All Forum Posts by: Brian Stieler

I passed on it today. After talking to a couple investor friends they suggested I could do better. So I'll keep hunting.

Regarding the shingles. I'm an out of state investor, and my realtor has been filming his walk through of the houses. He made a comment about how think the roof was, and just said "looks like 6 layers of shingles". I'm guessing it's not really that many. Regardless, we are/were going to have a property inspector look through the whole places.

Thanks for the replies everyone. I certainly agree that there's better out there, but originally felt like this one fit into the category of good investment. It's a decent size and price ($55k) for the rent, but repairs are a bit much. As an out of state investor, I agree the amount of work needed is high, and I could certainly find something more desirable for a renter. I'll keep looking.

Thanks again. Brian

Hey Everyone. I was hoping you could help me analyze a property I put an offer in for. It'll be my first one, and I'd prefer something smooth to learn from, rather that a headache (but that's what everyone's looking for right?).

1,300sqft Single Family Home in Michigan

4 Bedrooms - Three upstairs, one downstairs connected to the living room

1.5 Baths - Half bath upstairs, full bath downstairs

Asking price: $63,000. Offered $55,000

Estimated rent: ~$1100-$1200/m

Taxes: $875/y

30y Traditional loan. 20% down.

Needs:

- Complete interior paint & wallpaper removal

- New carpet throughout

- Tear off of roof in next 5 years (6 layers of shingles)

- New furnace in next 5 years

Pros:

- Large square footage

- Corner lot

- Aluminum siding looks good

- Decent sized kitchen with newer (but different colored) appliances

- Newer windows

- Upscale neighborhood

- Good school district

Cons:

- Next to the highway, quite noisey

- The bedroom/bathroom configuration is a bit odd

- No garage (think michigan winters)

What do you think? Good first investment?

Thanks @Brandon Krieg

@Ben Durwood

Hey Ben. I chose Michigan because I was born and raised there. All my family still lives there, and I have a lot of connections in the area. Also I'm familiar with all the different neighborhoods, but I'll still need to research the market.

@Brian Daly

Thanks for the info. I've been doing some shadowing of investors around San Diego, and it's really helped. I've decided to focus on Michigan buy/hold properties at the moment, though I'm open to advice from anyone willing to share.

@Tim G. I originally chose Phoenix because of its proximity. I would have liked to have my first investment be close by just in case, but from what I've read it's not that important. I'll start looking into Detroit and Atlanta options. Thanks again for your assistance.

Thanks @Jack E. for the offer. I'll most likely be PM-ing you soon to ask some questions.

Thanks for the reply @Tim G.

Certainly cash flow is a priority. I'd like to own 5 houses in 5 years. Option 1 is more to fix the outwardly flowing rent money, but like @Ben Durwood says, it's extremely hard to find.

Ben, I agree with your thoughts. Although I get lured into flipping by the success stories, I think buy and hold should be my priority. While Phoenix might not be my best option, it just seemed logical due to its proximity. I'm going to keep researching markets, with Arizona still as an option.

Thanks for the quick replies from you both.

I've narrowed down my first investment opportunity to the following three, but I'm a bit unclear as to which would be the best, and how I would afford them. I have a great credit score, ~$20k available in the bank, a well paying salary job, currently renting at $950/m.

Option 1: Buy a duplex in SD county, live in half and rent the other half. Those are roughly $500k+ and very hard to find, but I could probably get an FHA loan and save that $950/m.

Option 2: Buy and hold in Phoenix AZ. Better rates, close enough to drive if necessary. Could use traditional financing if pre-approved first.

Option 3: Get a group to do a flip in SD. Can't get a traditional loan for this. Would need hard money + gap funding. Seems expensive and not a big return, but good learning experience.

Are either of these good options for a beginner? Is there potentially a better option I should consider?