All Forum Posts by: Bill Ham

@Adam Johnson, @Inam Rehman

Guys,

when I said larger properties/multifamily being harder to sell in the smaller markets I meant big complexes as in 100+ units or more. I have several in a small town and its harder to sell there than in a big city.

As for duplexes and quads or properties up to 20-30 units are great to buy in small towns. I highly suggest flipping singles and holding multi for long term cash flow.

Looks like your monthly payment will be about $202. Repairs and maintenance (depending on age and condition) will be about 10-15% of the annual income. Figure out your taxes and insurance costs. If all expenses will allow for cash flow then its probably a good deal.

Is the loan fully amortized at 30 years or will it be a balloon note?

@Account Closed is right. Its almost impossible to find a traditional lender that will allow a seller to carry-back the entire down payment. Start networking to find financial partners that can bring cash to your deal for you or borrow it.

Zillow.com

@Justin Williams

Good points here. It is a business and a numbers game. You do and will fail so take it in stride. Most of my portfolio is in apartment complexes but I started with singles. I still hold about 20 of them.

@Joe Butcher

You asked about attorneys and their role. If you are going to do lease options or seller financing their biggest role will be creating and recording the docs. Law can change dramatically from state to state so always consult with an attorney in your state before doing any deal. Side note- use an attorney with considerable experience in lease options and seller financing. You get what you pay for.

Joe-

I have built a 400 unit portfolio using seller financing/debt partners/lease options.

The major point @Will Barnard started to hit on already. Your offers need to be creating value for the seller. Don't focus on if a seller is motivated but WHY. Listen to the sellers problems and see if you can create an offer that solves those issues. I see so many new investors saying "I want to get SF or a lease option".

Its not about what you want but what works for the seller. If you can do this then you custom fit each offer to each seller. Lease options are only dead in Texas if you don't know how to make that a viable offer.

You asked about exit strategies...your offer should take into account your exit strategy. If your seller has equity and you plan to refinance with a lender- Seller Financing. If your seller has a mortgage in place and you plan to flip or operate because they are burned out...Lease option.

@Brandon Radford

You can put the property under contract or use a NCND document.

Non-circumvent Nondisclosure. Your attorney can create that for you but first you need to focus on finding and identifying good deals before you worry about someone stealing them from you.

Just because it's for sale does not make it a good deal. You will find it harder than you expect. Start by reading some posts on deal analysis.

CraigsList

@Brandon Radford

I agree with Zach that seller financing is a great place to start. I also suggest you spend some time looking for mentors or partners that bring the experience and cash that you will need. No matter what anyone tells you...real estate is not a free business. You don't have to use your money but you will need to use someones. Join your local REIA groups and start networking.

@Howie Baker

You need to get some data on the sub-market (3-5 miles around the property). Check occupancy for like-kind properties in the area. If all of the properties have much higher occupancy then this is upside potential. If there occupancy is the same then you will have to compete by lowering prices or having more amenities than the competition. The latter is a headache to be avoided!