All Forum Posts by: Chris Allen

Quote from @Liza Domenech:

Quote from @Chris Allen:

Quote from @Liza Domenech:

Quote from @Chris Allen:

Nurse here too! Welcome, hope to see a post of your success later on!

Hi Chris! Thank you for the warm welcome. Are you doing well in your REI business? Give me some motivation lol!

It is going alright; I have 5 properties I own, one is STR; and then I "host" (manage) two other STR's. Hoping to really put some systems in place this year and get some more deals done!

 Well that sure is motivation! Congratulations on your acquisitions. How long did it take you to build up your portfolio?

 I started end of 2019 with my house-hack duplex in Killeen. I had hopped to be farther ahead, but I also got into travel nursing during COVID, got married, and now have a baby haha. 

Quote from @Ginger Pruitt:

Quote from @Chris Allen:

Quote from @Ginger Pruitt:

Hi, @Roman Puzey.  We recently interviewed 5 serial travel nurses for their perspective on what matters, what doesn't and where they look to ensure we're supporting our travel nurse listings effectively.  What we heard:
A) Two real segments of travel nurses - i) the cost conscious just about the buck (making as much on each contract and spending less than 1/3 of a month's gross income on their housing and ii) those wanting the experience to be comfortable because they're less concerned about optimizing their earnings
B) We heard that the anecdotal feeling is that most travel nurses (quote was >75%) travel with a pet - so make sure you have appropriate deposits and terms in your leases for this.  I'd be cautious about excluding pets if you're concerned about vacancy.
C) While much better tenants (very little wear and tear on your property, good for rent, pass background checks), there is a need for many STR amenities (security conscious with parking spaces and the home, have nice bed/sheets/cooking supplies/coffee maker, high speed internet a plus - having great TV wasn't a deal breaker for those we surveyed)
D) Mixed input on the proximity.  Some were willing to travel 10-15 miles and others wanted very close access to their facility.  
E) The cost conscious nurses were much more willing to rent by the room.  Others preferred whole units for safety and privacy reasons.

Hope this helps.  Good luck!

 I this this is great! I am a travel nurse as well and can attest to all of these. I had once put a poll to vote for what type of housing travel nurses look for (shared housing vs 1-2 bed vs 3-4 bed). Out of the 95 that voted

80 Voted private 1-2 bed

10 Voted Nice Shared Space

5 Voted 3+ bedroom

 Thanks for sharing!  Great info, Chris.  Didn't expect that overwhelming a response for private spaces given our previous interviews.  Super helpful.  Any chance this is regionally specific or would change based on prices for spaces?  Expect in lower cost areas, the smaller differential to get a private space would make that more attractive...perhaps less so if rents are much higher?

I see it as being more regionally specific and mainly depends on the housing market in the area. For instance, nurses in California can easily make over $5k/wk, but with housing being so expensive, I know a lot tend to just rent rooms when working out there. And if you are in an area like Texas where you are lucky to make $2k/wk but housing is usually affordable, I see a lot that just rent small homes or apartments for $1800-$2200/mo. But markets like Austin, TX where the pay is not any higher than other parts of Texas but housing cost double, then rooms become more popular again. 

I just wanted to share some of my experience as well as a poll I took as to what travel nurses are looking for in housing. I will separate it by the two most common types of travel nurses; those who try and optimize their income, and those who travel for the experience. Please keep in mind this is more of a spectrum, so some nurses who are in it to optimize their income still might want a really nice place to stay, and nurses for experience may still want decently affordable housing. 

To start, here are some things that you may want to include in your listing, or that nurses may look for in a listing regardless of which type of nurse books.

- Proximity: 15-30 minutes from hospitals is usually a pretty good distance. Some nurses may be okay driving a little more, but most prefer the 15 minute drive. 

- Pet Friendly: A LOT of nurses (myself included) travel with pets. I look for a decent sized fenced back yard so I can let my dog run around outside. While not a deal breaker, consider setting something up specifically for pets (food/water bowls, dog towel, Rover Service/Boarding Service Recommendations or maybe even a kennel).

