All Forum Posts by: Brian Mathews

I have gotten to the point where I now have a pretty solid plan on what kind of investment home I want to buy and the area where I will buy. Unless housing prices sky rocket in the next year I will have saved enough for a 20 percent down payment on my first investment property.

The first property seems easy to get. I was wondering if anyone would be willing to share their strategy for acquiring more buy and hold investment property. On paper it appears that if I continue my current savings and don’t touch the cash flow from my property I will be able to purchase a second property (after building a cash reserve) in approximately two years.

I have read about people acquiring a new property every year. I am curious about how this is done. Is it possible to do when you have to come up with a 20% to 25% payment every time you buy? I know there are other sources than banks (hard money…etc) but I don’t think I currently understand enough about creative finance to make it part of my plan. Any advice or recommended reading will be appreciated.

@Jay Hinrichs 

I’m personally a little iffy about Starkville. There is a large pool of tenants because of the college. However, there is also a lot of competition for those tenants which seems to lower the rent prices unless you buy in a prime area. As a beginner, I haven’t found one in my price range that is in a good area and also produces a cash flow I would be happy with. There is also a pretty high yearly turnover and if you don’t get your property rented before the semester begins it stands a chance of sitting vacant for three months.The entire town seems to be scheduled around college semesters. There are a lot of investors who do very well here. As a beginner it’s a little more than I want to start out with.

I actually like the area of Mississippi where you invest better. I grew up around there and it seems a little easier on beginners to me.

@Ali Boone 

I’m glad you chimed in. One of your articles was part of the driving force behind my question. Have you written anything about how you are picking your property managers?

I appreciate everyone’s comments. Twenty to Thirty percent of my cash flow is definitely something to think about. I value time enough that I would be willing to sacrifice some of my profit but wouldn't want to be taken advantage of either.

I've listened to many of the podcasts on this site. Many recommend that a buy and hold investor should start by managing his/her own properties.  I was wondering if anyone could tell me what they have gained by managing their own properties?  If you work a full time job and are being charged a reasonable fee it seems like you would be better off letting someone else handle the land lording aspect of your business.  Right now I am viewing the time and headaches saved by hiring a property manager as being more valuable than the extra income gained. Any opinions will be appreciated.

Thanks for all the info.  It's definitely a good start.

Could anyone recommend a good source of information on the history of prices on single family homes in a local area?  I have read books that recommend comparing properties you are thinking about buying with similar properties that have sold in the same area.  I think it would also be useful to find historical trends on property values. Nothing I have read is very clear on the actual process of doing the recommended research.  Any help would be appreciated.

I want to introduce myself. I'm a born and raised Mississippian. I have been using this forum and the podcasts to educate myself for nearly a year.

I am primarily interested in a buy and hold type of strategy. Mobile home investing is particularly interesting to me.

Thank you for the excellent source of information you have all been a part of creating.