All Forum Posts by: Chris Low

@Giacinto L. - can you send me a link to the property in Boise you mentioned above? 3/2, 3114 sq. ft. Thanks!

You may need to go with a hard money lender. We're working with a HML on a short sale right now. The property is somewhat distressed (needs a new roof) so if and when the short sale ever goes through, we'll buy it with hard money, fix the roof and then put it back on the market. Many banks will consider a hard money offer same as cash because of the speed of funding.

Your numbers look good. Yes, it's scary because you're just starting out, but think of it this way: the numbers wouldn't be any different on this deal whether it was your first deal or 50th. The only thing that would be different is your level of experience. Solid numbers are your foundation on any, so it sounds like you did very well. Hope that helps. To answer your questions:

- start now to identify a local bank that does portfolio loans and let them know your plans. If you need to re-fi in 6 months, you can't start the process too early because that will come up on you fast! And not every lender will re-fi after only 6 months of "seasoning." So start looking now. You'll find one - it just takes some time.

- Check out the book on flipping houses and the book on estimating rehab costs. These two books by J Scott will give you a lot of good info about the order of work and what to expect in costs. Both are available on the BP website.

- BP also has a book on landlording written by Brandon and Heather Turner. That's a good one, and so is Landlording on Autopilot. Tons of good info there as well as lease forms.

- See above for info on background checks. Sounds like most people post their rentals on Craigslist if they have only one rather than paying an agent for listing. Try that route first. It's free, everyone knows about it, and renters are becoming accustomed to looking there first.

Good luck!

You might pick up Brandon Turner's book, The Book on Investing with no and low money down. It's available on the BP website under the Education tab. Lots of good ideas for creative financing.

Hey @Tom George - we're investors from Cottonwood. We should connect.

If you're working with a professional painting company they can give you some suggestions. Our painter always consults with us on color selections. They just see a lot more homes than we do and they're aware of what is trending. I agree with everyone else who has said don't paint the brick. Lightening up your eaves and shutters with a gray, green or cream would really help.

@Russell Brazil - was wondering if you could elaborate on some of the things that have caused deals to fall apart at the last minute. We're in contract on a short sale right now. It's the first one we've tried to buy so we're trying to learn as much as possible about the pitfalls.

I'd start by talking to a guidance counselor at the University she wants to attend. They are used to dealing with out-of-state students in your same position and will be well-versed in the laws particular to that state about how best to gain in-state status. Besides, in my experience, they WANT out of state students to come to their university and they understand all too well that paying out-of-state tuition is a deal killer for many families. They will usually work with you rather than being adversarial and trying to make it difficult for you. I agree with some of the other investors who have commented that you're not trying to cheat the system. You are trying to use the existing laws to establish residency and create an investment opportunity for yourself and for her. Good luck to you!

From my experience, Realtors can appreciate working with investors in many cases, but it's all about transparency. Be honest with your Realtor about your goals, how much money you have to work with, what your investment strategy is, etc. If you plan to flip properties, your agent who helps you buy should also be the one who markets that property for you. He/she can then see the benefit of helping you get into that property via a lowball offer because they know when you're done with the rehab, they'll get the listing. Make sure you're pre-qualified with a lender and share that info with your Realtor. This helps him/her understand that you're serious, not just "kicking tires" and that you have the funding in place in case you do find a deal. All of these things can help your relationship with a Realtor prove beneficial for both of you.

Flips. While our long-term goal is to acquire buy-and-hold properties for passive income and wealth building, flips allow us to grow our capital pool we need to put the down payments on buy-and-hold properties.