All Forum Posts by: Austin Bright

Hey guys, thanks for the help!

I'm a new investor... However, I am also a finance analyst. I would still get a second opinion.

When it comes to mtx, repairs, capex, I think it'd be a good idea to budget based on purchase price of the home.... or even better... appraised value. Rent isn't really correlated with any major house components, whereas the value of the home would directly relate to condition of roof, foundation, flooring, etc.. In my research, I've found saving about 1-2% of the value would be sufficient.

Thanks

Hi

I'm a new investor and resident of DFW. I currently work in finance and would like to jump into rental property investing. I am unsure where to find groups of real estate investors to connect with. I have been using meetup.com, but it seems like most groups on there are trying to sell me something. 

Is there a real estate focused meetup like website? I am very eager to find people to connect with!

Thanks!

Originally posted by @Aaron Gordy:

@Austin Bright Also ask about accelerated depreciation. That is a big one imo. 

Would just be MACRS? Or is it done differently for Real Estate?

@Bob Norton

So if I live in a duplex and rent out the other side, I can deduct that loss from what would be my taxable salary from the company I currently work for? 

As for the estimated tax on rental income... My currently witholdings related to tax, ss, medicare are about 25.5%. Would this be a reasonable % to use on my rental income then? I plan on consulting a tax accountant in my area, but I want to have some idea on what my questions should be. Thanks!

Thanks Michael!

Do you know if rental income would be treated the same as my salary with respect to medicare and ss? Or would the federal govt only take out the income tax?

Newbie investor here.

I've read that I can deduct depreciation from my expenses.... What other non-cash expenses can I take out? A maintenance reserve? A vacancy reserve? Or is this not allowed?

Also, I know I can deduct mortgage interest. However, if I roll the FHA insurance premium and repairs into an FHA 203k loan, would that blindly overstate the interest I can deduct? For example, would I be double counting if i deducted repairs expense and interest related to the repair dollars in a 203k loan?

Thanks!

Hi All When buying a home in pre-foreclosure thats been on the market most of the year, how are negotiation strategies impacted? Presumanbly, I am buying from the bank. Is it possbile to negotiate the purchase price? Closing costs? Especially if the value is less than the original loan amount? What are some strategies to employee. (There was a 16% price cut last month, and it was originally listed in May?) Thanks!

Hi All. I'm trying to get into rental property investing in Dallas/Fort Worth. I'm facing a common barrier to entry, having little capital (about 11-12K). I'm looking for advice from local investors on the best path to take. 1. I ideally want to get into duplex investing -- I'd have to finance with an FHA loan and live on the property for a year. I am strongly attracted to the idea of renting the other half out to increase my equity at a faster rate than if I lived in a single family home for a year. Then use the increased equity as leverage going forward. However, given my capital situation, the best I could really do with 3.5% down is around 200k (assuming I can negatiote with the seller to cover closing costs). The DFW area doesn't really have duplexes in this price range (unless I want to live in an unsafe area). Is it better to concentrate on single family properties for the first year? If so, the only viable way to substanitailly increase equity in the first year to look for properties that need lots of repairs? Are there any DFW investors out there that can provide feedback? Thanks!

Thanks! I was hoping to also relocate to a different state in the near future. Would it be advisable to wait until I get settled before really digging into this?

Thanks!