All Forum Posts by: AJ Singh

I'm planning on stopping by.  Thanks @Kyler Pace for the mention. 

@Omid A. Great to hear you found something in the area.  Yeah, it seems like only off-market deals are worth it at this point.  Thanks, it gives me hope that some deals are still out there.  

@Steve Moody Yea, I've seen a lot of comments regarding 'below market rents' and I keep thinking why wouldn't they do it.  So have you stayed the course on multifamily or gone another route?

@Anthony Varela Actually my primary focus was to house hack, but with a FHA loan you get hit with PMI, which usually turns that cash flow negative (so it's no longer even paying your portion of the rent). It seems like the only thing that makes sense would be 4 units minimum. I've looked around Hillsboro, but I see the same trends.

@Anna Kampa On a regular MLS listings around this area I've been seeing usual cap rates 4-6% and the price per unit anywhere from $150k-$300k. About the same in Bend? Yeah, apparently the PNW is a hot place to be right now.

@Nicholas Cook Thanks for the advice Nicholas.  As a new investor, I wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something about the Portland area.  It seems like the consensus is clear though and I should start looking outwards as well.

Hey BP! I'm a new investor that just moved to the Portland/Beaverton area and want to invest in RE. Though I'm noticing a trend that the market up seems tricky.  Prices are really high and after analyzing deals, I notice that I wouldn't make cash flow with a traditional down payment of 20%.  

I had an agent create an automatic email alert from the MLS when deals become available. which has been my main source of analyzing deals. I wanted to know what others in the area have seen in terms of the market. Are most of the 'good' deals coming from pocket listings or by nontraditional ways?

I had been looking at multifamily houses, but perhaps for the area I should focus on different properties- thoughts?

Thanks,

AJ

@Ingrid J. Thanks for the suggestion, I've heard a lot of good things about it so I'll check it out!

@John Leavelle Thanks for your feedback John.  So I suppose if I live in one of those rooms and have free rent (with 3.5% down payment), it allows me to have more money to purchase other properties that can produce cash flow.  That is a solid possibility.  Right now it's a hypothetical question as I look at properties that allow me to put 20% down.  

@Brent Coombs At this point I'm still in analysis mode, looking at properties that I can afford a 20% down payment with. Though my question comes up before I have a deal in my hand since I'm trying to figure out how far (distance-wise) I want to look at properties. I work a 9-5 and it would be difficult to commute if I look further away. I see your perspective about the FHA loan- I guess i was only looking at it from a cash flow perspective and not what else it can offer. Thanks for your input, I appreciate it.

Overall looking at MLS listings, I'm finding it difficult to find a property that has a solid cap rate around my area, so I'm thinking of finding properties more than an hour away. If that's the case I wouldn't be able to do the FHA and live in it.

I'll be there.  I'm looking forward to meeting other BP members!!

Hi Folks,

I'm an aspiring investor in the Portland-Beaverton area and am looking for a MFH as my first deal.  

One thing I'm trying to figure out- when I find one, should I live in it and house hack (by it paying for my rent + getting me cash flow) or should I rent it all out? 

I'm currently living in an apartment and paying $700/mo.  As a simplified example, if I find a 4plex that rents out $1k/unit and continue living in the apartment, I would get $4k -$700 = $3300 /mo - expenses.  Though if I were to stay in one of the four units and rent out the other 3 units, I would get $3000/mo-expenses.

One drawback that comes to mind is that the MFH wouldn't be my primary residence and I would not qualify for an FHA loan. Though, I don't see the value in the FHA loan unless I have a lot of cash flow from a property.

Would there be any other drawbacks to this?  

Thanks,

AJ

@Daniel Hyman Thanks!  

Hi BP community!

My name is AJ Singh and I'm a newbie trying to get started on my first investment. I lived my entire life in AZ, but moved to OR 2 months ago and recently became passionate about investing in real estate.

A quick story about my prior 'investment' (or rather lack thereof):

About 4 years ago I made the largest purchase of my life- I bought a 3000sq house. I thought it was a good investment because of course it would appreciate and I'd make some money off of it. Although it appreciated 30% over 4 years, I didn't realize all the costs associated with living in the house. I was the only one living in the house, paying all the mortgage by myself- no tenants. I didn't see it as a means to make any passive income, but simply as a normal way of life. I did this for four years!! After contributing money to my 401k, most of my salary would go to my mortgage plus living expenses. I didn't save much money after all that. Fast forward to June of this year, I sold the house and transferred within my company to OR to change things up in my life.

About two weeks ago after thinking about investing and a google search, I arrived at this website. Wow! What I found was a goldmine of knowledge. Every day I'm learning something new, which makes me realize how much more I have to learn. I'm truly inspired by what I've read/heard and the strong community on this site. I've been averaging at least one podcast a day and finished reading Rich Dad Poor Dad. It helped me realize my mistakes and where I could have improved. I'm also starting to change my lifestyle to get rid of extra expenses so more can be saved for investments.

My very short term goal is to purchase a multi family 4plex or equivalent and live in one unit, while renting out the others. Therefore, having it pay for my mortgage. Though since I'd be living in it, I'd prefer to live in an A or B neighborhood. My 1-2 year goal is to acquire 12+ units (approx 3 4plex). Having just shifted to the NW I realize how different the market is from AZ, so finding something may be harder than I'm imagining..but I won't give up. As an engineer I plan on having my W2 to help with the loans for the investments. Luckily I have learned some basics about running a business from my family's small business, though I realize real estate is a totally different animal.

Well that was my basic intro. As a newbie I'd appreciate any advise on what things I should focus on as i'm starting out. Looking forward to learning a lot, having many discussions and being engaged in the community!

Thanks,

AJ