All Forum Posts by: Christine Kankowski

Another option is starting very low cost, high cash flow areas where you can get into a house for the same price as a down payment in other markets. There are several markets in the Midwest that have homes in rentable condition for $30,000.

If you can find a lender to work with you,  that opens up your choices, but many investors have been happy in Indiana, Tennessee, Missouri, ohio, etc.  My latest choice is  kokomo, indiana. 

(We 've actually sold out places in Las vegas recently, to buy in Indiana, since the cash flow is much better. )

Good luck to you!

Hi, I'm sure some agents use this when not true, but  I am honest with buyers when I do have a multiple offer situation.  I had one recently where a house was on the market 4 months with no offer, but then we staged it and did some repairs and all of a sudden we had 3 offers.  I'm sure the agents thought I was blowing smoke, but it was real and they didn't know the upgrades we did by staging, etc.   In any case, 2 of the 3 knew I was for real when I didn't accept their offer.

The best thing to do is to offer what you feel comfortable with and let the others go. 

Hi,

 Depending on your plan, you do not need to live where you invest- This will limit you in the long term.  If you are flipping, yes, you need to be there to supervise etc.  However if you are one of the many who look for long term cash flow there are many areas in the US that can accommodate.

Do your research:  I look for areas for solid employment, low crime, low cost of homes with a high net rent yield.

I have invested in Houston, Salt lake city, vegas, phoenix, southern california and indiana. The one that is currently making good sense all around is indianapolis- or more specifically the city of Kokomo which is a about 1 hour north of Indianapolis.

Solid employment, population growth, nice downtown area, etc

We sell our turnkey homes both on the MLS and to other investors. The nice thing about investors is many are cash and can close quickly. Many buy more than one at a time. For investors that need cash out quickly for the next project, they'd rather sell to an investor for a small discount, in order to have a quick cash sale.

For our larger homes, we sell on the MLS as well, in order to get the best price for the home.

It all depends on the price point for us.

If you had $150K to invest, where would you go.

I have several properties in several states and looking to branch out and find a nice $150K home, rent ready that rent for $1200-1400?  Decent areas.

hi Tim,

I am Temecula, just north of you.  I have many buy and hold properties in other states, as well as some in Temecula.  I sold all my San diego property after the crazy appreciation, since the cash flow elsewhere,is so much better.  Although I have been to Las Vegas, Arizona, texas and Utah, I am currently investing new money in Kokomo, Indiana. I also flipped homes in Temecula during the recession, but now the values increased so much, it is easier to make money from investing in Kokomo. 

I look for double digit cash flow, excellent employment in the cities I invest. Business Insider, ranked kokomo as #4 city in the states for landlords. I did the leg work myself. Went to kokomo, researched the areas, met with property mgrs, contractors, etc. 

Now I have a business with a property mgr there.  WE buy at auction, fix up homes, place quality tenants in them and sell to investors in california who want the cash flow, but dont want to to all the leg work that we provide. It is a win-win for all parties. 

I am still an active real estate agent here. (listing in RB and Escondido currently in san diego- both in escrow.)  Getting your real estate license will help you. 

Jasmine , You are doing exactly the right thing.  Doing your research before jumping in! This is what I've been doing for 10 years.  I started in my own back yard, then that became too expensive, I moved out of state.  Currently we are investing in Kokomo, Indiana. This fits the bill for your price range and type of renter. We have a great property Manager out there who we deal with as well.   There are several articles on the landlord market in Kokomo on my web site ([REMOVED]) which show how business insider named Kokomo the #4 market in the states for landlords, based on price, rent price, employment, etc.   The largest Chrysler plant in the country is based in Kokomo. There are several other large employers in the area as well.  you can get a nice 4 bedroom house for $110,000, and a nice 3 bedroom for $75.  You can get cheaper properties for as low as $30000, all fixed up. These lower ones would be c rated properties, in my opinion.  Anyway, good job doing the research. you will find an area that suits you. Thanks, Christine

Different books have different strategies, that is for sure. you need to find one that works for you  and then focus on what attributes of that philosophy led to the success of the author. I personally like the Rich Dad Poor Dad philosophy. He wrote several books nd in the end, they really all say the same thing.  It led to me investing in real estate, having long term tenants pay my mortgages, and having long term cash flow long into my retirement.

There are plenty of others that have other philsophies, but this one worked for me.

My best tenant came from Craigslist:  He gave me a list at the end of his 3 year tenancy of all the things he fixed or replaced over the course of the 3 years and never called me about. Just as an FYI and not for reimbursement.  He changed out the sprinkler timer, trimmed the large tree, installed crown molding.  Not bad.

Craigslist is still great. but you ;ve got to sort through all the junk too...

Hi Eric,

I agree with you, As a southern California person, i have had to go out of state to do my investing. It was great 4-8 years ago in the downturn of the economy in Riverside County, but now, the properties have increased in value too  much to pursue buying more here.  I have homesin multliple states, (Tx, UT, NV, AZ and IN)  Currently, the best bet for me is Indiana.  I do have a company out there that fixes, rehabs and places a tenant in the home for you. We prefer investors who have invested before, but everything is done for you. Properties have excellent cash flow and range from $35K-110K (for the ones we do)