New Member from Ocala, Florida

[Marelyn Valdes]

I currently am buying and holding single family homes in the Ocala (Marion County) and Levy County, Florida areas.  Originally I had rental properties in Tampa, but sold my home and all my rentals and moved to Ocala.  It's a small town just south of Gainesville (Univ. of Florida) and has a very strong rental market with people constantly posting on Facebook sites looking for any rentals in this area.  I buy foreclosed and trashed properties and enjoy fixing them up and usually have a waiting list of renters, so I can pick and choose from the best.  Ocala just added a Fed Ex distribution center and we are located close to the Gulf of Mexico and about an hour from Daytona Beach (and a little over an hour from Orlando and Tampa).  Single family homes have been going up in price, and it's getting harder to find a super cheap bargain - usually with a lot of cosmetic repairs needed.  Since I have been doing the buy and hold for over 30 years, it's easy for me and a great way to make income and minimize taxes with the depreciation.  I tried a couple of sales with me holding the mortgage - NEVER again!  I work with a couple of local realtors, and also buy from Tranzon, Hubzu, Homepath, and others.  The hardest part for me was finding the right people to do rehab and repairs, then I spend my time making friends with most of the employees and managers at Home Depot and Lowes to get a heads up on closeouts and bargains.