All Forum Posts by: Chelsey Hamill

I've noticed a bunch of flips going on near me in different areas of Lakewood. But I have to agree, you can find them everywhere, just depends on your price point! One investor that I know keeps his search for properties from the front range (Golden area), to the western half of Denver. Just depends on your real estate goals!  

@Joseph Hoot I've only been actively networking for a few months and I am already starting to see that rejection is a big part of the game, haha. I've had my fair share of unanswered emails. Thanks for the suggestions! I love rentometer, I use it all the time. 

@Mitch Ottoson Hey Mitch! I am in the same situation as you, looking for my first house to house hack. I spoke with my broker about pretty much all of our different loan options, including this one and the Fannie Mae Homestyle renovation loan (which is similar to the 203(k)). Unfortunately she said that they didn't offer either of those, but she gave me a recommendation for one of the few lenders in the area that did offer them.

From what I understand the 203(k) loan, requires a massive amount of paperwork. And apparently in my sized city, you are limited to the number of people that are very experienced with these loans. I'm sure you will be okay in Denver though. My advice is to make sure you read up on the limitations of the renovations first, and see if this loan is right for the property you are trying to fix. Also, there is the streamline version of the loan, and a regular one. Just depends how big of a job it is going to be. It may be worth it to check out the Homestyle Renovation loan too. I believe it requires a 5% down payment, whereas the FHA 203k only requires 3.5% down.

Read this to see some of the limitations, but if I were you, I would call a lender that can enlighten you more about the process;  http://www.rehab203kloan.com/fha-203k-loan-repairs...

Hope it helps!

@Adam Bartomeo thanks, very helpful. So do I get the number of the owner from my realtor, or do I have to speak with the selling agent to get that info?

@Ned Carey Okay, thanks for clarifying. I thought that they were the same thing, but it was strange how he explained it in the book. So far I have been overestimating costs, so I am trying to call and actually price things.. otherwise I may never find a deal, haha.

I am using the method from the Rich Dad Poor Dad book the ABC's of real estate investing, for figuring out offer prices. The equations are pretty simple: 

Income= income-vacancy.

NOI=income-expenses.

Cap rate = NOI / comp price.

Offer price= NOI / cap rate.

Also, one of the expenses in the book is replacement reserve. How do you figure out what that needs to be on a monthly or annual basis? I don't know the difference between this and capex. Also do I just ask my realtor to retrieve all of the expenses? They are  repairs/maintenance, utilities, taxes, insurance, and the replacement reserve. Seems tedious for the realtor, especially if they are doing this a bunch of times with no payoff. I want to be conscious of their time.

Thanks in advanced for any advice you can give me!

My real estate agent has been sending me listings for my first investment property. I haven't been interested in anything she has sent me, but I found an offer on Craigslist outside of town. It's for sale by owner, so do I contact my agent about it? Does the seller still pay the agent, even if they are not using one on their side?

@Max James I think it's actually more logical to say that you can find properties anywhere, especially in big cities. It may take more time and you will probably have to use different methods than you originally planned.. Like you can still "house hack" as you said you would like to do, but you may have to find a fixer upper like Bill said. 

And don't rely so heavily on Zillow/trulia/realtor.com there's actually an article somewhere here on BP about how unreliable those websites are. There's other websites that you can try like Redfin if its available for the area that you are looking in. And of course craigslist too. I saw an ad on there for a duplex that was off market for $199k. And you could always contact a realtor and explain that you might be moving to CO, what are the best areas that won't break the bank.. And then look for jobs in those areas. 

Just make sure you keep your options open (:

Thank you @Micki M.. I actually discussed it with my boyfriend and we will probably be holding off Denver for a little while longer because the market that we live in right now is way easier to break into. I want some security before I move halfway across the country haha. But when I do get out there, I will absolutely keep you in mind! I love the support on BP

@Max James yes, sounds like Colorado Springs has been the unanimous helping hint. I've looked more into it, and it seems like a good place to live. A little bit less city. Not sure of other states out west though..

That does sound a lot like Property Brothers haha.. I'm new to all of this and have never renovated a house before, so is it really possible that you can invest $25k in rehab costs, which will up the overall value by $85k? I'm guessing it depends on what you fix?