Newbie in Virginia Beach

[Zachary Hutchinson]

I'm currently active duty military and stationed in Virginia Beach, 25 and happily married. I've been in the learning and saving phase for almost a year. My short term goal (2-3 years) with real estate is to gain experience and provide some level of passive income by acquiring 2 properties by the time I'm transitioning out of the military. Long term I would like to transition out of the military, move back to the Midwest (Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky) and work with Real Estate in some capacity for my day job while I continue to build my portfolio.

My interest in Real Estate Investing started after I became interested in Value Investing. While Benjamin Graham and Warren Buffett concern themselves with the stock market, the concepts learned from Value Investing have made more sense to me when applied to Real Estate.

Anyway, I'm extremely excited to get started and would love to connect with other investors and companies! 

[Patti Robertson]

I'm not trying to be discouraging, but it's harder than ever to find properties at a discounted price. Competition is at an all time high. Inventory is low. If you are looking for passive income I would suggest you look instead at the one advantage you have over your competitors as a military member - the VA loan! The VA is lifting the loan limit in 2020, and you can buy a 1-4 unit. Why not focus on buying a 2-4 unit every year, or in every area you get stationed. The benefits of the VA loan are that 1) you can buy with no money down and 2) the VA loans are assumable. This is HUGE, especially when combined with the fact that the loan limit is lifting. Imagine how much more you can get for a property in 20 years if the interest rates are 9.78% and you have a 4% loan that is assumable. And calculate your cash on cash return on investment if buying an SFR at a discounted price, but having to bring 15-20% of your own cash, plus some repair money to the table, vs buying something rent ready at market rate with $0 out of your own pocket.

If you want to meet a great group of local landlords, join the Hampton Roads Landlord Assoc. There’s no fee to join.  https://www.meetup.com/HRLandl...