Next move uncertainty…

[Linda Burger]

In 2022, I sold my SFR I had owned since 2008 (rental since 2016), paid off personal debt, re-invested remaining proceeds in a 2/1 duplex in West Allis WI (fully rented). Bought it for 130K but only had enough for 20% down, plus updates (12K), so had to go with a commercial lender (all residential lenders i inquired with wanted 30% down). I currently have a commercial loan at 5%, as a 5 year balloon. The property's value is 196K, but my lender won't refi or heloc until I've owned it for about 2 years. My cashflow is $857 per month.

I have a primary home that has equity and I currently have a 50K heloc on that property with a zero balance. I wanted it just in case…

My question is  - what’s my best financial move here? Do I wait out the refi time with my commercial lender to buy another? Do I save up my cashflow over the next 2-3 years to buy another? Do I use my primary heloc funds to buy? Do I look for a hard money loan?

Real estate is what excites me. I basically GC'd the entire duplex, didn't use a realtor (i used to be a realtor 20 years ago), set my rents, and found my tenants. Now that it's over, I want to take on another! 🤗 I love the idea of the BRRR method but clearly my lender thinks I'm too new? 🤷‍♀️ I actually don't get that part…

Thanks for reading and your time!

Linda