All Forum Posts by: Alex Chernikow

@Don Harris Tried to send PM, might have been empty connection.. first time using the site a lot

@Christopher Davis I can be the same way.  How much time do you usually have to estimate the rehab? How would you find the properties in the first place? Would you still make offers? 

Forgive the simple questions, total greenhorn here. Congrats on the duplex and appreciate the suggestion.  I am looking for people that I can learn from and also help out.

Appreciate it @Don Harris Nothing on meetup.com during the visit unfortunately.  What about scheduling time with agents to see houses?  Good use of time?  

Good points about the estimating skills and what can be accomplished in a weekend @Pearce G. What would you do with the 36 hours?  

Curious if I got into a rental first, would it put more time between me and a successful fix and flip?  

My friend talks about flipping homes in 2-3 months and not looking at a project unless he thinks he can make $50k on it.  He also tells me a couple mistakes can cost him $20k real fast.

It seems like it would be much faster to flip then buy a rental vs the other way around.  I'm lucky to have some flexibility in my work schedule but a long way away from understanding what goes into estimating and calculating holding costs.  I've got a big skills gap right now but the more I think about it, the more I lean towards flipping first.

Hey everybody, I'm Alex, 32 years old and living in Charlotte with my wife and dog.  I've sat on this BP account for a while now and finally ready to act towards my RE goals. 

My only experience in RE is purchasing a condo in Charlotte in Dec 2014. We got into it with 5% down and the plan was achieve 20% equity, get out from under PMI ($250 a month, ouch) and then figure out how to get into real estate investing.

We've been paying a little extra every month, and in November 2016 I refinanced. It sped things up as I got my interest rate down almost a full point, lowered my PMI to $50/month and decreased my overall mortgage and escrow payment ~$300/month. That feels like a win, and that's all my RE experience.

One of my good friends from college currently flips houses for a living in Nashville, TN and seems to be killing it.  I spent some time with him around Thanksgiving talking shop. I decided to fly him out to Charlotte later this month to look at neighborhoods, pick his brain, and learn something.  Any help from the forums would be awesome.  I've got about 36 hours with him.  Does anyone have ideas on how I can make this a productive visit?

My goals are vague right now.  First I would love to learn how to identify a "good deal."  Buy and hold rentals that cashflow seem nice and conservative. Flipping houses sounds more risky, but also more sexy.. I don't know, maybe I'll do both?

Not really sure what else to say here.. What did I leave out?  Can anyone recommend good next steps?