All Forum Posts by: Dan White

Everyone is right. We usually get our proceeds wired and have them in our account within 24 hours.

Congrats on the first AirBnb! 

We have had great luck with quality with Amazon products for furniture and bedding. 

Quote from @Mel Park:

@Dan White. Thanks for all the thoughts.

Question: As I' understand it - I can't be a "broker" - I'd have to get a real estate license in PA - and after 3 years I can be a broker.   So, if I get a real estate agent license - --  I'd have to work for a brokerage.  At this point I have no intention of trying to become a Realtor.   I've read about some in my shoes paying monthly desk fees or a percentage of transaction.  Curious: Do you know which firms would allow a licensed person to be 'registered with their firm - therefore I'm street legal to conduct my flip transactions?  Also - I'm sure getting a license does NOT teach me everything or close.  When I buy or sell a home - the paperwork that goes into it - is that pretty much up to the settlement office/attorney?  

On NoVA: I lived in Clifton many years - owned a business and commercial property in Woodbridge actually.      NoVA prices means I can't do 2 cash deals at a time, but certainly I can do one.   If you know of reputable wholesalers or agents certainly I'd be open.   

Thanks

Not sure about your area with the brokerages and their plans. In NOVA, we have a few 100% commission brokers and minimal quarterly dues. I think I pay $1000 a year total. $295 to the broker per transaction. 
Getting a license allows you the ability to represent a broker as an agent in a transaction. A good broker will help you when you have questions and help with their opinions on roadblocks that may occur. Ultimately they are the one who is selling the house.
 The test doesn't prepare you for the real world of real estate. That is why a broker is important for you to getting start. You would be street legal to sell your flips on the MLS through yourself at that point and you would save whatever you pay for the listing agent. Usually 2.5% of the sell price. 
The title company represents the contract and make sure the title is clean and the contract is done correctly. They will let you know if something is missing but that is mainly your broker's part.

NOVA: I grew up in Manassas and moved out to Haymarket 15 years ago. We do a decent amount work in Woodbridge. It is the same as always there. Just getting even busier with traffic everyday.
I have looked at a couple houses in Clifton but haven't bought one there yet. 
I'll connect with you and let you know when something comes across in this area.

I would start with a call to the local zoning office and check the process and feasibility.

Getting some credit would be the most optimal. Home Depot or Lowe’s CC for materials. But you will still need $$$ for the labor. Labor is almost always the most expensive for me. 

I would run the project by some HMLs on here and check out their programs as well. A lot will fund rehab and the purchase. 

We bought a similar STR home for 860k in Northern VA. ARV of 1.15M.

9 bedroom 5 bath. 100k in reno. It has three separate entrances so we rent it by floor and it cash flows pretty nicely. 

Our goal is to hold for at least a few years and cash out when the time is right.

If the numbers work based on conservative vacancy and income, I would do it.

Note: We only allow 30 day stays. The neighbors are all cool with us since we don't have daily/weekly turnover. 

Depends on the deal you are looking to do. 

If you did a hard money loan - they will want some skin in the game money for your first couple deals.

A standard mortgage will cost you some money in EMD and the closing costs can be rolled into the loan.

So let's say you find a deal on a house for 100k and the ARV is 150k and it needs 15k in reno.

Also assume it will take 30 days to fix. You get a hard money loan for 90% of the 100k and you have to fund out of pocket for the balance and reno. Hard money loan at 2 points and 12% interest rate. You aren't a realtor I assume, so you will pay to sell it when done. 

You be out of pocket 25k of your 30k and deal is very lean even though you bought it at 66% of ARV.

There are multiple lenders on here with loads of different programs. Some will fund the reno too.

That is a flip type scenario. 

With 30k to play with - I would look at rental homes and start working on cash flowing. Keep building your equity.

My flipping partner and I created a REI calculator called DealSimple.

We built it from scratch because had a need for a simple deal calc. We use it everyday for fix and flip calcs in our area. But it has the function to analyze BRRRRs and Rentals. (We have a few of those too)

Check my signature for link.

Hey @Mel Park. I flip full time in Northern VA. It is highly competitive for on market deals. We have lost man an offer to others from MLS listings. We still look at some on MLS but not full time. We mainly do our own marketing through Google PPC, SEO, and a few direct mail pieces.

I recommend joining the local REI groups on facebook for your target area. Posting you are a cash buyer and you will start getting some off market deals from agents and wholesalers.

Also recommend finding a good agent or two in the area to start looking for deals for you. I am in a decent sized brokerage and we have a lot of posts in our group about folks wanting to sell off market. We bought 2 last year just from that.

I think getting your license would be helpful in your local area. Saves you money on commissions on both sides if it is MLS buy.

More than happy to connect if you want to drill down more about this area.

My partner and I work in Northern VA doing flips. We market online and through some direct mailers. The lead flow has increased by a decent amount over the last month. I can only assume it is the market softening and the interest rates rise causing people to not be able to refi.

Curious on what everyone else is seeing in their market.