My Third Buy and Hold Rental

[Matthew Spiers]

Investment Info:

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

Purchase price: $157,000
Cash invested: $25,000

Purchased this property that was on the market for 70 days by the time I came across it. Right next door to a top restaurant in the city, 2 blocks over from a restaurant hot-spot, and 3 blocks over from a med-school. Fantastic upside with rents well below market rates (after renovations).

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

I prefer buy and hold rentals but I see a lot of good potential in the area, including some really incredible local hotspots nearby.

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

I just found this property on Realtor.com/MLS. I find a lot of great success on the website despite the poor reputation it has for "picked-through" deals.

How did you finance this deal?

Owner-occupied. I wanted to live in this property while I fixed it up. I love the neighborhood and wanted to live there.

How did you add value to the deal?

I renovated all aspects of the property from paint to new appliances. It's fantastic what a new coat of paint will do! Rents were also well below market rents (with no prior leases) so after renovating, I put rents back to where the market rents were which has helped cash flow the property.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Do your due diligence. Each property I have, I find a few things that I didn't notice even after reading through the inspection. It might be me being a bit too excited for the deal, so taking my time and doing my due diligence is what I need to do more next time.

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

Yes! I work with Julie Hodges here at Berkshire Hathaway Home Services. She's incredible and was incredibly helpful throughout the process. I highly recommend her.