All Forum Posts by: Brenda E.

Hi, Dan. We bought a house that had to be completely repainted and are almost done.  The hollow core bedroom doors were so filthy and marked on, I decided to paint them as well.  Four coats later it still looks bad.  I was using a good quality paint with primer.  What should I have used?

Hello, TJ  and welcome to Bigger Pockets!  You will find a wealth of information on this site as well as knowledgeable, helpful folks.  I love the podcasts and listen every day on my commute to work. I like the variety of guests that have different strategies and thoughts about investing.  I also like the calculators available in the tools section of the website and use those daily to analyze deals.

My husband and I are natives to NWA and I hope you love it here as much as we do. We have primarily invested in raw land (20-40 acre tracts) but are delving into the buy and hold rental world. We have currently bought a SFH and now looking at a four-plex. Plugging numbers into the BP calculators, the multi-family seems like the best way to cash flow unless you can find a great deal on a home. Saying that, cash flow on homes is good in the Fayetteville area because of the university as you can rent by the bedroom. You've probably noticed our area has a lot to offer!

I also wanted to let you know we have a REI group that meets the second Tuesday in Fayetteville. Brandt Barnes (mentioned in above comment) heads this up and it is a wealth of info for experienced and newbies investors. Let me know if you need more info about this.

Brenda

Yes.  I know there are several people from the Bentonville/Bella Vista area.

@Paul Thompson I am interested in seeing the lease as I am working on one right now and wondering if I should get an attorney to look at it. I'm in the Fayetteville area. Also am curious about the Landlord Association. Does each town usually have one? Our local REI is meeting next week so I will also ask there. I'm curious---do you do month-to-month leases or 6-12 mo leases?

thanks,

Brenda

Welcome, Jeff!

We have a great local REI group that meets every 2nd Tuesday in Fayetteville at the Courtyard Marriott. Tons of expertise and advice at these meetings. Brant Barnes heads up this group and I agree with Douglas, he is an amazing investor. Hope to see you there!

Brenda

Welcome! My husband and I are starting our REI adventure next week with our first SFH for a rental. We have lived in NW Arkansas all of our life. I agree about calling Brandt Barnes with Shelter. He is also the president of our local REI group that meets in Fayetteville and he is a super nice, helpful man. Sounds like you are off to a great start!

We found one of our deals at our bank.  One of the commercial lenders had a duplex he wanted to sell and approached us.  Selling by owner allowed him to give us a better price.  We've found that once people know you are looking, deals come to you. 

Have you tried running these numbers through the rental property calculator on the BP site?  You can use it for free 5 times (edits count as a time) and then unlimited if your a pro member.  They are helpful for me.  Also, have you shopped around for interest rates? We are closing on our first deal the end of this month and was able to get our bank down almost one percentage point because my husband had found a bank that would give us a better rate.  When he told our regular banker, she countered even lower.  It's fun having banks fight over your business.  I had no idea they would do that! Also, will it need repairs? and what about appliances?  Just trying to think of other stuff that might come into play.

Hi, Dustin. We live in NW ARK, too. I have been pouring over the website, podcasts and webinars for several months. You will find so much info and support here! I would also like to invite you to the local REI meetings. They are a great local source of like-minded people with all different connections in the investing part of real estate. The meetings are the 2nd Tuesday of the month (tonight) at the Courtyard Marriott in Fayetteville. Tonight is not a regular "meeting" but vendors (insurance, real estate agents, property managers, etc.) It will be a good way to make some connections before you make the first step of purchasing.

Brenda

Jim,

welcome!  I'm new to investing as well and have been listening to the podcasts every chance I get.  I'm in NW Arkansas and hoping to find a group up here.  Keep us posted.

Brenda