- Treat your MTR more like a STR. Provide basically the same amenities, but does not have to be to par as a true vacation rental. Nice towels, linen, fully stocked kitchen WITH MICROWAVE, COFFEE MAKER/BAR, good WiFi, decent Smart TV, In-Unit Washer and Dryer is a big plus!

- Room darkening shades is a great amenity for the night shift people

- Overall, just make sure it is comfortable, clean, and equipped for a busy and tired working professional. 

I had a poll and out of 95 people who voted for size of housing (shared vs private 1-2 bed vs private 3+ bed),

80 voted that they look for private 1-2 bedroom properties

10 voted that they look for shared housing (rent by the room)

5 voted that they travel with others need 3+ bedrooms

Nurses who try and optimize their income: These nurses are usually looking for either shared housing, or an affordable 1-2 bedroom. They like all the basic amenities I mentioned above, but are willing to sacrifice quality and comfort to some degree for the ability to save 50% or more of their housing stipend. Usually willing to drive a little farther out to save some money. 

Nurses who travel for the experience: These nurses are usually either those who have no true "Home Base" that they are tied to, are traveling with family, or are just really doing it more for the chance to visit cool places. These nurses usually are looking for either a nice private 1-2 bedroom place in a great spot in town, within 15 minutes of the hospital, or are traveling with multiple people/family. They are usually okay with spending their entire housing stipend on a nice place to stay, but would still like to save a little if they can. They look for all nice quality amenities listed above.

Quote from @Ginger Pruitt:

Hi, @Roman Puzey.  We recently interviewed 5 serial travel nurses for their perspective on what matters, what doesn't and where they look to ensure we're supporting our travel nurse listings effectively.  What we heard:
A) Two real segments of travel nurses - i) the cost conscious just about the buck (making as much on each contract and spending less than 1/3 of a month's gross income on their housing and ii) those wanting the experience to be comfortable because they're less concerned about optimizing their earnings
B) We heard that the anecdotal feeling is that most travel nurses (quote was >75%) travel with a pet - so make sure you have appropriate deposits and terms in your leases for this.  I'd be cautious about excluding pets if you're concerned about vacancy.
C) While much better tenants (very little wear and tear on your property, good for rent, pass background checks), there is a need for many STR amenities (security conscious with parking spaces and the home, have nice bed/sheets/cooking supplies/coffee maker, high speed internet a plus - having great TV wasn't a deal breaker for those we surveyed)
D) Mixed input on the proximity.  Some were willing to travel 10-15 miles and others wanted very close access to their facility.  
E) The cost conscious nurses were much more willing to rent by the room.  Others preferred whole units for safety and privacy reasons.

Hope this helps.  Good luck!

 I this this is great! I am a travel nurse as well and can attest to all of these. I had once put a poll to vote for what type of housing travel nurses look for (shared housing vs 1-2 bed vs 3-4 bed). Out of the 95 that voted

80 Voted private 1-2 bed

10 Voted Nice Shared Space

5 Voted 3+ bedroom

Quote from @Abhinay Dutta:

Hello Fellow investors, 

I am planning to develop 3 tiny homes on a 10 acre property. Property is next to a lake and views are great, so I believe there's potential. Property is raw land. Water and Electric are on the road and It need a septic system. I am looking advice from investors who has done this kinda of projects before. Any tips/tricks on how to execute this? What should I except in terms of cash flow? How to operate such park? Any help will be highly appreciated. 

thanks,

-abhi

 What size homes do you plan to place out there? Any amenities (community area, hot tubs, fire pits, decks, etc...?) I would also consider planning to have your septic built out to support more than just 3 properties if able. 10 acre is a lot of property for 3 tiny homes? You could eventually build more or even just put some pads for some RV spots or something?

I would get on AirDNA to see what income in the area for the size and guest count you plan to place. That will give you a rough idea for each individual home. Then compare that to your acquisition and build cost to see what your return might be. 

Have you considered just placing pre-fabricated tiny homes out there? Might be able to move faster than trying to build everything out?

I live in Temple and I also do STR's. If you are looking to someone to help host, I would love to talk to you about it.

