All Forum Posts by: Amanda G.

Lots of wisdom already here. I'd also add that once you are in the game, you start gaining experience and connections that are not possible before. It doesn't have to be either/or. People around you will start noticing what you are doing and be curious about getting involved, especially if they have cash and no interest in doing the leg work.

Check out Meetup.com and facebook and search for you area and real estate investing. Good luck!

Not tax benefits, if they are all single owner LLC, they all go to your taxes anyway (not a professional, this is my personal knowledge). Basically, you need to decide how much you are willing to put in each pot. Be careful about the umbrella policy thing, if you have the policy in your personal name, and the LLC gets sued, it probably doesn't protect the LLC. You would need a separate policy for each.

When you actually have something to lose, risk management becomes more important. You might also decide to look into trusts in your state.

generally 2% properties are in very difficult locations. If you don't know the area, you are at risk for buying something that is not a deal. Maybe find your local real estate investment group and learn what they are doing. Wholesaling is not as simple as advertised. You can learn a lot from a buy and hold.

None of these can hurt, and they could help.

You will want to protect the lender by having the loan show as a lien against the property. The name of the documents are slightly different depending on which state you live in, but basically you are creating a private mortgage and note.

Hey,

You might not have to do a massive refi in a year. Depending on who owns your loan, they may have a more streamlined process for getting it appraised and removing PMI. You will absolutely need to make every payment on time during the year.

If you refi, you don't have to take more cash out. If the deal is where you want it to be, but you just have a bigger monthly payment because of the PMI, you might decide NOT to pull out cash, especially since DTI is an issue. You'll have to look at the rates in a year to decide whether removing PMI is worth the additional cost and potentially higher interest rate.

Michael Michalowicz' book "Clockwork" (and also "Profit First") might be valuable references for getting your finances right, and getting the automation started. Not affiliated, just a fan.

@Timothy Swenton, I get that you want cash loose for your next purchase, but maybe look for other ways of raising capital and let this one ride. Everyone is in a big hurry, but it doesn't help to break something that is working while reaching for the next deal.

@Kyle, 

I haven't read Brandon's book, but if it is like his blog posts, a lot of what he talks about works best for people who already have experience. Starting the conventional way will make it easier on you- save up the money, buy a decent deal, have someone manage it for you (vet your PM well and manage them) and build from there. Your friends who say you would be great at it see you in the property management role but if that's not what you want to do, ignore that and just put your money in to gain control of some property and learn as you go.