All Forum Posts by: Christopher Hui

Thanks for the replies everyone! I already have a real estate attorney lined up. He was my previous attorney from my last purchase.

As for the valuation, I'm putting a lot more value on this property because I own the property right next to it, and being a landlord that just has to walk over to the next house is extremely beneficial to me. In addition to that, the house right next to it, which was built identically to it sold for the exact same price. New construction multi family houses in my area are extremely hard to come by. The identical house right next to it also never hit the market, but I spoke to that owner and he said he bought it for $430k as well.

I'm just trying to remember what exactly my real estate agent did for me during my last purchase, and I think the most they really did was help me find my first purchase and walk me through the steps to buying the house.

I have the opportunity to buy a property for a great price, new construction. I have been in contact with the builder (a real estate agent and his son) since before the construction even started and since I lived right next to the new property, he would give me first crack at the offer. We agreed on $430k, but when I brought up my real estate agents, he said that it wouldn't be necessary and that it would be a deal between his son (the actual builder and owner of the property) and I.

Has anyone purchased a property without a buyer's agent?

Do I really need a real estate agent? Should I insist on my real estate agent? Will he increase the price to compensate for the commission?

Thanks for the help!

@Russell Brazil Do your properties cash flow positive? What would be the ROI that you're aiming for?

@Kyle McCorkel I'm going for a 10% down FHA Loan. It would cash flow positive if I rented out the entire thing, but obviously with an FHA Loan I'd have to live in it for a year. It would cash flow negative for the first year, but I guess that would be offset by the fact that I'm not paying rent.

Kyle M. I apologize! You're right! Gross rent.

Kyle M. It would net $1800 for one unit, $0 for the other since I'm living in it. If we were talking purely about the financial capability of the entire property it would be $3k-$3.3k ($1.2-1.5k for the unit I would be living in).

Sorry, I should elaborate a little more. Should I bite or should I wait for the spring for more houses? Comps for the past six months show that duplexes built in 1900-1920 go for around 350k. This house is actually built in 1987. The sellers purchased this right when it was built and just finished paying off their mortgage so they are retiring and want to sell. I think I am not going to find another house like this, but I haven't been through an entire years cycle yet. Should I keep paying someone rent and wait for prices to drop? Should I wait for a better deal? Let me know BP!

Hey All, I currently pay $1600 in rent for my 1BR apartment. I don't want to shell out money to someone else for rent anymore. I was looking into multifamily's, either a duplex or triplex, but there are so few properties that meet the 1% rule and even fewer that are built after 1910. "Don't buy a house that's as old as your grandfather." I have the opportunity to purchase a duplex property built in 1990 for $400k that would net maybe $1.8k, $3.0-3.3k if you counted the unit I would be living in. This is the first house I've seen in 7 months that is younger than 70 years old (I'm not exaggerating). Should I bite?

Hi Robert Crull ! As someone who also has a full time job and is just starting out, my best advice to you is to change your entire mindset about what a Real Estate Investor is. A Real Estate Agent sells houses. A Real Estate Investor is a lifestyle. You'll find yourself listening to podcasts, reading the BP forum, checking the MLS for new deals, contacting financial instructions for loans, etc. This will happen all day every day for as long as you want to be an Investor. I'm confident that the majority of people who started here including me did not start by becoming a real estate agent. You've already taken the first step in becoming a real estate investor by diving in and asking questions on BP. Listen to the podcasts, read the Ultimate Guides, and change your mindset. There's a giant sea of information here, and the only way to learn is to dive in headfirst. You'll learn to swim as you drown. Good luck!~

Janina Farr As someone who paid 250k for a college degree, I have to agree with you that it is a piece of paper. But the difference is that it's a title that you can put on your resume. Technical employers nowadays will not look twice at your resume if you don't have that degree on your resume. Of course, I can learn everything that I studied in school by self-teaching, but I still won't be able to prove to employers that I did. A good example are Masters programs. There's a good reason why employers require certain education titles before promoting them.