Quote from @Liza Domenech:

Quote from @Chris Allen:

Nurse here too! Welcome, hope to see a post of your success later on!

Hi Chris! Thank you for the warm welcome. Are you doing well in your REI business? Give me some motivation lol!

It is going alright; I have 5 properties I own, one is STR; and then I "host" (manage) two other STR's. Hoping to really put some systems in place this year and get some more deals done!

Quote from @Paul Xiong:

HI I am a travel nurse who make about 86000 was told by my loan officer that because I am technically a contract based employment that she couldn't help us for another 2 years. Is there anyone here who can help us get through this problem?

Thank You

 Hey there, I am a travel nurse as well, are you a W2 Travel nurse or 1099?. Others have great input, but I would also recommend this. 

- Provide detailed letter/email explaining your employment (how you are paid, how long you have been a nurse, income prior to traveling, how contracts work, etc...)

- Provide your current contract and have your recruiter provide a letter confirming your contract and even give some expectation of employment based on demand of travel nursing.  

- Make sure you do not take prolonged breaks between assignments. 

- If you have been a nurse for a while, ask them to average your income with the income you were making prior to traveling. 

Nurse here too! Welcome, hope to see a post of your success later on!

Quote from @Dawson Brewer:

So I currently live 45 min south of Austin, TX in San Marcos. I’ve identified San Antonio and Killeen being 2 cities I’m interested in investing in. Both have military bases and more budget friendly properties. Especially Killeen. Does anybody have experience in these 2 cities that can provide some advice ?

 I just finished a nursing travel assignment there in San Marcos! I invest in Killeen/Temple area and I think it is a pretty decent area to invest. If you are interested in Killeen, make sure to travel to the area, because neighborhoods can change pretty quick. 

@Joseph Cacciapaglia does have a good point, but I would say that the military base is a pretty consistent employer. You also have some overflow from slightly more expensive Belton/Temple where you have Major Medical and a University. The Military base also brings quite a bit of transient/contract work to the area as well. 

Overall I think both areas are pretty good to invest, it's just more of what numbers you are okay with and what market is easier you to get into. 

Quote from @Ashly Doran:

As you can see from the title, I am a travel nurse who just spoke with a lender and I am feeling so defeated. Right now I am based in Aberdeen, WA and am extremely motivated to purchase my first property, specifically a multi-family. My plan is to buy something somewhere between Aberdeen and Olympia so that I can live in one unit and rent out the other(s) to travel nurses or Airbnb. I am also planning on getting an FHA loan (3.5% down), live in it for 1 year, and then repeat the process over and over again.

But after speaking with a lender, it sounds like I am going to have an incredibly difficult time obtaining a loan. I have been a Travel nurse for 6 months (I know) and was at a staff RN job for 1 year before that. (Before that I was a bartender at the same establishment for 8 years). There HAS to be a way around this. I am totally willing to get creative and figure something out as I don’t want to wait another year and a half to buy.

My question is this: what alternatives do I have? Should I go to a local bank? Should I wait 6 months until I have 1 year as a travel nurse? Should I try for a DSCR or non-QM loan?

If anyone knows of a lender who is willing to work with me (and get creative) and who has also worked with other travel nurses in the past, please point them my way! Feel free to DM me if you don’t want to share their info on the forum.

*I should also mention that I have excellent income, savings, and credit and like I mentioned above, am very motivated to buy and become a real estate investor!*

Thank you in advance

-Ashly

**cross-posted**
***I am really hoping to find a solution. Sorry if you see this post a couple of times***

 I am a travel nurse as well, but my situation was a little different. I was a staff RN for two years prior to traveling, but also retained a PRN position while traveling. 

Keep talking to other lenders, don't ask if they can, ask how they can. Also here are a few thigs I did and recommend you doing. 

- Write a detailed letter/email about how you are paid as a travel nurse, your nursing experience, your pay history in the nursing field, and just everythig you can to make yourself look great as a nurse (I would leave out the bartending part, try to focus on nursing). 

- Ask them to consider your previous nursing income if they won't use your travel income

- have your recruiter reach out to them and provide your contract, and even mention what the travel nursing market is looking like as far as pay and demand