All Forum Posts by: Anthony Michael Hamza

Good evening BP Friends,

I am new to REI but want to expand my portfolio as soon as possible. I have a few questions.

Let's lay out some of the facts first:

-I am currently working a W-2 in MD.

-I own/manage a single-family rental property in Palm Beach County, FL since 06/2024. 

-I am currently using Avail Landlord software.

-My goal is to establish a cashflow funded retirement via a buy, rent, and hold forever strategy.

-I am focused on multifamily properties in the South Florida Region, mainly Palm Beach County and Broward County.

-I want to get my next property in the next 1-2 years if possible, but don't want to touch my current properties loan since I have a 2.25% APR.

-I am thinking about establishing a REIG Parent LLC with holding LLCs for each property in order to protect assets and establish a business presence/history that would appeal to potential future investors.

Questions:
1) Should I start the LLC now or wait? 

2) Should I continue using Avail or some other software?

3) Best place to find off-market multifamily properties for South Florida?

4) Who thinks there will be a market correction in 2026 and should I wait to capitalize on that?

Looking forward to any feedback I can get! Thanks in advance!

Respectfully,

Anthony

 Hey Jaren,

Thanks for the feedback. Yes, I have used the VA loan in my two purchases and experienced the 25% rule for down payments on amount over your remaining entitlement. Sorry if I did not word that correctly before, but that is what I was referring to. $340,000 of that entitlement is tied up with my first property in FL and the rest is tied up at my home here in MD. Once I sell my MD home, I should have about $466,500 remaining in entitlement since the Palm Beach County and Broward county loan maximums are currently $806,500. At least that is my understanding of how that works.

You are right about the strategy. Since I am focused on value-add properties, I definitely would consider it a cross between a BRRRR/House Hack/Live-in Flip.

I appreciate your feedback! Best of luck in your future business endeavors.

Respectfully,

Anthony

 Thanks again. I am definitely keeping an open mind about other markets. I have family in the Charlotte, NC and Rochester, NY areas which are both seemingly good markets right now for investment properties. If I found the right type of investment and I had the means to execute, I would definitely consider it. However, that would not be the same strategy since I don't intend on living in either of those places. 

I am looking forward to learning more on BP and refining my strategy over time. I appreciate your feedback and wish you the best on your endeavors as well!

Respectfully,

Anthony

 Hey Taz,

Thanks! Yes, I was very fortunate with that first home. 

My strategy is fluid at the moment with some of the national current events potentially affecting my job. However, I am definitely looking for a value-add multifamily deal, but I am only interested in Florida right now. My first home is in Delray Beach, and I intend to get back there at some point, possibly sooner than later. They say you should focus on one market and get to know it in and out. So I will be mainly focusing on South Florida where I have people, resources, and experience. I know it is an especially difficult market to break into as a new investor due to demand and competition, but I feel that it is still my best option. Unfortunately, my home in MD, unless rates drop and I can refinance, is not going to make for a good rental. So I am contemplating selling when I am ready to move, tentatively in 1-2 years. This would benefit two-folds by hopefully bringing some profit, as well as making the VA Loan available to use again. I'm thinking I can use a VA loan to purchase a multifamily in FL and house hack it. I would make some upgrades to the unit I occupy and then rent it fully after the occupancy requirements are met. The issues so far: finding an affordable property that makes sense with rents and is also a place I would comfortably choose to live. Also, I have to save up for the cash-to-close since the VA loan requires 25% down for anything above the loan limit. (i.e. if the loan limit is $400,000 and the property costs $800,000, then I need a $100,000 down payment plus closing costs). If you know South Florida.. $800,000 might not even get me into a duplex that meets my requirements. For a duplex, I would prefer to stick with 3 bed/2 bath/2 car garage, but quadplex, I would probably have to settle for a 2/1 or 2/2 set up with no garage. If it is a quadplex, we are looking at $1m+ and thus like a $150,000+ down payment. Max for me will probably be $1m - $1.2m.

That's the general idea so far. It's a work in progress. I do know that the housing supply in FL is generally going up and we could potentially see a drop in pricing in some markets soon. But I don't know if that will really affect multifamily or if I should hold out for that. I appreciate any feedback or suggestions you may have to offer. 

-Sorry, I guess all my responses are long-winded! This is why we are here though, to discuss and learn!

Respectfully,

Anthony

Hello Jaycee, Thanks for the response. I'm here to learn about everything related to long term rental investing. Specifically single-family/multi-family property investment and the BRRRR strategy. Eventually, I am looking to possibly expand to larger commercial properties with 5+ units. So far, I am just breaking into the industry with a single-family buy and hold strategy that, from what I can tell is basically the BRRRR strategy. I don't need 1,000 properties. I'd rather have enough properties to reach a comfortable cashflow of maybe $20,000/month with very low debt and leverage. I try to pay off all loans as fast as possible because I feel like money wasted on interest is overlooked sometimes as people only focus on the amount of money coming in rather than the amount saved.

As of today, I'm just focusing on establishing the best systems to analyze the markets, find properties, get financing, make wise renovations, and manage my rental properties. I currently use the landlord software Avail. I am hoping to get suggestions for better tools that are still affordable for new investors like myself. A one-stop-shop would be ideal. 

My property in Odenton is not looking very good to hold as a rental since the rents are pretty break-even with my expenses. If it was paid off or if rates would drop so I could refinance to a lower rate, then it may work. Still figuring that one out. But it is always better to buy than rent in my opinion, so I bought the best investment I could find based on my knowledge at the time.

Sorry for the long-winded response!

Respectfully,

Anthony

 Hey Jordan, Thanks for the response and tips! I'm definitely starting to look at those metrics more now. Eager to start playing with the tools and calculators provided here too. 

Best of Luck with all your endeavors in Memphis.

Respectfully,

Anthony

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $340,000
Cash invested: $110,000

This is my first rental property. Began renting the property out in June 2024 for $4,500 per month. With a 2.25% IR, total monthly expenses are at about $2,000 currently. No HOA, single family home. Put A little over $100,000 into renovations, mainly solidifying the property against hurricanes with impact windows & doors and a metal roof, but also some cosmetic stuff like floors, lighting and paint, etc. I am still new to a lot of the REI terminology and calculations, so I'm just using the amount spent on renovations as my "cash invested." I was a Realtor when I purchased it in 2019 and I used my commission towards the closing costs and I am a U.S. Army Veteran so I was fortunate not to have a lot of the typical expenses or a down payment. After living in the property form 2019 to 2024, my wife and I moved up to Maryland for a new job. We purchased our second property in August 2024, a townhouse this time, in Odenton, MD. With the interest rates and market prices, I am not sure this will be as great with returns. My goal is similar to the BRRRR method, and I want to hold on to rentals and create cashflow. My next property will hopefully be a multifamily. Hoping to learn a lot from this community.