Excited but learning

[Dustin Graham]

Howdy,

Excited to be here. I've done a lot of reading and thinking about owning rental properties. I've owned my own home for 18 months. I'm trying to convince my wife to rent out our current place and buy another place as a stepping stone to wealth. She's almost on board.

I'm very excited.

So far I've been looking around my area. Nevada County in California. I feel like every deal I see is something like 200k, which at 5% down (if we move into it) [email protected]% mortgage is $907/month. Yet rentals for comparable properties are mostly in the $1500-1700 range. None of them even come close to the 50% rule I've been reading about.

Same issue when I look higher at 250k houses, or lower at 150k houses, same issue where the mortgage is 60-80% of potential rental income. After I start adding in taxes, vacancy, repairs, insurance and 2.5% "other" expenses it quickly moves to negative cash flow analysis.

How should I go about looking for more viable deals? Is there a particular forum here that I should read through? I feel like my ideal first step would be to find a 3/2 1500-1700 sq ft property to buy, owner occupy for 12-24 months. Rent out my current place (3/2 1700 SFH) and get a taste of being a landlord, while also buying a place that could potentially be my second rental after I've lived there long enough.

Thanks for any thoughts,

-Dustin

[Jeff Jamieson]

Welcome Dustin! The 50% rule is tricky in California with minimal down payment. Use the resources here and network your butt off until you find what's right for you! Keep us all informed on your real estate journey!