All Forum Posts by: Alexander Bacon

Drop this lender immediately and don't look back. You shouldn't have to pay for anything again when finding a new lender. The appraisal, inspections, title etc should all be fine. One time I purchased a property and refinanced 6 months later. We just used all of the documentation I had which was 6 months old to refinance. If you're in a position with a lender like this and you do not get a response within two business days, find someone else. It's your money and you're ultimately the one in charge. There is absolutely nothing you can do at this point with the current lender because he is not legally obligated to respond to you or lock in certain rates at a certain time. Leave a poor review if you feel so inclined (I would do it as a cautionary statement to inform others so they don't have to go through what you have). Then, call other lenders, explain the situation, and ask if you can use the previous documentation for them to underwrite the refinance. You should be able to find someone who can help. I would not use this lender unless they give you a deal that is so incredible they are literally paying you to take this deal and keep you as a customer. I am not saying you can get better rates, but you should demand better service. Good luck and I hope it all works out to your benefit

I currently live in GA and have two rentals down in central Florida. I have done my taxes myself for the past two years but I know I am not knowledgeable enough to maintain this/I know I am losing out on money. With one property I didn't necessarily care too much but now that I have two and am looking for my third, I want to get this part of real estate/my portfolio nailed down. Does anyone have any recommendations or connections to a tax professional somewhere in GA or AL (I live close to the AL border) that they could mention? Also, due to work I will be moving throughout the country/world about every two years. I am unsure how much that matters moving forward but I plan on investing primarily in the central Florida area with maybe one or two additions to my portfolio in random states that I end up living in if a deal presents itself. I know virtually nothing when it comes to tax deductions, creating an LLC and going S corp, depreciating assets and whether thats appropriate or not at this point, tax breaks for work expenses, etc. I have read a fair amount and understand the basics but I dont feel comfortable doing it myself as I fear I get lost in the legal writings of the law and am paranoid that I would screw up which is why I am seeking a professional at this time.

I currently live in Columbus, GA and have one rental in Florida. I am about to purchase my second rental property down in Florida but I do not have a person to help with my taxes yet. The past two years we have done our own taxes and I know we are losing money because of that. I do not think H&R Block or other huge chains are the best options but I am clueless when it comes to looking for the correct person. If anyone has any insight or recommendations in GA that can assist me in filing taxes I would appreciate it very much OR if an H&R Block chain type place is fine for now, I would appreciate that recommendation as well. Thank You!

@Eric Ng The short answer would be yes, if you can find the deal. I lived there for 5 years while attending college (graduated in early 2017) and I currently make a trip down there about once a quarter to visit old friends (I live in south GA so it's about a 6 hour drive for me). I am looking at properties in the area as well and would definitely be interested in connecting if you are. There are some great small pockets there right next to Florida Southern College where a duplex would be fantastic. Definitely become comfortable with the area though because 1 mile to the north is a definite no go in my opinion for about two square miles. It is where ALL of the homeless are and is a definite D area. I worked with the police Lakeland Police department when I was down there and I can assure you that a lot of calls came from that area. East is okay until you cross over the highway. West is good but probably a little too pricey especially if you're trying to target college kids. South isn't terrible but is also somewhat pricey. These cardinal directions are all in relationship to FSC/Lake Hollingsworth by the way. Again, would love to connect so send me a message if you're interested. Worst case, I can easily give you some good "insider" advice on the area but overall it has a lot of potential.

@Troy Deverill You entered your numbers all wrong on this one. Are you trying to BRRRR this property? Purchase closing costs seem low to me, I would put those at $4-5k but that is situation dependent. Why would you get a $275k hard money loan at 10%? And no down payment? Need more context to try to analyze this deal. Also, a 3.2% loan seems very low and somewhat unrealistic to me, I would be more conservative at 5% and be happy if its lower. Vacancy, repairs, and management look fine/average. All that being said, the fact that the total project cost is $357k and the ARV is $330k is not very good at all. $80k repairs in only 3 months also seems unrealistic too, I would probably double that to be safe.

