Convince a sibling to invest in realestate

[Stephen Jacquindo]

My brother and I are on the deed of a duplex we inherited from our parents, and we both live in each unit. The property is owned free and clear and appraised at approximately $150,000 just this year. Several years ago I purchased a five unit apartment building and made every newbie mistake in the book and ended up taking a bath on the property. Because of this it has taken me years to get my credit back to a respectable level. I now work a full-time job and with the equity of the duplex I want to invest in real estate (the right way) again. The problem I am running into is my brother is old school (work for a company for 30 years retire with a pension) and is convinced I would only make the same mistake again. A HELOC would be my only current source for enough cash to get back into purchasing real estate properly.

My question is, how can I convince my brother to let me use at least some of the property equity without taking any type of a legal route.

[Jesse T.]

Can you get a loan at decent terms on an owner occupied property?  A couple years of house hacking would allow you to build a small portfolio and strengthen your credit.  While in this scenario you don't pull equity from the duplex, your rental income can be used towards financing when you are ready to purchase via an investor loan.

Does you brother plan on living in the duplex long-term?  Maybe with some investing success he would be willing to finance you buying out his portion.  This might be especially useful once you max out conventional bank loans.