All Forum Posts by: Ashley Campbell

Looking to by one or two LTR props prior to year-end.  Working on building my team around me and trying to decide if a RE focused CPA is needed for "Tax Strategy" at this point.  We are W-2 employees with pretty straightforward tax filing at this point.  Eager to learn about RE tax write-offs, how to document/keep up with expenses, what can be written off, etc. at this point...However, the 3 RE focused CPA's I've visited with want $5,000 annually for a couple hour sessions a year and a few recorded classes and other resources, which does not include tax preparation.  I'm having a hard time justifying this cost when I'm only getting started.  Thoughts?  Recommendations?  Any resources out there that anyone highly recommends?  TIA! 

@Mike Reynolds Nice! Mabelvale is a growing area.  South of LR (Benton/Bryant) is a growing area as well.  We lived there for 3 years and could kick ourselves for selling our house when we did.  Another good potential area for us.  and Mt. Ida is a beautiful area! 

you likely are aware of this if investing in Mobile Home parks...Benton/Bryant had one for sale recently in the last two months.  Not sure if it's still on the market though. D

Do you self-manage or use someone local?  

@Jeremy Fleming All great points! Really appreciate the feedback! 

@Mike Reynolds Isn't it funny how that works!  I'm really not opposed to investing in AR.  Based on my research, it just seems as if more jobs moving to TX and appreciation is likely to take place in some of those "smaller" cities outside of DFW.  Don't get me wrong NW AR is booming!  This is my dilemma though...where do I invest?  I know it's not my backyard (even though folks are trying to convince me of that). Just need to get started! I total get why I've heard over and over people getting hung up on the first investment LOL.  Really our goal has been to acquire 2-3 properties by YE...so still time to hit our goal! 

Do you mind sharing the area in AR you invest?  How long have you been investing?  I'm all ears if someone is willing to share their experience! 

That word “stuck” brought you to my post. Exactly why I used it 😎 Thanks for the input! 

Definitely agree small town USA is overlooked! The appreciation play is just hard to come by in the SW part of AR. 
I’m curious though…if I looked at a market that is in a 2/3 hour radius of my household in my state of AR, why would looking in a 2/3 hour radius be worse in the state of TX? I’m an hour from the TX border. Thanks! 

@Nicholas L. Thank you for the feedback! For context around our area…population is less than 200 in our immediate area, nearby is 2,000ish, and closest metro area is a little over an hour. Anything worth buying would be $200k+ with most rent in the area going for $1,000 per month. We live in the middle of nowhere! 

Yes, we could consider the nearby metro, which is Hot Springs. However, lots of older homes that either need a lot of work or would require a lot in the near future. This is really why we are looking in the north Texas market, which is only about 2/3 hours away. Several newer homes and growing area. Something that’s not expected in our market. 

Thanks for the thread recommendation! I’ll definitely go down that rabbit hole shortly! 

Background:  Late 30s, married with two young kids (4 and 2).  My husband and I both have solid W2 incomes (both remote).  We live in small town Arkansas with a very low cost of living.  No plans to move as this is where we want to raise our girls.  We have been your average corp job employees for the past 15+ years (maxing out 401K, emergency fund savings, etc.).  About 5 years ago we hopped in a RE syndication and pulled out of it recently to take a more active role in our investing (returns where meh), along with trying to supercharge our financial goals in retiring early.  Theoretically, we are on track to retire in our mid 50s.  But why not try earlier and start gaining some income outside of our W2!  And the grind is getting a bit monotonous...Plus, I've always had a keen interest in RE and ready to dive in.  I'm a specialty insurance underwriter by trade; therefore analyzing deals and numbers is my jam.  

Our market doesn't make sense from a longer term rental standpoint, so we've been researching different areas to focus on and get started.  Man, it's sooo overwhelming!  We've pretty much honed in on North Texas area.  We've been exploring the OmniKey Group/Slaughter Investing, which we came across through the RealWeath (Kathy Fettke) channel.  Does anyone have any experience with these folks?  Any feedback would be appreciated.  

We have approximately $150k liquid cash ready to go and can likely gain more capital in a fairly quick manner.  I keep getting hung up if we should focus on diversifying with two different houses in two different areas in North Texas or go for it on a more expensive type Duplex.  On paper the duplex projects higher returns, but of course, that's just a projection.  Interested in some thoughts here! PS...anything outside of our market, we do plan to hire a PM.  

Now, we do live in a small town, touristy area that does lack in nicer/unique short-term rentals. Could be an opportunity here. In my head I ask myself if we should go for one less capital intensive LTR and give a local STR a try (for the tax advantages) as well. We really need to sit down with an experienced RE CPA. We've visited with 3 that just don't get it. Personally, I need to do more homework myself on the local STR part to see if numbers make sense.

Appreciate anyone's feedback!