All Forum Posts by: Blaine Alger

Welcome to BiggerPockets Roel!

I am also in the Waco area as well. Feel free to send me a message, I would love to connect.

-BA

You definitely have the right idea. Most people will rent over buy for 2 main reasons:

1). They lack the knowledge of the benefits of house hacking and how to execute it

2). They are unable to get a loan

You also have to take into consideration that even though an FHA loan will allow you to put down a 3.5% dwn pmt, that could still end up being 10k-20k ( could be more depending market) plus minor repairs and closing costs. So it still takes a little bit of cash to get into the deal and there are a lot of people out there who can't even afford that.

And then there are others who are just scared to make the jump and decide to do what everyone else is doing  instead of overcoming their fears and figuring it out. 

I would go talk to a bank/lender and get more specifics, they will have more knowledge on the subject than myself.

From my understanding, sometimes lenders will count education in to your work history.  But i have only seen it used with a finance degree and how it was explained to me is, if you have a formal education in finance and then go and get a job in the finance industry then lenders don't necessarily need 2 years of work history then. I am not sure if this would be the same for interior design.

You will definitely need to have a job and show you are bringing in consistent monthly income so you would have to wait until you started your job. You might be able to get started before hand if you have a parent co sign on the mortgage. 

 Being uncomfortable and anxious about making the jump is part of the process. Real growth occurs when you step outside of your comfort zone and do things that most would not. 

Sounds like you have a plan together but I would begin to focus more on the financing side. That is the biggest struggle for people your age. When you are young and have insufficient w-2 work history, banks don't like you that much. So you either need to seek out relationships with people who have access to capital, start working on maintaining a consistent income or look into owner financing opportunities that will allow you to by pass the banks (this will still require some cash, so continue to save). I don't know anything about your financial situation, so i would go talk to a lender and just see what you have to do in order for them to approve you for a loan. 

If you have any questions, feel free to send me a message. I would love to help anyway I can and I am just down I-35 from Dallas in Wacko.

-BA

@Steve Morris

Dang Steve-o , you must have a lot of free time on your hands if you got this much time to bully 16 year olds on Bigger Pockets.

It's 2020 and you have to come to the realization that Jimmy Carter isn't president anymore. We live in a virtual world and there is a lot of business that can happen over the internet. I sign all of my contracts, that don't require wet ink, on my I-phone.

What these guys are doing is completely legitimate. Of course they aren't entering into contracts over the phone, but they are getting verbal acceptances and then passing the deal along to their partners in Canada that handle the rest. I used to do the exact same thing in SC, its a great way to get started and get comfortable talking with sellers. There are many people who do this type of work and it is often referred to as virtual wholesaling.

It kinda sounds like you are the one who needs to " learn a few things first". I would be glad to send you some links to some videos so you can educate yourself on the subject (this is how you add value to a conversation instead of useless BS, take some notes).

-BA

Well the point of the forum post was to get advice on how to get started.

He was not seeking to get some half-witted, snarky remark. If you are not going to add any value to the conversation topic, then there is no point in participating. 

I think the best place to get started is here in the forums, so you are in the right place. Be sure to participate and ask questions and you will be surprised with the amount of knowledge you will be able to obtain.

In regards to  getting started in actually investing in RE, I am not sure what your financial situation looks like, but that is important. I don't care what the gurus tell you, you need some type of money, consistent income or access to someone with capital in order to get started. This can be an issue for most people our age, but if you have some conssistent work history and some money saved up, then you might be able to some type of loan from a bank. You don't know until you ask, so get out there and see whats possible. 

I would also encourage you to search your local market in the BP search function and reach out to all of the local investors. Tell them who you are, what your are trying to do within RE and see what value you can bring to their business. This is a a great way to build relationships and get experience within the RE investing space.

Feel free to send me a message  if you have any other questions. 

-BA

Well I believe you are in the right place to get started. There is a lot of investment activity in Ohio and it is relatively affordable, so that tells you there is opportunity. 

I would suggest that you go talk with a couple lenders/banks. That will give you a good idea on where you need to start. Given that you have a full time job and a sufficient work history, I think you might be surprised for what you could get approved for. Once you know what you can afford in the banks eyes, you can use that 10k as a down payment on a duplex or SFH that you could rent out the rooms and house hack.

You don't know what is possible until you ask. Good luck!

-BA

Way to get after it, Eddie. In my opinion RE is the best thing out there and the quicker people make that realization and make the jump, the better off they will be. It is great that you are getting started off so young, but given your age, there are some challenges for you to overcome. 

Even though @Steve Morris is being a little negative nancy, he does make a valid point. At your age, you are unable to execute enforceable contacts on your own because you are a minor. This will make it difficult for you to go out on your own. There may be a way for you to get around this by setting up an entity with someone who is of age and is capable to consent to contractual obligations. No guarantee this will work, just an idea. I would encourage you to do your own research on the topic.

My best advice would be to continue working with the Canadians or find someone through BP in your local market you can help out and have a more integral role in their business. There are a lot of investors out there who will see your passion and drive to succeed and would love to take you under their wing. Just be sure to always lead with value when having these conversations and have the "what goes around, comes around" mentality. 

As long as you keep taking CONSISTENT action while continuing to educate yourself, everything else will fall into place. Feel free to send me a message if you have any other questions, would love to help anyway I can. 

-BA

I am not that knowledgeable in the ATL market but you don't have to be an expert to know that it is HOT and can be difficult to get started.  I would encourage you to look outskirts of the Atlanta metroplex and try to find a secondary market that won't have as much competition and will be easier to get started. I think a 30-45min radius from the city center would be a good range.

To get a better feel for the market, I would suggest you just search "Atlanta" in the BP search bar and just reach out to all the investors that pop up. This is good way to introduce your self, let them know what you are trying to do and see what value you can bring to their business. Great way to build relationships and connections when meet ups are not as available.

Best of luck!

-BA