All Forum Posts by: Austin Smither Langley

@Tyler Crowell,

People on the BP do mention putting 5-10% down on properties.  Saying that does not necessarily refer to lender requirements and may just refer to the down payment.

For example, properties that my team sells usually require a $5,000 down payment regardless of the purchase price. If the purchase price is $100,000 then yes, the buyer paid a 5% down payment. To take that further, closing costs may include lender fees, HOA fees, title fees, etc. that cost another $5,000. This means the buyer may have put $10,000 cash down (down payment + closing costs) for a property that cost him/her $110,000 total (around 9%).

Grant Cardone must have lied about occupying his first property to get FHA financing...something I don't think anyone (except maybe Grant) would recommend. The home must be the borrower's primary residence to qualify for an FHA loan.

@Zachary Walter and @Hunter Byler, from what I understand, in order to pull a permit to rehab in Harris County floodplains, the rehab cost needs to be <50% of the homes assessed value.

A perfect example of how this can be a problem...

My team came across a property in a floodplain that has never flooded (per seller). The owners had occupied the property for decades and somehow managed to keep taxes low with an assessed value of the home around $20K. $10k would not be nearly enough to rehab the property up to a solid ARV. That said, an experienced buyer would know that this needs to be torn down and built new because the regulation prevents a flipper from pulling a permit to spend more than $10k on rehab.

Just something to keep in mind when looking at properties in the floodplain.

@Tyler Crowell, @Anthony Bellesbach is correct that you will need at least 20-25% saved up (or private money partners) to work with most lenders.  $10k would probably get you around $40k in financing.

My team can serve as a source of deals in the Houston.  If you're interested in seeing what other investors are paying for properties in the Houston area, please reach out.

Looking for RE agents in Houston that have experience and specialize in listing properties for investors after rehab is complete?   Please reach out and provide referrals.

@Ryan Johnson it is recommended to target properties that rent for over 1% the all in cost (purchase price + rehab).  It's a safer play than aiming for 1% over purchase price.

@Akeen Felder, I can't vouch for GA but in TX contracts can be assigned without a license if it's worded right because it's not a sale of property - it's a sale of a piece of paper representing a right to purchase property.  For wholesalers that double close, agents can represent the wholesaler when purchasing and/or selling properties to investors.

@Adrian Gonzalez, for full transparency I'll start by saying we are related, but Curt Langley is a great attorney who should be able to help with your needs.  Info here: http://cdrlegal.com/attorneys/langley/

At my brokerage, we require investors agree to an initial meeting with us prior to sending them our properties to ensure safety, full disclosure, and full transparency.  We don't want someone we don't know going to properties that we sell.  This annoys some investors/buyers and filters some out, but if they can't make time for a quick meeting, how will they make time for property showings??

I'm also glad we live in a country where agents like @Jamie Rose can protect themselves from bears...no initial meeting or ID request can prevent that!

After 5 years running my family foods company, I am looking to get into the real estate side of things.  As a newbie, I am interested in gaining experience under someone with plenty of it (via partnership or employment).  Several niches interest me, such as buy-and-hold rental properties to generate passive income or possibly wholesale acquisitions to utilize my sales background.

I do not have a Texas real estate license, and want to learn some in's and out's of the industry before deciding whether or not I will need one as a future real estate investor.  I've listened to hundreds of BP episodes and feel like I've learned enough to make the jump and start reaching out to local investors.

Any tips, recommendations, or opportunities that might be of value to me in the Houston area would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,

Austin