All Forum Posts by: Bryan Venable

I second @Mark Frattini. We just had an inspection done by John Robinson Inspection Group on a 4 unit we are buying with a VA loan. The report was thorough, they were available for any questions on the property after the inspection, and the report was available online through a very easy to navigate UI. https://home-inspector-san-die...

Here's a link to the meetup page https://www.meetup.com/meetup-group-kqMJiybE/events/261302600/?success=email_sent&success=mailinglist_sent

@Michael J. Finnegan the comments so far have really good information. Commercial loans are really a different beast than residential. One thing to keep in mind is if the loan you are getting is non-recourse or not. For example the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac loans are non-recourse but not all commercial loans are. @Michael Blank had a recent podcast, #146, that talks about loans and has some great information. I highly recommend it. I will definitely be giving it at least one more listen to.

My wife and I switched to Google Podcasts because of this bug, it has the latest episodes. https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.podcasts&hl=en_US

Hey BiggerPockets,

I'm an out of state investor working with wholesalers right now to find deals. I am a new investor and don't have a track record, as such I find that most of the wholesalers that bring me potential deals are new wholesalers. They are responsive and work hard but the reliability of the ARV, repair costs, and value of the location can sometimes be questionable. I want to do my due diligence, but I also want to grab the deal quick. For example, a wholesaler brought a deal to me that was priced at $40K, had an ARV of $110K and needed $30K-$50K in repairs. Well, if it only needs $30K, it's a deal and if it needs $50K, it's not a deal. The only way to know is to inspect it and get quotes from contractors. There is usually not enough time to get that done before needing to make a decision. Is there a process to purchase from wholesalers with contingencies so that if I find out that the property needs more in repairs I can renegotiate or back out and get my earnest deposit back?

Thanks,

Bryan

@Sean Harrington Thanks for asking! I feel like it has taken way too long for us to get started but we are finally really close! We are currently working with several wholesalers in the area analyzing properties daily. So far nothing has exactly met our criteria but there have been enough that have been close that I know any day now we will find what we are looking for. I have come to know the strange feeling of passing on deals that I know are good deals but don't fit our criteria so we have to pass. For example we have seen many properties that are ideal flip candidates but they just won't cashflow after refinancing and since we are looking to buy and hold we have had to pass. Others seem to have a lot of potential but are in speculative locations. We have a property manager lined up that we are bouncing any prospective properties off of, this is helping us avoid those properties that the wholesaler says "This is in a great neighborhood" but it's not in a great neighborhood. We tried working with realtors but didn't have any luck with them. The wholesalers we are working with tend to be new which is great because they are working their butts off to find us what we are looking for but at the same time we have to do extra due diligence since the ARVs and repair estimates can be off as well as ensuring the location is what they say it is.

It seemed impossible in the beginning but it's getting more real every day. I have no doubts that it will work out.

Dear Wholesalers,

We are looking to purchase 1 property that meets the following criteria:

• Located in Indianapolis, IN or surrounding area
• 3/2 SFR or SFRs that can easily be converted into a 3/2
• No HOA
• Outside of floodplain
• In an area YOU would feel safe living in
• Rehab should be able to be completed within 3 months
• Monthly rent must be greater than $1000
• Must cashflow at least $200 after 75% cash out refinance
• We will pay up to 70% of the after repair value minus repair costs

If you have or come across any properties that match this criteria please email us at [email protected].

Thank you,

Bryan & Lyuba Venable

@Caleb Heimsoth doing long distance rehab is not managing risk. It is full of risk that needs to be managed.

@Brandon Cravens The only reason I am limiting myself to one region for now is to focus my limited time for networking and analysis to one area. If I find a deal in another location and I can easily find the people to help me buy and hold it then I'll do that, otherwise I'll wholesale it. I'll keep you in mind if somehow something in North or West Houston comes across my path.

Edit: After some thought I would not say that I am limiting myself to one region, but that I am focusing on one region.

@Reese C. This thread is very similar to one I started not long ago. We ended up just picking Indianapolis to start in because we were tired of being stuck in analysis paralysis. We decided that our time would be better spent analyzing a specific market, rather than continuing to debate over different markets when we don't have any experience yet. I've had a lot of people tell me not to attempt a brrrr strategy out of state for my first deal, but I believe they are missing the point, or rather what my goal is. Yes, of course there is more risk, but that is what an investor does. Manage risk. Yes, we could buy a turn-key for low risk, or invest closer to home. But I want to drive two hours to my investment property just as much as I want to take a 5 hour flight to one. I don't want to do either of those things. I want to make this into a business by developing systems. Systems like "Long-Distance Real Estate Investing" and the "E Myth" teach us to develop. I would rather not make any money on my first deal, even lose money on my first deal, as long as I learned from it.

My advice is to just pick a location and start mitigating your risk by learning about that area and networking. Only you know the amount of risk you are comfortable with. I don't know about you but I already have enough people telling me I can't do something. That is the beauty of BP, it is full of people doing things I once though was impossible. You can do this and so can I.

Disclaimer: I haven't done my first deal yet so take this advice with a huge grain of rock salt. I'm just trying to offer a little encouragement in a world of dissuasion.