can you help me?

Question

So this is my first post, I have been a fan of BP and the podcast for about a year now. I'm finally at the point where I am ready to start taking the first step in a hopefully very long and fruitful career. With that said, I have started looking at a property that I believe has potential. I need some advice though, so I'm going to tell you a bit about my situation and hopefully I'll get some great feedback. OK, the property is a little under a acre lot and holds a 1750 square foot four bed one bath home and a 700 square foot two bed one bath apartment. They were both built in 1940, which means old everything. I will need to replace pretty much everything. The wiring is the original wiring the pipes are the original pipes the roof has only been replaced once and needs it again. I will have to pretty much gut the house and apartment both and start "fresh". The house was originally bought to be a rental and they only paid 25,000. It's spent it's entire life as a rental and wasn't taking care of. So as you can imagine, it's a wreck. Now, the bones of the house looks great, no foundation issues as far as I could see and there isn't any water damage. I even went under the house to check for any issues there and didn't see any. They are asking high for the house right now. 98,000 with all the work that needs to be done I wouldn't even think about it. Now the agent and I both believe we could get them down to around 50,000 or less. The rent for a house that's like this one in my area (in good shape) is 950 to 1000. And the apartment is 600 to 700. Assuming I spend 100,000 on the house and get 1550 a month in rent it's still 1.5% return. Now here is where I need the most help, what type of loan would I need so I could get 100,000 and be able to use the other 50k to fix the place? Is there anything I'm messing? Feel free to tear my argument apart (as long as it's helpful (: ). Thanks in advance for your time guys!

Nicholas Baxley · Answer

First of all, I want to thank everyone for giving me your valuable time! I will try to answer all your questions to the best of my ability. So the reason this property caught my eye is it is in a good location, it's in the middle of town with lots of stores in walking distance but not near the main road. It is in a good neighborhood with one of the biggest yards around. There are lots of factors about a 5 min drive away that are always hiring as well as a hospital. There are quite a few rentals in this area as it is and they are never up for rent long. The typical turn over is about a week (this comes from paying attention to the signs out and talking to a few landlords). I have been a renter myself for quite some time and was looking to possibly get the first time buyers fha loan, but with everything needing to be done I don't believe I'll get it. I forgot to mention my background to you guys, I grew up working on houses with my father and grandfather, who are both general contractors and my grandfather Is also a certified electrician. That doesn't mean I know everything but it does help me have a better idea. Gloria I do not own a home at this time so the first option you mentioned won't work for me. Eric I think I answered a few of your questions but as for how many have I looked at before this one, I have been looking for about a year and this is the first one I have decided to actually make a move on. As of now this is the first multi family I have found in my area, as you guys know that could change at anytime. I first started looking at multi family homes in hopes of using the first time home owner perks, but it's proving challenging. Jerry I agree it would be hard to get them to come down that much and I may not, which at that point I would most definitely move on. Also to rehabs at the same time would be difficult as well but I would work on the smaller apartment first and rent it out asap and them move to the house so I have some kind of cash flow. I also work a full time job as does my wife so we have our own money as well. Mark, thank you for the info. Thanks everyone for the info I will look into what all of you has mentioned. I hope I answered all your questions.

Mark Nolan · Answer

@Nicholas BaxleyThe following IRS website covers the 401k loan rules.https://www.irs.gov/Retirement-Plans/Retirement-Plans-FAQs-regarding-Loans

Jerry Padilla · Answer

@Nicholas BaxleyThat is going to be tough to get them to come down half the price. @Erik Nowacki I second that, 2 flips at one time and a complete gut job, a huge expense and stress for a first timer that won't be having any income in the meantime from the properties.

Erik Nowacki · Answer

I will echo Eleena D. and ask why this property caught your attention? You could look into a 203 loan (plenty of information available here on BP. Seems like a lot of work for a first rental. One concern is that rehabbing for a flip and rehabbing for a rental are two different things. Without some experience with tenants and how they destroy rentals, you are going to make some expensive mistakes. I will also recommend that you analyze the rental potential of this property. Who will rent it from you when it's done? Are there jobs nearby? Are there any rental comps? It will do you no good to buy and renovate the property if you can't find a tenant... I do admire your drive and energy, even considering this project. How many properties and deals have you looked at before settling on this one? How many multi family properties are available in your market? Erik

David Mirza · Answer

Do you have any equity in your house? You could get a HELOC, buy and fix up the house, then get a cash out refi for the appraised value after 1 year. If you do a cash out refi immediately after the house is rehabbed they will only give you a loan for the original purchase price. Other ways to come up with some cheap cash is credit card debt (0-2% interest intro offers), 60 day IRA loan, and a 401k loan for 50% of the value of your 401k.Aside from that you can go to a private money lender but the rates tend to be very high and I would avoid that if at all possible.

Eleena de Lisser · Answer

@Nicholas Baxley welcome to the forum! Congrats on taking the first step and dipping your toe in the proverbial water. Is there a specific reason why you've chosen this particular property to be your first real estate investment?