All Forum Posts by: Darren Elliott

I bought my first and only property in April 2018 as a primary residence. Five months later, I accepted a job much farther away and have been living with my parents while renovating the property with plans to rent it out soon (within 2 months or less).

Meanwhile, my business partner and I are teaming up to find a property to BRRRR or Fix-and-Flip, but don't have much starting capital. I have about $39K in equity built up so far and I am thinking about opening a HELOC on my house to partially finance our next project. However, my understanding is that in order to HELOC I would need to keep my property listed as a primary residence (and therefore, unrented) for ~1 year after re-financing.

A loan officer stated that I could alternatively opt for a cash-out refinance, but that would take 30-45 days to execute and would mean I'm making loan payments before finding a deal.

Is there a legal way to open a HELOC that still allows me to rent my primary residence?

Is there another way that accesses my home's equity that I'm not thinking of?

I'm currently in the process of analyzing my home market actually. My initial impressions have been that there are indeed deals out there, but it's a competitive, growing market, and having listings fed from the MLS may not be the most optimal way to find a great deal. Currently, I'm exploring other off-MLS ways to find deals--direct mail, driving for dollars, etc.

According to Realtor.com, the Riverside market is a top 10 market for 2017--with prices expected to rise by 4.98%, and number of home sales to rise by 6.88%.

http://research.realtor.com/2017-national-housing-...

I believe a lot of this growth in the Inland Empire is compounded by, if not outright caused by, the LA market. As housing price increases push people out of the LA market (which is the #2 market with an expected price hike of 6.90%), they will be more and more willing to look inland for housing.

I hope this helps.

Hi Denise,

It sounds like you're still figuring out your strategy, and that's okay. You're doing the smart thing by not making a move until you decide which strategy fits your long-term goals. I would recommend doing more research. It sounds like you're perfectly balanced between investing in-state vs. out-of-state, and more time learning the advantages/disadvantages of each would help you find your ideal plan of attack. Here's some questions to get you started:

• Do you want to actively landlord for your properties, or do you prefer a property manager take over that aspect?
• How much time do you have to look for potential properties?
• If you invested out-of-state, would you feel anxious trying to handle issues with your property/tenants from thousands of miles away?
• Would you rather invest in a nearby market with lower-returns, or a long-distance market with growth potential?

Hi David, I couldn't help but notice that Aaron responded to your post. He's one of the big investors in our area, and I would definitely encourage you to follow up with him with your questions. Not many people understand the Riverside market as well as he does.

Just a thought ☺