How in the World does anybody make money with buy and hold????

[Mark Douglas]

I've been evaluating my first potential deal for about a week now. Owner-occ FHA 4plex. Pretty good location, steady tenants, etc.

I run it through the BP rental calculator..it cash flows $28.  Not enough to retire, but certainly better than forking over $700 each month for rent.  

Today, while window shopping for insurance, I realized I grossly underestimated the cost of investment insurance ....$221/mo is now making this seem impossible to work...  Maybe it's just this property, but for these numbers to really work, I'd have to lowball the seller. Like knock off $40k.  

Is that the secret?? Just paying super low prices for the properties??  By the time you add in every cost, I just don't see how anyone does it...

Sincerely,

- A newbie losing hope! (but my friends call me Mark)

[Nicholas Miller]

Not every deal is a good deal for the buyer in fact if you are buying a turn key from a seasoned investor chance are good they are not going to leave any equity on the table for you.  For the cash to flow in your direction you will most likely need to find someone who is suffering from one of the 4 D's.  Death (probate), distance (out of town owner) divorce, or simply dont want it.  Finding the right deal from someone suffering from any one of the 4 D's can give you equity and positive cash flow.