Jersey City Heights Condo Buy and Hold

[Sebastian Kowalik]

Investment Info:

Condo buy & hold investment in Jersey City.

Purchase price: $260,000
Cash invested: $26,000

This is a 2 bed 1 bath condo purchased in November 2016. It is in one of the most desirable areas of Jersey City, the Jersey City Heights. Also, it is on a major NJ transit bus line into the Port Authority. It also has equidistant access to Hoboken via the 9th street elevator and 100 steps off of Ogden Ave.

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

I saw a disparity in pricing between Hoboken and the Jersey City Heights in 2014. My wife and I researched the area and decided that it would make sense for a buy and hold deal.

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

I found this deal through the HomePath by Fannie Mae. It was a foreclosed property. We put in $10k over asking price of $249,999.

How did you finance this deal?

10% Down
30 Year Conventional Loan with 3.365% interest rate

How did you add value to the deal?

I was able to leverage the Fannie Mae Homepath program for first time buyers to pay for 90% of all closing costs.

What was the outcome?

Our home recently appraised for $340,000 which is $80,000 more than the purchase price.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

We bought within our means which was great because our mortgage and HOA is super low.

In hindsight, I wish we bought a multi-family property since our research was spot on and the area developed faster than originally thought.

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

I worked with John Pearson from LoanDepot in Hoboken. He was excellent.