About to make my first deal in Cheyenne, Wyoming

[Forrest King]

Hi everyone!

I'm Forrest, I'm a 32 year old single father of 2 and I've lived in Cheyenne for 12 years, owned my own home for 8. 

I'm here to learn! I've listened to the podcast for sometime and I'm excited to meet some like minded individuals :)

I just took out an equity credit line for 25k to use as a down payment on my first 4-plex.

Cheyenne is a very steady market with slow growth but ONLY growth, and it's very easy to cash flow property with minimum down conventional loans.

I'm going after a c+ 4-plex for around 160k... not that hard here. I will use the credit line to cover 10% down plus closing costs with a little left over for a quick facelift on the outside, and then rehab 1 unit at a time. 

Rents here are often over $1 per square foot.

I'm taking the BRRR approach and plan to purchase 2 properties or more per year once I get started.

I've always dreamed of building a real estate empire, and it's exciting to be in the beginning stages of making this happen. Once I max out conventional loans, I will move on to bigger multi-unit properties and new construction. 

A lot is hinging on this first deal, and I'm grateful to have the resources of bigger pockets to guide me!

-Forrest

[Daniel Holbrook]

I looked into house hacking a 2-4 unit (we ended up in a single-family) and learned, I think, the down payment requirements for owner-occupied multi-units.

FHA: 3.5% for up to 4 units. Lowest interest rate, but MI never goes away. Also tends to have higher closing costs, sometimes making the APR comparable to conventional loans.

Conventional: 5% down for SINGLE-FAMILY.  I thought that it was 5% for up to 4 units, but that is not what I found and was told by bankers.  

https://www.fanniemae.com/content/eligibility_info...

http://www.freddiemac.com/singlefamily/factsheets/...

Fannie will only go 75% LTV on 4 units. Freddie will go 80%.

So, as I understand it, if you want a 4-plex for under 20% down, you need to go FHA. You can only have one FHA loan at a time, so you will need to refi out of a current FHA loan if one exists.

There is also seller carry, hard money, and other options, but you will not have the benefit of 30-year fixed rate.

Another consideration is qualifying.  Your income might qualify you no problem, but if not, then some things to consider:

- If you are currently a landlord, then the rental income from the purchased property will count toward your income immediately.

- if your house is not leased yet, you might have to qualify for both mortgages at the same time, though I think some bankers would work with you to find ways to count future rental income.

If anyone else has different experiences I would love to learn what I missed!