All Forum Posts by: Dan Schweit

Are you planning on visiting before you purchase?? Or would you be looking from a distance, and possibly writing offers before you come? Los Angeles is very mixed by type of neighborhood, especially in the area you are talking about. I would suggest possibly finding a rental situation like you mentioned above for the first year, and get to know the neighborhoods of LA, then find the situation that fits during that time period. You may find some very favorable rental opportunities and landlords willing to adjust due to covid. Let me know if you have any specific questions regarding LA, I have been here my entire life, feel free to message me, happy to help.

"My short term goal is to purchase a property that gets my foot in the door of real estate, while also providing me a place to live"

Sounds like ^this is your goal, right? Is buying a cash flowing rental, but renting an apartment accomplishing the goal. If you can buy a house, and rent one room, or possibly more than one room, that's what you should do. We all hear so much about house hacking these days, but that's because it works. I think once you pencil out the numbers on both of these options it will be 100% obvious the direction you should go.

What @Tom Wagner said. The house hacking using FHA financing is the blueprint. And that blueprint available to anyone. Study it and apply it and you will quickly be a successful real estate investor.

@Leonid Lednev

All of our investment property loans have higher points these days. Typically I’m seeing around 1pt. Ask if you are being charged points on the loan and ask for a fee breakdown.

You are correct. I just reread what I what I wrote. Sorry, long days. Conventional, no. FHA, yes.

@Edgardo Lecona

They have to be running it as non owner occupied. If you are house hacking and living in one of the units, you should be able to go up to 95% ltv, conventional or fha. Feel free to DM me if you want some options or to discuss further.

@Dawn Marie Ampey

It all depends on your goals, and what exactly you are trying to accomplish. Many many different real estate options and quite a few lending options as well. Flipping a property, one type of financing, house hack, another type, buy and hold, other options yet still. You see what I’m getting at? There are many different combinations. I would decide what type of investor you’d like to be, then build a strategy around that. 

Good question! Let me tell you a story about someone I know who has been "waiting" almost 6 years. I won't bore you, but you get the point. Waiting is fine in certain situations, but I've more often seen it used as an excuse that can stretch on indefinitely. No one actually knows when inventory will increase, but you can easily find opinions arguing both sides. Could be Q1, Q4, 2022, could even be 2023. Your best bet is to really dial in exactly what you can actually afford, not "oh maybe a condo, townhouse, possibly a small single family". Create an avatar of EXACTLY what you can afford. Then get all your ducks in a row (lender, agent, and strategy) and then hit it hard. You could also wait, but above is my opinion on waiting. Good deals that come from a good strategy and plan don't need to be perfectly timed. If inventory goes up and prices come down, you could see higher rates then, so there is always a give for every take. Feel free to DM me with any questions, happy to help. Good luck.

@Stacey Ocampo

Hi Stacey. This would definitely qualify as a house hack if you’re going to no live in one and rent the other. And honestly, house hacking is one of the most foolproof options to use to start investing. Your personal living expenses are part of the equation, you get to experience being a landlord, and there are some very favorable lending options as well. You just have to figure out all of the expenses on the property (piti for your loan, repairs and maintenance, vacancy). Then figure out what each unit would rent for and you’ll get to where you need to be as far as deciding whether it’s a good deal for you. Feel free to DM if you have any specific questions. You’re on the right track with the house hack idea.

@Kevin McDonald

If you’re savvy about the process, are well qualified, and willing to shop a little bit, you’ll figure out the best deal pretty quickly. Also, lenders are pretty hungry for the deals these days, so if they understand that you are the above person and you are shopping, they should be able to get pretty competitive. Fell free to DM if you have any specific questions, happy to help. Good luck.