All Forum Posts by: Tim Czarkowski

I Agree

Mike H. They reason they tend to be so geographical seems to be that most of them were built in the 1950's or earlier because there weren't 30 year fixed rate loans. People bought small multifamily units because it was the only way they could afford their own place. You tend to see a lot more of them in older neighborhoods. As you state there are also complexes with 4 units to a building that tend to sell as a package.

I second what Jon Klaus said offer them some money to help them move. It may be uncomfortable for a little bit living next to them but it will be over in a relatively short period of time. It's never been a huge deal to me at my home. I have asked two people to leave so far and it's a little awkward but still amicable. I'm friendly but firm. Nice job getting the seller credit for it by the way.

The deal itself looks like a decent property since your going to be living in it. That makes all the difference I try to get a 25% cash on cash return for properties I finance but I wouldn't live in any of them personally. I live in a quad where my mortgage is covered and it has been great but it sounds like you'll be doing even better. It's a great way to get started.

Jake Kucheck That sounds insane. Since your the seller and they presumably put up the deposit, no reason to worry about it. As far as getting it sold being that your a real estate agent I would speak to your broker about the situation. I imagine that it must be fairly commonplace. You could also speak with the board of realtors. Here in Florida realtors have access to an attorney for questions free of charge, you might check that out to. Lastly if your working with an experienced title company I would think they could give you some advice as to how to handle it.

Ned Carey Wow six people! There really must have been a lot of meat on it or the end buyer way over-payed. Amazing that 5 wholesalers in a row would under-price it. That must have been an interesting closing with all of them there. lol

Billy RogersTwo years is a very short time to go into full-time investing starting with no cash but working in real estate full time in two years is more than attainable. As other people have said you should look for a better job and make sure you can live below your means. There are a lot of different real estate related jobs. Real estate agent, mortgage broker, title agent,working in the office of any of the previous suggestions, any construction trade, assistant to an active investor, appraiser, property manager, and there are many many other that are all related to real estate. Most if not all of these do not require more than a high school diploma and a week or two of classes to get started. Personally if I was starting over I would probably get a nursing assistant license which takes about three weeks with a starting pay of approximately 12/hr. I would use that to pay my bills while I attended nursing school to become an RN which only takes two years. It's not related to real estate but they are in demand, you work a 3 day work week which gives you time for real estate, there are full benefits, and has a starting pay of about 30/hr and within two years could be at 50$/hr.

I second @billy rodgers Get a four-plex and live in one. You can actually but as little as 3.5% down, I did. It was one of the best decisions I ever made. I think anyone who is serious about saving money should start like that. Imagine how much more you could save if you had no rent or mortgage to pay.

The most important thing you can learn is to live on less than you can make. It's the little things that matter. Don't drive a car you have to make a payment on, don't eat out, don't buy things you don't need, don't worry about brand name worry about price, and get your family on the same page. Almost anyone can save money if they want to. Once you get that four-plex you should really be able to sock it away if your able to save before that. The hardest part is getting started, after that it's like a snowball if you stick to the plan.

Mike Romaine
@ Yea that would be one hell of a check.

If and when you do get a check like that, remember to set aside a large portion for taxes. I know some agents who have not done that and then couldn't pay their taxes and got themselves in trouble. Most agents seem to like to live big when times are good and be flat broke when they aren't. This business is cyclical so set some aside for the slow times.

Justin Lee I was just wanted to chime in since my wife is a nurse. First off as others have said you need to find a way to support yourself. Secondly you should continue your nursing classes. If you could go directly for nursing as a full time student it is actually a two year degree, not four. You may want to check the local community college, they generally offer class on the weekends or nights and tuition is very reasonable. On top of that the government offers grants for low income people so you may be able to go for free. Check with a counselor at the school. The reason I don't think you should give up on nursing is because there are tons of high paying jobs with full benefits available and you only work three days a week. That would leave you with the money and time to get into real estate investing. Nursing is such a fantastic career right now, I think anyone thinking of going to college should give it a hard look. If I knew the benefits that come with it I would have went to school for that.

Whatever you do DON"T GIVE THE GURUS ANY MONEY. Many of these people are crooks. You'll be better off reading on here for free.

David Beard I can certainly understand why they might be skeptical, particularly after the crash. I saw a show where a group of investors, straw buyers, appraisers, and mortgage brokers all got together to defraud the banks. People like that hurt everyone else. The truth is that you can purchase places for less than market value and you can increase value by more than what you put into a property. Finding someone who does it in this area may not be likely but I'll at least give it a shot. It would certainly be worth my time if I found someone.

Chris Clothier Ok great, I thought that was directed at my post.lol The back and forth is the best part of a forum like this. You get to see the different sides of an issue as opposed to just one aspect.

David Beard Thanks for that, I read a few of the posts and I want to make sure I understand this correctly. So for loans 5-10 the only way to refinance conventionally is to use the delayed financing rule? In addition they limit you to 65% or purchase price + rehab, which ever is lower, but with no seasoning?

It sounded like several people found small local banks that would do portfolio loans up to 75% with no seasoning. I guess when I get to 3 I should start shopping around. lol That would certainly be very useful.