New member, FL/NYC. Purchased a year ago, quality check?

[Leor D.]

Hi BiggerPockets,

My name is Leor and I purchased a condo April 2015, figured I'd stop lurking and throw up a post! Hoping to hear from the community about how I did for my first investment.  My father convinced me "even to build the equity and save on taxes" I should buy a place. I currently live in NYC but lived most my life in South Florida and am very comfortable with that area. We looked at multiple places and I didn't really think of this as a stream for "passive income". Unfortunately, I didn't really have a clear concept of why I was buying a place. Maybe for when I eventually move back to Fl?  

So, after closing on a pretty great apartment in Fort Lauderdale, Fl and letting a friend going through some tough times stay there I finally decided (a year later) to get it rented out.  That's where we are today, I finally got my first rent check and started reading as much as I can around real estate investing. I think I got the bug!!

Again, this deal probably wasn't the ideal property for an investor but I'm happy with the property and lesson learned for the future. 

The financials:

Purchase price - $138,000

Downpayment - $28,000

Mortgage payment - $728.97

HOA - $382.37

Money invested back into the property (post first tenant) - $400 

Current rent - $1,300

Property manager fee - $104

So each month I basically get $1,196 deposited into my account and paying $1,111.34 netting me $84.66.

Just hoping to get some good ol' honest feedback or just meet some new people interested in investing!  Now that I'm getting a rent check I'm torn between paying down the mortgage OR saving up for property #2!  Current interest rate is 3.875%, so thinking another property may be the route to go.

Happy to be part of the community and hoping to learn a lot! Thanks for reading,

Leor

[Jean Taveras]

Hey Leor Dayan welcome to Bugger Pockets and congrats on your first post. The first investment is always the hardest, your doing great so far. Even with management fee you're still above water. Worst thing that can happen is paying for your investment even after it's been rented. I work the NYC and South Florida regions so I'm also familiar with the areas and Fort Lauderdale is a great place to rent. If your property can use a little cosmetic upgrade to raise the rent to $100-$150/m more I would suggest it. Raises equity, refinance at a later time and keep the rental and take cash out for your next one. Keep on the good work. Let me know if you have any questions.