All Forum Posts by: Nathan Astrup

Compared to long beach I'm sure Cleveland does seen like a dying city, but I can assure you the rental market in certain areas is quite strong. Now the houses may be a little more than your 25k. More like 40k.  Come visit ohio city, tremont, and mayfield and you'll see there's a flourishing rental market. 

Thanks for all your input gents! 

With what you've just told me here is my very tentative plan:

Father in law and I both purchase our own properties for a few years. I plan to use FHA for obvious reasons and he will use conventional loans. After a few years we can transfer titles to the LLC and refi into a blanket mortgage.

Correct me if I'm off base on the above. 

At that point would I be able to utilize FHA again if I so choose because the original FHA is now conventional? I know there are grumbling about FHA. But I like the idea of 3.5 down (higher ROI) and the tenant will pay PMI anyway. Are there any potential road blocks you guys see?

Cheers!! 

Hello BP,
Im a brand new RE agent in cleveland and Im planning to make my first investment in the summer.

Im looking in mayfield and lyndhurst for duplexes that I will live in temporarily and save for the next purchase. My father in-law is going to put money up for the down payment and wants to partner up for future investments.

What would be the best set up in terms of financing? I was thinking possibly an LLC. Or would it be better to just have a sole owner.

@Jewel Starling  you could kill two birds with one stone by working with a real estate agent that has experience catering to investors, or is an investor themselves. I personally cannot help you with this as I am just learning about investing myself as an agent, but I do have a few names if you want to message me. They are experts in the Cleveland area!  Also this site is a huge asset to you. 

Thanks for the warm welcome gentlemen! 

@John Casmon I plan to invest in areas I know well. Ohio city, tremont, and shaker heights area. Probably duplex as well. 

@Account Closed message me anytime and we can exchange info! 

Ive got nothing to add to this as I am in the same boat as the OP, but this is GREAT info for a newbie!

As I've been educating myself in the world of REI, I've decided I'd like my first investment to be a duplex (most likely). From all the info that I've gathered from everyone's post and experience they are a better way of producing cash flow than a single family home.

My question lies in the quality of renter multi-family homes draw. Personally I wouldnt make that my first choice unless I was the owner living "for free" in the other unit for a period of time. So, assuming typical rents are younger or lower income producing families, are the upsides of owning a multi enough to outweigh the possible downsides of headaches tenants worth it? I understand that there are a multitude of variables that affect a situation like this, but I'd love to hear the input from the guys with experience in this! Have you had difficulty with vacancy because duplex living is less desirable or am I just a snob??
Thanks in advance guys!

BP community, thanks for all the great input and advice! This is such a great source of information. As a soon to be (1 week) real estate agent, and soon to be (6 months?) investor I'd like to make some connections with anyone in my area with similar goals/experience to chat with. I'm totally new to the game, coming from 5 yrs in the medical feild. Needless to say BP has been my play book in this exciting change!

Aaron,
Thanks for the warm welcome! I'm swamped right now finishing up RE school and working but I will keep your offer in mind. I would love to start my career working with investors in particular.
Nate

Hello Bigger Pockets Community!
I am a new RE agent based out of Cleveland Ohio, and I am doing my homework before I start with my personal investments. I would love to speak with anyone from the area or even meet up for coffee and chat about the industry.

BP- Thanks for all the great material!

Nate