Investing in Alabama as out of state investor with a partner

[Steven Catudal]

Hi all,

My partner and I are looking to buy investment properties in Alabama, specifically Birmingham. We are both out of state investors. We both own 1 property at this time. I had a few questions and would appreciate any advice in general.

Strategy / Goal: BRRRR but no major rehab at first to lower the risk. Plan is to purchase a couple homes over the next year. We want to get a few rentals up and running and then (if all works well) begin bringing other friends/investors in to invest with us. Current goal is focused on growing a portfolio and reinvesting cash flows. We are not focused on the passive income at this time as both working W2.

Questions:

1. We will be investing 50/50. What is the best way to structure the partnership? Should we start LLC?

2. For financing, would we then want to get a DSCR loan under the LLC or should we start with conventional loans under our name until we hit a certain number and then move them over? I heard that if you move the personal mortgages to an LLC they could get called and we would want to avoid that

3. Generally speaking, have any of you invested in this area and been successful? Did you look into renting to Section 8 tenants?  Would love to learn from your experiences.

4. Any advice for out of state investors that would be beneficial?

5. Any general advice for someone starting out in a partnership and looking to grow a portfolio?

Thank you in advance,

Steven