All Forum Posts by: Aaron K.

@Alexander San where you will be able to find a property will really depend on your budget, the FHA coupled with house hacking gives you a big benefit in that you need a much lower down payment to get started with investing.

Hi @Alexander San, based on your post with a low down payment you may be able to get an FHA loan (3-4% down) and buy a multifamily property to house hack out of. This is a good option for getting started and you can find some places with 2 or 3 detached houses on a lot, especially in Corona. The most important thing with house hacking is picking a property that you actually want to live in, by doing this you also have a high chance of buying a property that other people want to live in too. Reach out if you would like to discuss further.

Rentometer works okay and MLS from a Realtor works well too.

Also depends on the size of the property and how many units need rehab. Reach out if you would like to discuss further.

@Luke Aragon as mentioned you may be able to get cash to buy the land, but the refinancing is going to be the trick. Depending on the price and if you own other property you may be able to use a HELOC or even a hard money lender. Show your plan for the property to your lender and see if they will allow you to refinance preferably before securing financing through other means. Also why is it important that the land is bought with cash?

@JD Martin That is actually one of the cheapest properties you can get in Southern California, most are more than double that, its not really out of bounds out here.  It may not provide the immediate rental returns that other cities do but may provide more rent growth, appreciation, and due to it being a mountain community, may provide Air BnB opportunities, especially in winter.

I don't know Maryland law, but in California you don't need either to put your home on the market.  Sometimes lenders will require an appraisal, but that would only be from a licensed appraiser.  Some private lenders will let you get by with a BPO (Broker Price Opinion) provided by a real estate broker.  And of course some lenders don't care about either, so to me this person charging $5 for "appraisals" is charging you for something any Realtor should give you for free.  Also appraisals or BPOs would be requested by a buyer when they are making an offer, so I would suggest not doing it ahead of time, unless Maryland law requires it (again something any Maryland Realtor should know).

Hi @Brian Grant , with today's low interest rates you might get more for your money by saving for another down payment rather than just paying down the loan you have. Also for your next deal you might consider house hacking and using an FHA loan so that you don't have to save up as much. Not sure where you are investing but Lake Arrowhead and Big Bear might work well for Air BnB as well. Let me know if you would like to discuss further.

Yes it is likely too good to be true and unlicensed in this case is basically paying a random person $5 for his or her opinion that is no better than yours, it will not hold any weight with anyone. You'd likely be better off asking a realtor for a CMA which they will likely give you for free.

I agree with the truth and fair point of view, you will get respect from tenants if you are fair and they understand your reasoning for imposing rules that they don't like.  Everyone appreciates knowing why a decision is made and that makes it go down a bit easier.