First purchase into the wonderful world of real estate investing: don't be a silo

[Sean Winchell]

Investment Info:

Condo buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $279,000
Cash invested: $79,000

Beautiful 2 bed/bath condo on a golf course less than a mile from the lake and boat slip. Seller financed, turnkey from another investor.

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

1.Wanted something in the area to use as a property I could easily rent and possibly stay in when we move to the area come June.
2. I also needed to start applying for schools for my kids and could not wait long to find a amazing deal.
3. I needed something turnkey I could sell my wife on for our first investment since this was long distance.
4.I also needed better terms to make the deal work and have a little cash flow since rents in the area are low compared to recent strong growth.

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

Found on MLS and called seller direct after speaking with his agent briefly.

How did you finance this deal?

Seller Financed.

How did you add value to the deal?

Turn key purchase.

What was the outcome?

Acquired property.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I paid a higher end price for the property because I was rushing to get in but felt ok about it since my interest rate was so low and knowing there was strong growth in the area. I now feel I should have brought in my agent as well to help better comp the area. I think I could have either negotiated an even lower interest rate than 4.75% or had him come down a bit in price/given less down since he was asking top dollar.