New Member, Seeking advice for Condo Acquisition

[Eduardo Vasquez]

Hey all BP Members! My name is Eduardo Vasquez, I am a long time listener of the BP Podcast and I am also and avid reader of the forums. I have not made a real effort to put myself out there and let people know I am interested in real estate investing but an opportunity has come my way and so I thought now is just a good a time as any to really put myself out there to seek advice and wisdom and start being more active in the BP forums A little bit about me, I am a sophomore at California State University, Long Beach. I am majoring in Business Finance and plan to minor in Marketing. My current relatively long term goals are to own at least 2 rental properties by the end of my senior year. Recently, a good friend of mine whom is also a Business Major at CSULB has informed me that the condo (3bedrooms 2baths 2 car garage and fireplace) that he has lived in for over a year now with 2 other roommates is up for sale by the owner and is willing to sell it to us for $200k-250k. One of his roommates (who's mom owns the property) has told him that his mom would sell it to us by the end of the year. We want to buy the property for $150k-200k so we are thinking about taking a loan out with 20% down by the end of the year. But even at $250k the condo would be a great deal. There are condos that cost almost twice as much in LB with the same amount of rooms and baths but in less than convenient locations and with an estimated mortgage of $2000. The condo is walking distance (less than 5 mins away) to food stores and pharmacies. It is also walking distance to the (also less than 5 mins away) bus that can take students to school for free, AND walking distance to the off-campus dorms (which costs ~$1200 a month to live in). The average cost of living here is about 650-730 for 1 bedroom in any condo/apartment. We know this place will rent out for at at least 730-800, even though the owner is renting it out for a lot less right now and at no expense to her son. The condo is in great condition and was just refurnished last year. I am not an experienced investor but I know this is a great deal and there really a isn't any other spot like this in LB for students. So I would really like any advice on what steps my friend and I should take on acquiring this property by the end of the year. Also, what other factors we should consider before taking out a loan to acquire this property. Or even if you don't think this would be a good investment, i would love to read about why you don't think so. Thanks in advance for the advice and I look forward to being more active on the site and meeting new people! Eduardo A. Vasquez