First Rental Property

[Alexander Witt]

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $230,000
Cash invested: $57,500

This was/is my first rental property. 2bed / 1bath upper/lower located in the Washington Heights neighborhood of Milwaukee, WI. Closing date of September 18th, 2020.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

The passive income, and chasing the dream of owning and managing multiple properties at some point in my life.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I spent a good 18 months looking at multi family properties in the area I was set on purchasing/owning. Summer/Fall of 2019 I went through a good 10-12 multi family properties and didn't pull the trigger on any of them. I then took a break. Summer of 2020, the property I now own was one of the only that I had seen hit the market that summer

How did you finance this deal?

25% down. The rest through a local bank.

What was the outcome?

The first 14 months were owner occupied. The lower was rented out 5 weeks after closing. The upper I lived in until this April 2022 when I moved out to live with my now Fiancé. Both units are occupied and doing great.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Most of the challenges so far have been repairs, which I wouldn't consider challenges. The furnace, ac, and water heaters were all replaced at the same time thus fail at the same time. Both furnaces replaced January 2021 after one crapped out. Both water heaters replaced June 2022, again after one crapped out. Luckily for me, I had and have been vigilant in saving money for these situations.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I did. Jason Schiller of Bank Five Nine, and Bridget Scholtka Taylor of Coldwell Banker Home