All Forum Posts by: Alicia C.

@Jacob Lapp  Good points!  However - our interest rate on that house is 2.8%.  That's why we didn't sell it when we moved out in 2013... I told my husband there was no way I was selling a house that had a 2.8% interest rate!!  That was VERY low at the time.  

@Benjamin Wong It is covering the payment.  By $200/month. We have been renting it for many years since we moved out.  

@Michael Plante I wouldn't buy one house for $150,000.  I'd buy 4 or 5 houses around $100,000-$120,000 using the $150k as my down payment money.  I would probably make $400-$500 cash flow per house if I did that, but it would be a lot more work with 4-5 houses vs just one.  I just always go back to the fact that there is not one house I've ever owned that I'm glad I sold.  Once I looked back on all the houses I should have kept, I became a house hoarder, lol.  

Hello! I need some help sorting this out in my head. We have a LTR that was our primary home. Purchased in 2007. Bought for $220,000. Currently owe $100,000. Rents for $2100/month. Mortgage is a 15 or 20 year (I can't remember) so it's higher than usual. Therefore the rent barely covers the PITI by $200/month. Current market value for the house is about $265,000.

Option 1:  sell soon, make about $150,000 after it's all said and done.  Take that cash and use it as down payments on less expensive houses that, when totaled up, equal more than $2100 cash flow.  

Option 2:  keep it, dump money into it until it's paid off.  Have a $265,000ish paid for house that cash flows $2100/month.  

Option 3:  do option 2 but then take out a line of credit on the equity and buy more houses.

Option 4:  something I haven't listed here.

Thanks my friends!

We also have a STR in Gulf Shores. We allow a 3 night minimum. Ours is a 2 bedroom condo, so our renters are usually small families or two couples. We get a lot of 'long weekend' and last minute renters. If I had a large condo (3-4 or bedrooms or more) I would be more inclined to do a 7 night minimum. Those are usually larger groups/families and they tend to stay longer.

To provide an update to my comment that I posted about a month ago, I finally got a contract on a house in Calera.  That area seems to be on the rise and I'm happy with our purchase.  This was the fourth house we put an offer on and we had to put in an escalation clause to get it.  But I don't feel that I've overpaid so that is a win for me.  Good luck Birmingham investors!

I feel your pain.  I'm also looking in Birmingham.  In the last week I've put two offers in at the $130-$140 range.  I haven't gotten either one.  On the first property I offered $5k over asking - lost that one.  On the second property I lost out to an all cash buyer that offered $10k more than asking.  It's going to be tough to find what we are looking for.  Good luck.  

We currently own a STR in Gulf Shores, AL. We use it as a weekend getaway as well, so we are basically breaking even after paying HOA & property management fees. For us, that works. We both have good W2 jobs and the benefit of having our own place to visit along with the appreciation we will see in a few years is good enough for us for now. If we didn't have the HOA or the property management fees we would be cash flowing pretty decently. Also, keep in mind that hurricanes can set you back when you have property on the gulf. Hurrican Sally (mid-September) did a number on our condo complex and we have not been able to rent it since then. Probably won't be able to rent it again until March. That means no income for about 6-7 months. We are lucky to have the reserves to cover it but I'm sure there are several in our complex that are suffering.

To never sell it.

@Charlie Harper Awesome!  Good luck!

@Patrick Thompson both great towns!