All Forum Posts by: Blake Elder

Good afternoon! My wife and I are interested in rolling our Roth IRA into a self directed account. We would like to be able to do buy & hold investing as well as note purchasing with this account. What experience do you have with each of the companies? Is there one you prefer? I am looking into Entrust and Equity Trust Company at this point. Any other recommendations?

@Nicholas Lehman- I live and work in your area in the real estate industry. Great work on your first investment property and especially getting in with the great rates and the down payment option the FHA program provides! My wife and I bought our first 4 plex a few years ago doing the same program. We are planning on doing it again this upcoming summer. I am representing the seller on a 4 plex that is closing with an FHA loan this week, and as you know, in our area it is very popular right now to invest in multifamily.

Since as a condition of your loan you have to intend to move in to one of the units within 60 days of recording, the lender will require a "notice to vacate" that was delivered to one of the tenants before recording. I would encourage you to learn, memorize and understand the Alaska Landlord Tenant act. Here is the link to it.

http://www.law.alaska.gov/department/civil/consume...

I am no lawyer, but the way that article 8 is commonly interpreted in the industry is that if as a condition of a loan you need to move in to the home, you are able to issue a "notice to vacate" to any of the units, regardless of the rental agreement you are inheriting with the purchase. 

So to answer your question,

1. You can occupy any unit you would like, you just need to give them the "notice to vacate"

2. It would be encouraged to raise her rent to something that reflects more of a market rate.

3. Some people advise to wait to do anything regarding the rates until you have owned the place for a few months and learn more about how it operates. Just like buying a business. Other people take the opposite side and say, buy it and start immediately making changes. As a new investor though, it might be good to close and then move in and watch and see what is happening for a few months before making changes.

4. The point has already been made, but 1 month of vacancy is the same as renting the unit for $100 less for 9 whole months, so act cautiously when making adjustments! Hope this helps, and congrats again on your purchase!

Oleg,

Talk with your lender to see what you should be preparing for. If you plan on moving into the property, you might be able to do the owner occupy 3.5% down FHA loan, or if you aren't planning on moving in, most of the times it is 25% down with a conventional loan if you go that route.

Talk with your lender first, that way you know the options and costs of that route, then can choose if that is the way you will go, or if you are going to seek a creative route!

@Jeremy Tillotson- Thanks that is very helpful!

Hey everyone, 

I use quickbooks for my businesses and also for my personal finances. I know that at some point in the future, it will not be worth me spending 20 minutes per week doing my own bookkeeping. Do you have experience, good, bad, indifferent with having a bookkeeper do your personal finances. Do you use the same company to handle the bookkeeping on your investment properties?

Thanks for the advise @Wayne Brooks, @ J Beard, @ Richard Dyas,

So everyone who owns a rental with an FHA loan just holds it in their name? Interesting.....

I was just talking with a commercial lender about some qualifications for purchasing a commercial investment. He mentioned offhand that he has seen a few times with smaller properties that have an FHA loan, where the owner quitclaims the deed over to an LLC, and this triggers the due on sale clause in the loan. Have you guys ever experienced this or heard about it? I have a quitclaim deed drawn up right now and am waiting to sign it to transfer the deed out of my name and into the LLC. What are your thoughts, experiences and opinions on this?

Welcome Sarah! To both Bigger Pockets and KW. I am a member of both and work out of the Wasilla office. Next time you are in the office swing in and say hello! I would love to hear about what you are looking for in investments and see if there is anything I can do to help. 

Thanks @Jeff Greenberg and @Joe Fairless, much appreciated. I know the details are going to differ deal by deal, but how many investors do you typically pull in? Do you put in your own capital as well, or typically receive your equity for putting the deal together and managing all the details after closing? 

@John Thedford Thanks for your insight as well. We are seeing very similar appreciation in our area as well. I just want to think ahead and make sure I am thinking for the long run. You mentioned that there are plenty of people who own smaller properties and are happy with them. Do you know of anyone doing this on a large scale? I'm just looking for good models and systems for the future and want to base them off of good examples.

Thanks for your input!

Thanks for the advise guys. Are you doing equity syndications with these projects, or primarily using loans from private investors and remaining in control? It seems like at a certain point inviting others in for an equity position in each new project would be a good way to go. What is your experience with these? I see a lot of posts on how to purchase the first or second or third property on here, but I want to make sure I am thinking with the end in mind and making sure I am paving the way for successful additions of other investors in the future. Thanks!