All Forum Posts by: Collin Groves

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Houston.

Purchase price: $635,000
Cash invested: $10,000

Before graduating grad-school, I was looking to get a house with a rentable backhouse. This property came about just over my budget. However, the seller was quite distressed, so I teamed up with a private money lender to offer $150k under original asking price. This was a flip that was about 90% completed. I rented out the back house for $1525/m, house hacked the main for $1700/m, and got to work on the house for about $10k. Sweat equity and a forgiving market earned a refinance of $800k.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Distressed sellers are a two-edged sword. They are motivated by closing within a month for all cash, but they can also be unreliable in their word and their work.

How did you finance this deal?

Private money. I only did this because I knew this house was a deal. The market overlooked it because it had not been kept up since it had been remodeled. Most people looked at the front yard and saw a forest. I saw a couple weeks of Houston summer and yard tools.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Just because someone has flipped properties does not make them good at flipping. The work can be shoddy, the people can cut corner, and money tends to be the only motivator.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Real estate agent

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $140,000
Cash invested: $35,000

My first property started with a BRRRR in a great location. This fixer upper was untouched by the market - for good reason - but in an ideal area. After 2 months working on the property, my first lease was $1,500 for 12 months on a ~$680 note. I was netting $500 a month on this property as I self managed it. I recently refinanced for $205,000 and a 2 pts lower interest rate. Needless to say, I learned as much from this as all of the books and podcast.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

The clear cut takeaway from this project was to fix or improve everything the first time around. I was short on cash early on, so I choose to wait to paint parts of the house, replace doors, tile, etc. The first-time owner headaches it would have saved me to just replace the damaged exterior doors with good, steel doors at the beginning are too many restless nights. As I have grown in this business, these little issues don't bother me anymore. We fix them, move on, but we always improve.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $140,000
Cash invested: $35,000

My first property started with a BRRRR in a great location. This fixer upper was untouched by the market - for good reason - but in an ideal area. I pulled 150 nails out of the master bedroom, their was animal feces on one wall, and too many holes in the walls and carpet to keep track of. After 2 months working on the foundation, new roofing, new floors, paint, new pulls throughout the house, and general maintenance, the property was finally rentable. My first lease was $1,500 for 12 months on a ~$680 note. I was netting $500 a month on this property as I self managed it. After graduating from school, I finished the refinance recently for $205,000 and a 2 pts lower interest rate. Needless to say, I learned as much from this as all of the books and podcast.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

The clear cut takeaway from this project was to fix or improve everything the first time around. I was short on cash early on, so I choose to wait to paint parts of the house, replace doors, tile, etc. The first-time owner headaches it would have saved me to just replace the damaged exterior doors with good, steel doors at the beginning are too many restless nights. As I have grown in this business, these little issues don't bother me anymore. We fix them, move on, but we always improve.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $125,000
Cash invested: $1,000

Off-market , completely renovated deal that local investors brought me. There was a need for cash on the sellers side, so I got a private money deal together. We closed in 28 days, and I rented the property out 6 days later. I recently refinanced the house at $175k, paying off my investors, taking off cash for my next deal, with hardly any maintenance. This is my crown jewel deal so far!

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

This was an off-market deal in a new area for me. However, I had been introduced to the sellers and understood the situation they were in. We closed quickly and easily. This was a win-win for both sides after I was able to bring a private-money lender with me to finance the property.

What was the outcome?

The appraisal came back 40% over the price I paid for the property, so I was able to pay off my investors and keep cash for the next deal all within 14 months. Plus, this property nets $200 a month with little maintenance and great tenants.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $140,000
Cash invested: $35,000

My first property started with a BRRRR in a great location. This fixer upper was untouched by the market - for good reason - but in an ideal area. After 2 months working on the property, my first lease was $1,500 for 12 months on a ~$680 note. I was netting $500 a month on this property as I self managed it. refinance recently for $205,000 and a 2 pts lower interest rate. Needless to say, I learned as much from this as all of the books and podcast.

How did you finance this deal?

Personal funds

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Great contractor and lender on the refinance

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $140,000
Cash invested: $35,000

My first property started with a BRRRR in a great location. This fixer upper was untouched by the market - for good reason - but in an ideal area. I pulled 150 nails out of the master bedroom, their was animal feces on one wall, and too many holes in the walls and carpet to keep track of. After 2 months working on the foundation, new roofing, new floors, paint, new pulls throughout the house, and general maintenance, the property was finally rentable. My first lease was $1,500 for 12 months on a ~$680 note. I was netting $500 a month on this property as I self managed it. After graduating from school, I finished the refinance recently for $205,000 and a 2 pts lower interest rate. Needless to say, I learned as much from this as all of the books and podcast.

How did you finance this deal?

Personal funds

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Great contractor and lender on the refinance

@Rhett Tullis Thank you for the heads up! I'd love to connect. My thought is that the leases would be a way to marry my background in finance and operations with my interest in the market and overall real estate. For the time being, I am focusing my efforts around residential deals in the Shepard Historic District and Village area. 

Hi, Bigger Pockets! My name is Collin, and I am currently living in Washington DC while I get my Masters in Business from Georgetown. I grew up in both Texas and Oklahoma before attending Oklahoma University for my undergrad. Afterwards, I worked down in Houston until I completed a Leadership Rotational Program in the Oil and Gas Industry.

With my family living back in Oklahoma City, some even working in the real estate space, I have worked to build out my knowledge of the real estate market there. I’d love to be able to invest in, grow, and give back to the community that gave me so much growing up! After rapid expansion over the past decade, OKC was recently named the top city for entrepreneurs. The city continues to build out while maintaining a relatively low cost of living. I’d love work my own 90-day challenge in this market (if the right opportunity is there).

I’ve been listening to podcasts, reading books, going to meet ups, and simply talking to people about real estate for a few months. I have built out my own real estate financial model, that I have let other investors vet and use on their own deals. Now, I am in a position to take the next step. I plan on blogging my progress and experiences in hopes of encouraging others to take that next step too!

Passive income mixed with the BRRRR methodology seems right up my alley. The 3 areas I am interested in investing in are: single family home rentals, multi-family home rentals, and oil and gas leases.

I'm open to all your advice and suggestions! I am an eager learner and happy to help.

Thank you in advance!

Collin Groves