All Forum Posts by: Alex Barnett

@Ken Min This is a great strategy. Am I understanding correctly that you have one contract with the current owner (the one who is on the bank mortgage) and one contract with the end buyer? Does the bank know about these other arrangements? Not trying to imply anything, I just genuinely am interested in learning more about this strategy.

Hi, What are some ways that you have used your real estate license to supplement your income? I have heard of doing BPO's or rentals, but was wondering if there are other ways that you can make a consistent 300-400 extra dollars per week?

Hello, I am hoping to get my broker's license soon and was looking for opinions on whether it's a good idea to start out selling new construction. To me, it seems like this would be an excellent 1-2 year crash course to learn the "nuts and bolts" of the industry for a variety of reasons. Do you think this is a good way to get started? What are the drawbacks vs. a more traditional agent? Are new construction projects likely to hire someone with no industry experience? Thanks in advance for your insightful answers!

I have an accepted offer on my very first property and I am looking for some feedback from more seasoned investors. The property is a 1br per side duplex (going to be owner occupied) in a trendy neighborhood. It's an old home but it's in great shape. The property appraised at around 155k and was listed for 140k. Accepted offer was 136k. With 10k down on an FHA loan, I'm looking at between $900-1000 mortgage including taxes, pmi, etc. I feel like that is pretty expensive but the mortgage people tell me that I don't qualify for a traditional loan (due to lack of credit history) and that I can likely refinance in a few years and cut a couple hundred dollars off the mortgage.

The owner has both sides rented out at $600/mo, which I thought was pretty low considering 1br apartments nearby are renting for $800. The owner also said that they hadn't raised rent in 4 years. I am confident I can get at MINIMUM $650 for the side that I'm not occupying, perhaps even more if I were to rent out the two car garage. 

I realize that this doesn't meet the 2% rule etc. and I'm not trying to hit an absolute home run here with my first property but I don't want this to be a total whiff either. Keep in mind that I am also looking at this through the lens of someone who is going to be living in the home as well, not purely from an investing standpoint. My plan is to live here for 1-2 years while I save for my next property and hold onto this one as a long term rental. Do you think this is a solid first property. Thanks in advance for your responses! 

Hello all,

I am interesting in buying my very first investment property with an FHA loan. I am hoping to buy an owner occupied duplex...

If I was approved for $140,000 on a single family home by my mortgage person, would I be approved for more than that (say 175-200k) on a duplex since I would be generating income from the half that I wasn't living in? This is going to have to be an FHA loan since I don't have enough money to comfortably to put 20% down on that large of a purchase.

Also, is it easy to obtain an FHA 203k loan for a duplex? I see a lot of duplexes in my area that are in great areas but are just outdated on the inside. It would be awesome to have an extra $10,000 or so to update the inside of the home I would be living in.

Thanks in advance for your responses and I apologize if this question has already been posted.  -Alex

Hi everyone,

I am literally BRAND NEW to real estate investing, as in I'll be living in my first investment property since I live at home now. I am looking for some guidance getting started. I have scanned the forums only briefly so please forgive me if I ask questions that can easily be found on the site. Right now I am 24 years old and employed in sales. I will be doing my first real estate deal very soon with the ultimate goal of transitioning into full time real estate investing before age 28.

As of right now I am planning to buy a house out of foreclosure for around $100,000 and live in it while I spruce it up, albeit on a limited budget, and hope to sell it for a tidy return after about a year or so and use the profits to reinvest.

My other (less ambitious/exciting) option is to purchase a duplex and rent out one half of it to essentially live rent free, which would allow me to save a lot of my cash, and perhaps acquire a second one after a year. While I do believe collecting rents should be an important part of my long term real estate portfolio, I don't believe it would generate enough profits in the short term to meet my goal of quitting the corporate job within roughly three years.

Which of the above choices would you recommend for my situation and why?

Also, since I have very limited capital right now I would like to begin wholesaling. Can anyone recommend any resources (websites, books, textbooks from wholesaling classes, etc.) that are focused entirely on the wholesaling world. Specifically I need to learn the ins and outs of real estate contracts.

Finally, do you think it is necessary or beneficial to get my real estate license even if I never intend to be a real estate agent per se?

My apologies for the long post and I look forward to your insightful answers!

Thanks,

Alex