions answered comprehensively will be useful to other forum users. 

[Ethan Giller]

If you are buying an investment property, the usual thought is you should buy in an LLC. Unfortunately, this means that you generally can't qualify for residential mortgages (i.e., fixed rates for 30 years). Fortunately, it means that you can qualify for small business loans secured by real estate (i.e., a commercial mortgage). To be fair you can get a commercial mortgage even if it's not in an LLC, but it's a bit easier in my experience if you have a business structure setup.

Best strategy: buy for cash, renovate for cash, get it rented, and then refinance and pull all or most of your cash back out.  Since you are applying for a commercial mortgage, it's usually not a problem to have the rental income included as income.

With $200K you can definitely get a multi-family in Philadelphia.

If you have any specific questions about Philly investing, feel free to send me a message or email.