All Forum Posts by: Christian Leon

Hello BP community! I just put an offer in on a nice quadplex. Asking price $270k, down payment of $67,500, monthly cashflow should be $699 with a 11.2% COC ROI so numbers look good. I am torn on how to handle the down payment. I have another rental property that has enough equity to cover it fully, but I would be pulling the max. I could also pay cash, but with my job I only work every 3/4months when I go on deployment so I think it would be wise to keep more cash on hand for emergencies or if a great deal were to pop up. For those of you who have used equity for a down payment what are the pros/cons? Would it be better to use cash or a HELOC, or maybe a combination of both for this down payment. Any advice is welcome!

Hello BP Community,

I have just put an initial offer on a property in JAX, FL with a preapproval, but I want to shop around for a better rate. Currently sitting at 3.875%. Anyone have any suggestions on a good lender that could beat that? I have great credit and a low D/I ratio. Any suggestions welcome! 

Thanks @Anna Laud

I felt it was too given the current economy and loan rates on the very low side. I will check these out, if for nothing else as a bargaining chip to state my case to an even lower rate!

So a property I am interested in just came back to market as the buyer could not get financing. I quickly called my agent and told her I was very interested and needed a recommendation for financing as I did not want to go to my bank (BOA) since they are a nightmare to deal with. I got preapproved quickly as I have great credit and an exceptional D/I ratio. At first I was quoted at 4.5% which I said was unacceptable. They are saying they could do 3.875% with "manager approval". I am going to shop around more but was curious if this is in the norm for the area of Jacksonville. $160K loan, 30 yr fixed, 20% down in cash. Any feedback is welcome, as well as any tips that could be of benefit in my situation. There is a bit of a rush as the house will not be up for long, or I would have refi'd my current property to pay for this and not come out of pocket at all. But I have the cash and the numbers are right! 

Thanks a lot, this will be something I keep in mind as my me and my team start looking at properties and making offers.

@Paul De Luca

Thanks for the reply.

Out of state investor, but my partner travels to Chicago often for work so she will be managing. We have 60K cash on hand now, 100k by July. From what I have seen so far we wouldn't need that much if we are financing. What would you suggest?

Hello fellow BP enthusiast,

I am looking to invest in multifamily homes in the Chicago area. I have been been on the fence about what area to start this journey, but I know Chicago has a lot of potential and has a lot of multi's on market. What I do not know are the ins and outs of the area. I plan to do a lot of research as I have already heard its a tenant friendly state so I know we have to be diligent with leases and screening, but I was wondering what kind of insight I could get from the BP community such as areas to avoid, screening tips, things to look for when shopping, or something specific to IL homes that are not common elsewhere but make a difference. Any and all help welcome. Cheers! 

Thank you all for the input! My CPA is good at my complex finances for my deployable job, but I see not so much with real estate. I will be looking for another that specializes in the real estate field. Cheers!

Hello all!

First tax season with my rental property and my CPA is asking me if I want to claim the depreciation on the rental or not. I know if I do I'll get more money back now, but then I'll have to pay the taxes on it later as it gets added to the overall price at the time of sale? Are there any other pros/cons for claiming depreciation? Any advice is welcome. Cheers!

First and foremost thank you both for the responses!

Current goal for financial freedom is 2K a month in passive income from properties. I want to set small achievable goals instead of the “I want to be rich and retire and not have to lift a pinky” once I have this initial goal achieved I will be able to quit my job which involves me being deployed 6 months out of the year as a drone mechanic. I hate being away from home and with plans for kids nearing I want to be home full time. Maybe take on a part time job in the industry of real estate (to learn more) and I can spend much more time focusing on/being more aggressive with my investing. I would like to one day have a company managing all of my properties and possibly other peoples as well but like anyone else I am looking to be comfortable and retire and a age where I can enjoy it.

I live in Southern California in Orange County with my girlfriend. I’m 31 and make about 30K on the lower end per deployment. We are going to rent for one more year then I plan to house hack when hopefully the market may have dropped some. I’m not afraid to invest elsewhere like Tennessee or back in Florida where my other unit is located (jax) either. I have 3 months between deployments where I can travel to look at homes and areas.