All Forum Posts by: Chad Smith

@David White I'm originally from that area and moved to California 17+ years ago. I've been toying with the idea of investing back there. Maybe we there's a way we can help each other out. I've started making reconnections in Council Bluffs and the town I grew up in and have actually looked at a few places.

Best of luck my friend.

Morning Everyone

Not sure if I posted this in the right forum. I'm in the process of entering the real estate investment arena but while I do this I need to find a personal residence. I currently live in the Downey area and am looking for something in the south OC area. I don't have to move but would like to be closer to the areas I want to invest in. I'm looking for a home that is at least 2 bedrooms. Condo, townhouse or sfr. The holy grail for me would be 2/3 bed, 2bath, garage, yard or pool SFR under $2800 a month. I'm looking in the Mission Viejo, Lake Forest, Alivo Viejo down to San Clemente. Picky but not picky if that makes sense. Looking forward to hearing from anyone who might have a rental or know someone who does.

Thanks!

Chad

@Account Closed would love to know more.

Morning Everyone

Ok so I found a 4plex in south OC. I'm wondering what your strategy would be on this property.

Here's the numbers:

Asking $1.6MM

GSI $82,200

NOI $55,700

CAP 3.38%

The property has been well maintained and doesn't (from what I see) need any repairs. 100% occupancy.

2 2 Bedroom 1 Bath 

1 3 Bedroom 1 Bath 

1 3 Bedroom 2 Bath  

2 2 Car Garages

Community Laundry

I plan on living in one of the lesser units so rents are maximized as best as possible and the property has a really good walking score. Rents were scheduled to go up April 1st so I'm not sure if that increase is included in the GSI. The expenses number is inconsistent as they claim more expenses than what is showed.

Hi @Bruce May thank you for the offer. I'd like to learn more.

@Bob Okenwa and @David Faulkner you both make valid points. I know that what both of you have said has made me really look at myself and my goals and why I haven't been able to achieve them. I do have opportunities both in state and out of state and I just need to apply myself and stop making excuses. @Paul Nguyen I'm fairly new to this format but I think you can pm me and I'll send you her information. 

Thanks guys!

Sometimes the obvious is not so obvious :-)

You're right @Timothy Maloney do a few deals in Iowa that aren't so capital intensive and work my way into the SoCal market.

Excellent advice @Andrew Savikas @Bob Okenwa @Timothy Maloney.

There's the rub. In SoCal 3.5% on a multi family property easily exceeds $30k+ down. I know this might sound like an excuse but $30k down is just not currently a reality. 

@Timothy Maloney that's actually really good news. I've personally been involved with many fix and flips (construction side) so I have a pretty good grasp on what it takes and I have access to good contractors that will work with me. As far as FHA/Fannie/Freddie that might be a viable route as I plan on living there.

The main issue in SoCal is the amount of money it takes just to do a simple fix and flip. In other parts of the country that would do 30 to 40 deals! I recently went back to the small town I grew up in in Iowa and the deals there are obtainable. I found a 3 bedroom house that they basically were giving away. 

$15k purchase

$40k rehab

$85k ARV

My cousin has a really good realtor there and does these types of deals all day long and pretty much doubles his money. 

But then again that's in Iowa 2000+ miles away. Lol 

Hello everyone. This is my first post since joining and I'm going to ask a question that has been asked a million times before.  I hope this is the right forum for this question. 

How and where do I start?

I'm not a young guy or just starting out in life and I've been around real estate and real estate investing for pretty my whole life as an electrician or on the construction rehab side but never the guy doing the actual deals. I've even managed a few properties for other people. I'm just going to say it....I see people with no obvious experience bad credit or financials and they have no idea what they are doing make deals happen all the time.  I have a good paying steady job but little to no savings (I live in wonderful SoCal so pretty much everything I make goes towards living expenses) and I have average credit. The market crash killed me but I've been rebuilding for over 3 years now. Started at a 512 and finally as of today I have just over 640. I've been reading the forums and advice columns and have decided the best route for me is buying a duplex, triplex, fourplex or 5+. I read somewhere in the forums that on a 5+ units the banks look at the deal before they look at you. If it makes sense they are more likely to fund the deal but by the time I have a chance to present it to a bank or investor the deal is swooped up. My plan is to live in one and rent the others out. I'm currently a renter and am getting tired of filling up my landlords pockets. 

I originally started looking to buy just for myself but am having difficulty even getting financing or coming up with the required down payments. It's a bit discouraging actually. I find deals all the time but do not have the wearwithal to make them happen and by the time I possibly do, the deal has been swooped up by someone with cash in hand. Hard money or private investment doesn't work with buy and hold (or at least I haven't found that yet) and the banks won't even look at me for some reason. I tried the prequalify route but it's pittance compared to what it takes to actually buy something in Southern California. Anywhere else in the country it would buy a mansion.

Last year I set up a new company and formed an LLC. I've been in the process of building up the financials and credit for it but the road is slow and I'm basically having the same issue I did rebuilding my personal credit. Banks and credit card companies won't even look at me or my company.

Going back and reading this I realize it sounds a bit whinny but the question perplexes me as it probably does for thousands of others. 

Turned out beautiful! I'm so proud to have been a part of that project!