All Forum Posts by: Aaron Knoll

Netting $1M is great, but it's almost too easy -- it's very hard to go wrong, it's just a question of how much work you want to do for returns. The "you win the lottery" question isn't all that interesting.

So what about $300k? This is sizable but realistic chunk of cash, that many in our 30's and 40's have already accumulated, either by working for it or through inheritance. Much of it is already invested in a primary home or other investments. To generalize for my generation (mid/late 30's), we are willing to work for ROI, but don't want to be wage slaves forever. We still have day jobs and can't spend our lives driving around rural nowheres-villes buying up all the sub-$30k property we can find. We don't need to build RE empires, and would be happy for stable returns, $100k/yr pretax, and RE wealth to pass down to kids or finance their education. Most of the time, we live and work in suburban/urban markets where all MLS properties are overpriced, cash flow is hard to find, and competition is fierce.

What's the fastest, most stable route to financial independence? 

Is this at all useful for buy-and-hold investors? Or, is it primarily for agents, flippers, and the "retail" MLS world?

I'll just throw this out:

Not every deal that meets your terms has to involve maximally screwing over a widow or divorcee. 

Recently, I bought a house off the MLS that met terms, cash flowed with a 15-year. It was just a case of a motivated seller who feared being a landlord, had been burned by several offers falling through, and was willing to let the property go. He didn't make much of a profit off its sale, but didn't exactly lose money, either. Many hard-core investors would consider this property to be marginal, or not as high-performance as others. But on the positive side, I inherited it with great, stable tenants, and it subsequently appraised at 30% more than what I paid for it.

If you feel dirty prospecting for deals, then find deals another way. It just might require more patience. 

Thanks very much Jean G, I looked into America first but they didn't have rates on their website. I'll go check them out on Monday!

Thanks Jeff. What is "no seasoning"? I actually inquired at macu. They said they would do it, but wanted me to have a full year of rental and tax return before they'd fund. Does everyone require that? Makes it pretty hard to expand fast with helocs. 

I wonder if a lot of credit unions are suddenly bearish about 2016, and are trying to discourage investors from tapping out equity?

Strange that they'll let you tap out 100% of your equity in your primary home to buy a worthless RV, but not 80% in your investment property to buy another cash-flowing investment property with solid numbers!

Can anyone recommend a local credit union that does HELOC's with attractive rates up to 80% LTV, and will underwrite HELOCs on investment property as well as primary residence?

Thanks!

 This is amazing advice. Why is $3M the magic number?

Are there particular cities (in the US especially, but also worldwide) where cash buyers flock to? Which cities have the best potential for appreciation? What about real estate in the countryside, e.g. a $2M vacation home in upstate New York or a $5M chateau in southern France -- do those properties have an international market?

As an investor, does it make sense at all to try and acquire these properties at auction? How hard are they to flip?

Can anyone recommend a good hard-money lender in the Chicago area, who would be able to do a line of credit or bridge loan of up to $600k? I am trying to buy a property at auction.

It could be secured against the property itself (appraised at $1.2M, likely worth $1.8M), $370k in equity in an investment property, and $130k in equity in my principal residence. My credit score is 750+. 

The property has stable tenants; I estimate rent would be $9k-$10k/mo. Taxes are $34k/yr, so NOI would be around $2k-4k/mo.

Thanks if you have recommendations!

 That's excellent advice. Debt is bad when you're solely responsible for paying it out of your paycheck. It is good when you're running a business and other people are paying it down for you, and then some.