New Member Intro - Binghamton, NY

[Noah Singer]

Hello!

My name is Noah and I just recently joined BP. I'm currently a junior studying mechanical engineering at Binghamton University. I have been interested in real estate investing, particularly buying and holding, for quite some time however I haven't had the funds or knowledge to get started. After a successful summer internship (and another one upcoming) I will soon have the money to take the leap. BP has been incredibly helpful when it comes to learning about real estate but I feel like there is so much more to learn.

Any advice on how to take the next step from learning to doing would be greatly appreciated!

Cheers,

Noah

[Mark Updegraff]

Welcome Noah!

     Next step is finding a good lender to work with.  Find one who will give 10 mortgages per person and doesn't have an income seasoning period for qualifying rents.

Once you've been prequalified start looking for the best deals you can afford.  The more restrictions you put on an investment search, the more limited your pool of potential prospects.  By shopping in a limited pool you're competing with more buyers and not getting the best deals.  A good practice would be monitoring investment opportunities over a slightly broader range to determine if you need to be focusing on timing your investment versus getting right in. 

In the end it will all come down to the pro forma analysis and the accuracy of your ability to correctly gauge the correct rental rate.  In general you'll find lower returns in nicer areas and higher returns in worse areas.  The problem with the worse areas is that most people overpay and end up loosing money.  Try to avoid that by staying true a solid approach to estimating expenses (I use 35% off gross rents for PM, Vacancy, Repairs, and Capital Reserves) before subtracting out operating expenses like taxes, insurance, and any other bills paid by the landlord.

Hope it helps!

Mark