New and Need A Reality Check

[Chris Lopez]

Hi everyone, 

I've been spending about two weeks deep diving into investment property.  I've been told I can qualify and I can't by 10 different people.  Now, I understand that living in the property is different than just making it an investment property and how the loans are different and the % down changes with each and all that stuff.  Ultimately, the problem that I'm having is the down payment and being able to qualify for a decent loan to get a decent property.  What really gets me and draws my attention is the stories of people using seller financing to get a loan for an investment.  From what I've learned is they find someone to give them the money on a property that has potential for excellent growth.  My question is how do you find these people???  Investors make it seem so easy!

Currently, here is where I stand:  Credit Score of 770, 60K yearly before taxes, 25k student load (on hold), and no liabilities (except the girlfriend, lol).  

So realistically, what can I actually get?  I couldn't imagine someone giving me a million dollar loan for a property with no experience in real estate even if I had an amazing deal.  

Let the discussion begin!!!

[Joe Villeneuve]

Quote from @Bjorn Ahlblad:

@Joe Villeneuve  Hi Joe, did not say I don't believe in leverage; said some believe in it more than others. You generally can't scale without leverage.

My primary rule is "never be forced to sell'' I'm in it for the long game and that means surviving the troughs. 

Most of us know people who were wiped out when the dot com bubble burst and again in 2005. Just don't want to be one of them. All the best!

Understood.  Trouble is, too many investors think that holding onto the same property, building equity in that same property, is actually losing money.  The greater the percentage of equity grows, the more money is actually being lost.  This is just an example of why I say percentages lie.