All Forum Posts by: Austin Steed

 I'm with @Samuel Diouf here. The more precise your goals are, more often than not, they become more achievable.

I've been an agent and investor in Columbus for 9 years and happy to connect! 

Building relationships with bankers is huge in the Commercial field. I know in Columbus a lot of community banks are doing loans on 2-20 units. So could start with some community banks in Cleveland since you are local.

Residential loans for the most part are serviced by Fannie Freddy but commercial loans can be much more diverse with their products so having a few options has always helped me a ton. 

Any city that I'm looking to invest in I always start by looking at population growth. More people moving to a city is more potential tenants. 

Cities with slow or negative population growth you should be much more picky on cashflow. 

When I did my first house hack in Columbus I showed very low income on taxes. 

One way that I was able to get into my first property was counting 70% of the rental income of the other unit on a duplex. This helped my Debt to income a ton and I was able to close on the deal. You could look for properties that are already getting solid rents in one of the units. 

I would go the VA loan if you can, no pmi will help your debt ratio as well.

 I usually see around 10% in central Oh. My issue with management is how they sometimes handle turns. For example for a few holes in the walls they have someone paint an entire unit and take their spread. When your interviewing companies I'd suggest to ask about maintenance, and even talk with leasing agent as well. 

I've never liked them personally. When I first started I purchased them and when it came time to use it the process was a nightmare. Wish I would have just saved the money!

@Preston Maddock welcome to BP! 

Happy to connect with you and talk about my experiences in Columbus.

 Agree with @Nicholas L. here. It's hard to beat a good house hack. Being single is good too, often having a family makes this a little tougher! 

 Columbus has a program for tax abatements (this is an evolving door though) where you can abate the improvements on properties. This can be good for BRRRs or sometimes you can find them with the abatements already approved. 

With solid credit and property have you considered just going the conventional route?