I have $55k and want to invest, newbie needs help!

[Alex Hogle]

I’m selling my home in Texas and will be making roughly $55-60k. I want to begin investing down here in Tampa/ St. Pete and don’t know where to start. Should I begin flipping houses to build capital? I’m afraid to start too small end up with no real return. I’ve met and heard a lot about new western in my area. Some good, a lot bad. I’m interested in networking with some locals here in Tampa and st Pete! Give me some pointers and tips would be much appreciated! Thank you

[Marvin McTaw]

@Alex Hogle first off, congrats on selling your home and profiting. Depending on your time and specific personal situation, you might want to explore the Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat ("BRRRR") strategy and buy rental homes.

For example, you could use $40K for a purchase, spend $15-20K for repairs, closing, maintenance, etc. and then refinance to get your money and possibly more back out of the house. If the house were worth $150,000 once fixed up you could potentially cash out refi ~$100,000 (assuming you find lenders lending up to 70% Appraised Value). That could net you an additional $40,000 as loan proceeds in a tax-advantaged way. Anyway, just one possibility to explore.