All Forum Posts by: Ben McMahon

Drive fast and take chances. Just kidding. It’s a long term game. Play it that way

Hey Rhett, I can probably go take a look at it. I’ve been getting out of the game, but I have a little time right now.

Contractors will often charge overhead and profit of 10-15%. There is also a general conditions fee often of 5 % sometimes. All this is to insulate the price if things go south. Which they often do. A lot of contractors will make money on labor and materials as well. If they missed something in the bid, you can kiss that 15% goodbye. Things rarely work out perfectly, and they are taking some of the liability off your shoulders. So they should get that.

Hey y’all. I’ve been very active in Front royal for the last 10 years. I just sold my property management company, and have a the contacts needed. Agents, pm, contractors etc. go ahead and pm me if you want info

Cory Melick hey man, welcome to the area. I’m not RE investing for the next two years since I sold my business and signed a non compete, but I can probably help if you need anything. I know lots of contractors, agents, knuckleheads and so on.

James Edward Grohman That’s awesome man. It’s rare to start that way. Most of us have to grind it. I just sold my property management company. If your starting off, I would define your goals. Do you want to build a large portfolio or just make enough to get a decent check each month? Or maybe you don’t care about returns but want to put it toward something in the future. Find someone to walk you through the process and definitely use a property manager for at least a year if not longer. You need to see how things work. Might be worth while buying just one single family and see how you like it. Than grow from there. My two cents.

You got to partner up bro. It’s the only way to get started. My suggestion would be to find a deal and present it to another investor. Tell him you will do all the work, and if he makes more than 10% you get to keep the gravy. Or some arrangement like that. Once you make money for him on the first deal he will tell all his wealthy friends and they will all be up for that action. Btw you can make money on the contracting, and the real estate transaction without any liability. There’s lots of ways to make money in this business, just got to get creative. If your the realtor and the contractor you don’t need to make much on the actual flip, you just need to keep the deals flowing. I’ve done it a bunch of different ways. 50/50 isn’t a bad option either. And lots of people will take that if they see the potential. Use your track record as agent and contractor to create a track record as an investor.

Cabinet giant has RTA cabinets that are nice and cheap. Go online and order. The other stuff the same. Local lumber yards have better prices often than Lowe’s for doors and windows. 84 lumber does.

The old me would have said you should leverage to the hilt, but I’ve changed and so has the market. Definitely get rid of the pmi, and refi. You probably aren’t going to find a better deal than what you got in 2011. If it’s an easy rental I wouldn’t give it up unless you have something really great lined up. That being said, I’m also of the mind that you will never time the market perfectly, so it makes sense to sell at any point you know you are coming out on top. What’s your side business? Would a little cash injection boost it? I would look at that too. Or find another small business that spits out money. I bought my first in 2009. Haven’t bought anything since 2015. I’m currently selling most of my stuff. I’m paying off all my debts and padding for the next downturn. I flip houses with other investors but don’t put my name on it because I don’t want to get stuck. I do the rehabs and either split profits or take the gravy on the backend. There are a ton of options out there. I also have a PM company, lots of ways to make money in real estate.

My old stomping grounds in Binghamton probably wouldn’t do much good. But I’m cheering for you in my new life in Virginia.