How to invest $200k when you cannot use traditional leverage..go!

[Harry George]

Hi BiggerPocketeers,

I wanted to hear your opinion on how best to leverage our cash 'without leveraging our cash'...

After a diet of gruel and water, my wife and I have saved up a solid wad of Benjamins. As a Brit & non-US resident, deciding on the location to invest has been quite a challenge as there are so many possibilities. Although I wanted to decide this on my own merit, after meeting up with some successful US investors living in my area (Dubai) I concluded it better to bootstrap their knowledge and contacts in Indianapolis (I was keen for Florida but property prices are much higher).

Our non-resident situation means we gotta pay full cash until getting an ITIN number for conventional financing (various estimates from others in my situation say it is likely to take 18-24 months - and that is fast track!!), so until then no leverage. I looked at private financing but the % /repayment duration do not make for good cash flow compared with banks or they only want to lend on commercial deals.

As a newbie I think our initial property purchase should be no larger than a 4-plex. I am not shy from taking on a rehab property instead of a turnkey (you good people can recommend reliable contractors for the rehab work right??) :) and this allows me to get better value out of the cash. I must say, thanks to guys like @Jay Hinrichs for sites like turnkey-reviews.com which alleviate some fears of getting ripped off as the 'dumb out of state cash buyer'. I've been reading about the MI and OP scandals so partly know where to stay clear of!

I know I should look at partnering/note investing, which would give excellent returns and take away the landlording headaches for an out of country guy but am wary of getting scammed especially as there is little recourse being so far away. I think this might be an option later down the road... 

Podcast request: Episodes on how international investors got started and set up in the USA would be amazing, don't forget there are a lot of us out there! @Joshua Dorkin  @Brandon Turner

Looking forward to hearing everyone's $0.02. I really enjoy the variety of opinions and stories throughout the site.