@Edward Agadjanian Management prices are going to be the same. It doesn't matter if you live next door to your rental or across the country. It also doesn't matter if you're extremely hands on or not at all. To the management company, you will hire them, they will likely take about 8-10% of your monthly rent as payment, and they will do their job (hopefully). I know that isn't a great response but I don't want you to be confused or misguided thinking that you will be able to work a better percentage with the management company just because you are close in proximity and willing to help out. If you just need an extra hand every once in a while, I would manage the property yourself. It is not as difficult as people sometimes make it out to be. Also, if you do need help somewhat infrequently, you can easily hire someone individually for part time which will be cheaper than management and also has no contract. Or, you could ask a family member or a friend. Management companies are honestly not necessary until you have multiple units and I am a strong believer that you should manage your own first few properties because then you will know and understand what a good vs bad management company is. Taking care of one or two rentals is very manageable. Just go replace the air filter once a quarter to check in on it and if any maintenance comes up, you can call the plumber, electrician, handyman, etc. No need to pay someone 10% of your rental income to do that. 

@Greg Pasquale I just sent you a message. Long story short, I am new to this game as well and am planning on making a move with the same amount of cash ($30-40k) in about 3ish months. I would be more than happy to share the journey with you as far as what I am doing. Then you can have a good idea of how it was for a new guy to get involved on a play by play basis. Then, after about 6 months or so, you will have already (virtually) gone through the process. To be clear, I am not asking for any money or work from you, I could just explain my personal experience through here or on the phone for you to maybe ease some of the hesitation.

@Lenny Smith The idea that you are trying to achieve financial independence is a costly idea in terms of time and effort which many people seem to overlook. To be blunt, if you can not figure out how to manage your time to begin this process, you will not make it. I work 84 hours a week at the moment, have a wife and two kids, and am beginning to invest in real estate on the side. I learned everything about the stock market on my own and am doing my best on the real estate side right now (with help from others on this site). My circumstances are not normal and I fully understand that but not having enough time is a complete cop out. If you watch tv, netflix, play video etc, you have time. If you spend time on social media, you have time. If you sleep more than 6 hours, you have time. It is all about time management and if you don't have the courage, willpower, and time management skills to simply begin at this point in your life, you will not magically have the grit to succeed just because you quit your job. You can do this so do not doubt yourself. But you need to push yourself right now given the current circumstances to mold yourself into someone who is a time management expert and someone who will stop at nothing. Quitting your job and using the "not enough time" excuse is a simple cop out that everyone uses on a daily basis but I guarantee it is not a question about time but it is a question about priorities. 

@Lenny Smith I would advise against stocks as many others have already said. I have been successfully trading stocks for a few years now but on the side. I have made about $10k in the last two months and have probably averaged about $2k a month for the last 4-5 years. I use $30k in my account and rinse and repeat. With that being said, I highly discourage this and I am personally trying to stop day/swing trading and get into real estate. Day/swing trading can be done and can be possible but you will soon learn that it is more time consuming than you think, analysis does not really mean as much as people think, and it is stressful. If you are determined to do this, then do it but I would be comfortable with losing $5-10k off the bat and hopefully you learn from the early mistakes quickly. I also highly highly recommend you use the thinkorswim paper trading platform for a minimum of three months. It has its flaws but if you can trade successfully with paper money of the same amount you would use with real money, for a minimum of one month, then you could try real money. If you have questions about analysis or anything at all about stocks, feel free to message me. Just be aware that if playing the stock market was so easy, everyone would do it. Also, carefully listen to all the "wealth gurus" on youtube. What you'll notice, besides the useless private groups and subscriptions they offer for a price, is that all day traders have real estate investments. ALL OF THEM. I would argue that 99% of the stock guys have built their wealth through real estate, not the stock market. Then look at all the real estate people on youtube. Very few talk about the stock market except to make comparisons to the returns you get through real estate. I HIGHLY recommend you stay on this website and learn everything you can about real estate and put your money there, not the stock market. This is just my two cents as someone who has played the stock market game with reasonable but not overabundant success. Again, feel free to message me with any questions and I can gladly answer them. I am 27 myself so we are at about the same age and can probably relate on a few levels.  

@Whitney Hutten I agree with everything you said but I think it should be directed toward @Matt Ziegler (he is the OP on this thread and is the one asking the questions lol)