1st Purchase: Townhome Buy & Hold

[Clarissa Wiley]

Investment Info:

Townhouse buy & hold investment in Grayslake.

Purchase price: $212,000
Cash invested: $17,000

3-4 bdrm; 3.5 bath townhome end unit with a 2-car garage (2300+ sq ft.).

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

I always wanted to start off with a purchase that I could eventually rent out; and this was the perfect start for me.

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

I found it on Zillow and worked with my realtor at the time to land the deal.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional loan with no money down (my credit was 780 at the time of the deal).

How did you add value to the deal?

My credit was 780 at the time of the deal, I also had an established relationship with the realtor and the lender.

What was the outcome?

The deal included the owner actually paid the difference of $5k due to work that needed to be done along with closing costs, which I thought was a good deal at the time :)

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I knew I would live in the unit for the 1st 5 years due to the terms of the loan. I was honest with my lender and my realtor about the purpose of the purchase, in which they will assist with the refi along with property management. Win-win in my eyes.

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

Yes I did - I worked with Scott Frietag at Coldwell Banker in Libertyville, IL and highly recommend him if you are interested in the Lake County IL area.