All Forum Posts by: Andrew Lacy

Welcome to BP. I just house-hacked a property on the Northside. Really loving it so far. Good Luck!

I am also interested in this. Thanks!

I am certainly no expert on anything you have asked, and am still very new to investing. But as far as your student loans I might suggest refinancing your 8% loan. I am looking to refinance my 8.6% loan from law school. Sofi offers a fixed rate of about 5-6% over 10 years, and 4-5% of 5 years if I am not mistaken. This could be something to look into. The only reason why I might not refinance this loan myself is because there is a possibility that I will work for the government someday (I want to eventually work as a federal prosecutor) and this would make me eligible for loan forgiveness.

I think that it is safe to invest in something if you are beating your student loan rate. For example, if you are beating your student loan rate of 4% by investing in real estate, then I believe you are making a wise decision. I do not plan to pay off my student loans aggressively for that reason. I look at my loans as a cost of doing business to obtain my current position as an attorney. I personally believe that it is in your best interest to try and beat your student loan rate and invest in real estate. We both have time on our side to get our investments snowballing. I'd rather have 15 units in ten years, and some student loan debt than be debt free with no passive income from properties. Not to mention the great tax benefits that come with REI!

Just wondering if there are any other future lawyers (hopefully) who just took the July bar? Also, any current lawyers, I would love to hear how you handle practice and investing as well.

Welcome Jeremy, I have similar goals. Pittsburgh is a great market. I look forward to seeing you around the site.

Welcome Charles,

I am from Pittsburgh. Been here almost all my life. It is a great place to invest with low barriers to entry. I do not know much about the VA loan, but I do know that you can get into a duplex with only 3.5% down with and FHA loan. Duplex's in Pittsburgh can be had for about 60k if you find a great deal and less than 100k in a good deal.

That means you can get an investment property for only 2,100 down. You're closing costs might be larger than your down payment. Not a bad way to get started and if do find a good deal someone else will pay your rent for free. This is called house hacking. It is a widely used strategy here on BP. If you have any questions about Pittsbugh please feel free to contact me.

Hi Stevie,

I am in the same boat. I have learned a lot over a few short months on BP. Looking to strike my first deal before the end of the year. I am from Moon Township. Hopefully we can connect going further. Good luck in your future endeavors!

Thanks everyone for the input. Looks like I have several things to think about. This was just a thought and not something I consider doing for some time. I'm glad I asked. Thanks again.

Hi all,

This strategy is something that I may want to use in the future. I want to know BP's thoughts if this is viable or even legal. So I have a few trusted friends who have more time than money. I have more money than time. Ultimately, I would like to buy properties with them and pay the entire costs including renovations.

The plan would be to do BRRRR with this partner. I would supply the cash, the loan would be in their name, and we would refinance to pull the cash out. I would then take the cash back that I put up front.

I would propose that this partner have a 20% equity stake in the property. I would retain an 80% stake, and we would be tenants in common. I then would propose that the partner is paid 10% to manage the property.

Has anyone tried anything like this? Is this even legal?  Are these terms fair if legal and viable?

Thanks!