First Home Build and Purchase

[Makayla Mardis-Nielsen]

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $255,000
Cash invested: $60,000

This home is my first home purchase. This home is a new build that I commissioned and put $30,000 of sweat equity into. The home currently appraises for $400,000. Since initial purchase, we've done a cash out-refi to finish the yard and add features to increase equity into the property. Currently, I have $150,000 of equity in this property. Once I'm ready to move, I plan to rent this property out / Airbnb for a monthly cash-flow.

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

It is my first home. I've always seen it as a stepping stone and learning experience to getting into real estate investing.

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

I negotiated this deal in 2016.

How did you finance this deal?

VA Loan

How did you add value to the deal?

I added sweat-equity during the build of this home as well as have continued to add equity through sweat-equity while I live there.

What was the outcome?

I have $150,000 of equity in this home.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Learned how real estate purchasing goes. Learned about working with real estate agents. Learned about dealing with general contractors and sub-contractors. Learned the power dynamics when working with builders and where leverage lies.

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

I worked with Paul Maag. Would not recommend him. Now that I'm learning more about real estate, there were several ethics breaches that occurred on his part.