First home purchase, when married and living in another state

[Julie Troendle]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $155,000
Cash invested: $5,000
Sale price: $205,000

4 bed/2 bath ranch on two lots.

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

This was a home that we actually chose to buy as a primary residence when I was married. We did some work to it and sold it after our divorce and split the profit.

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

Traditional realtor.

How did you finance this deal?

We actually had no money down as my ex-husband was in the military and able to use a VA loan.

How did you add value to the deal?

Updated the kitchen cabinets, counters, exterior paint... replaced a few windows.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

We had three offers within 24 hours. Make sure to ask a good price. We could have sold the house for much more. It was a quick sale, so that was nice, but we left money on the table.