All Forum Posts by: Mark F.

@Caden White

If you're planning to live in one of the units, I would recommend getting a duplex to start. If you move into a unit, you can do 3.5% down with an FHA loan and it will be easy to handle while you get some experience under your belt. You're going to make mistakes, so it's better to make mistakes on a smaller property than a large one. Start small, then build into bigger properties. Frankly, it's going to be tough to get financing on a big property like that anyway because you'll need a large down payment.

@Theo Hicks It might interesting to ask your colleague what happened to his stock portfolio in 2008. :)

Hi Bonnie, there should be no issue telling them you're an investor. In fact, I think it's very sensible to be up front about what you do. For some reason, many new wholesalers feel like they need to be cagey about what they do. Be upfront about it; it's good for sellers to know that you are a business and that the deal needs to make sense for you too. 

By the way, when you're talking with sellers, remember that you're not buying a house. You're solving a problem by buying the house. Find out why the seller is selling and incorporate that into your offers. When you make the transaction about solving the sellers real problem (again, the problem isn't the house itself), your offers are much more compelling. Again, be a problem solver, not a house buyer. Good luck!

@Derek Tellier I agree with so many others to at least contribute enough to get the match. Free money! Also, it might be worth seeing if your employer offers a Roth option. You wouldn't get the tax deferral for contributions now, but withdrawals are tax free in the future.

@Brian H.  I would definitely recommend the following: 

• The Richest Man in Babylon (very easy read)
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad
• Anything you can find by Jim Rohn (there are videos on Youtube as well)

That should get him started! :)

I highly recommend the following:

• The Richest Man in Babylon (a basic primer on saving and investing)
• The Total Money Makeover (especially if you're in debt)
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad (for mindset, especially)
• Money: Master the Game (great for investing basics)
• The Big Short (to learn insight into how the Wall Street casino really works)
• I Will Teach You to be Rich
• Anything by Jim Rohn (he has numerous books and there are videos of his speeches on Youtube)
• Market Wizards
• I would also recommend all the books published here on BP for real estate knowledge

If you can make it a habit to read constantly (maybe set a daily goal of even just 30 minutes), I have no doubt it will change your life for the better. Good luck!

@Jason L.  Investment property loans are always going to have a higher interest rate than a home you live in because they're riskier from a lending standpoint. Think about it:  if you become financially distressed, which property would you let go first, the rental or your primary home? Lenders know this, so rates on non owner-occupied loans are higher than primary residences or second homes.  

Expect to pay around 0.75% or 1% higher on a rental than a comparable primary residence loan. Also expect to pay slightly more on the rate because it's a duplex. Fees likely will be higher as well. 

If you want to do more homework on why this is, check out the article below about loan-level price adjustments (I'm not affiliated with this website in any way): 

https://themortgagereports.com/6866/llpa-loan-leve...

It seems like the market's been so hot in Bryan/College Station that it may not be a bad idea to sell and roll the proceeds into something bigger and better. I've also seen that many new apartments have come online that could push down rents for older buildings. What do you think? Is it a good time to sell an older investment property and take some equity off the table?

@Jason Clark  Just one suggestion for the move. On the way to the whatever new location you choose to live, make sure to take a detour for a few months through Europe, Australia, SE Asia or some other awesome part of the world. I would definitely do that if I were you :).

@Jon Mccarthy  I would definitely see if there's a way you can get rid of those car payments. Add up the balance of those two loans and think about what you could do with that dollar amount in real estate. Also consider how long it will be before they're paid off at the rate you're going. Do you want to wait that long to get started on your real estate career? The years pass quickly and it's better to start working on your business sooner rather than waiting because of two expensive and depreciating cars. 

BTW, I can also vouch for Financial Peace University. My wife and I did that years ago and it was a great program.