All Forum Posts by: David Kramer

@Ashley Phillips a good deal depends on what you're looking for! Start with a specific approach. Are you looking to Flip, Buy and Hold a rent ready place, BRRRR? Are you interested in single families or multi families? There are a few rules of thumb out there that provide an awesome place to start - although a little more digging will be required prior to making the offer. @Brandon Turner did an awesome Webinar on Rental Property analysis either last week or the week before. Shoot me a message if you want to go over those specifics.

@Adnan M.

What's to prevent you from doing both? Your Debt to income ratio will really be the driving factor in your ability to get your hands on the cheapest financing options (FHA at 3.5% down or conventional). If you are able to borrow, then house hacking may be the best way to pay off your student loan the fastest. By that I mean if you eliminate your housing expense by taking on a roommate or roommates in a house you buy. This will free up extra capital to pay off your loans faster or reinvest.

In the meantime, there is nothing stopping you from analyzing a few properties a day. That way you can recognize an awesome deal when you come across it.

I don’t think this is an either or decision. As with anything, optimal might be somewhere in the middle.

I have done out of state myself too. However, I have family in the area that invest that could provide keep insights into areas to avoid and what valuations would make for a good deal. I'll second the @David Greene book reference (AWESOME Resource). That said, if you take the time to connect with an investor-friendly realtor that will steer you in the right direction, get and vet references for a contractor, structure your payments to align the contractor's best interests with yours, and utilize technology (videos for walk throughs) as well as your agent to validate the work done there is no reason why you can't be successful.

I would also consider taking on a partner for your first one. Better to take a smaller share and learn a ton about a specific area and the contractors involved then it is to get stuck in a corner. 

I bought a SFR in North Pensacola (off Olive) a few years ago and it was an awesome educational experience. Being able to live in it first prior to renting will definitely give you access to better financing rates (not to mention VA/FHA etc). I was able to house hack by renting two of the bedrooms to other military friends while I was there, essentially living for free.

What is your timeline for making the move to Pensacola? 

Hello Bigger Pockets Community,

My name is David and I am a new(ish) Bigger Pockets member. I have listened to almost all of the podcasts and am looking to put that knowledge to good use in building a rental property portfolio. My wife and I currently have one rental property in the Pensacola, FL area that we purchased and house hacked when I was stationed there. We currently live in San Diego, CA and are looking to build our rental portfolio. It would be most beneficial to our situation to invest out of state. As such, we are looking to invest in the Pensacola area to take advantage of the few connections we have gained through renting our first property out. 

We are also searching for potential rental properties in the Grand Rapids, MI area as my wife and her family are from there and have provided us with some awesome insights into potential opportunities that direction. I would love to get to know some BiggerPockets members in the San Diego, Pensacola, and Grand Rapids areas. 

Thanks for being such an awesome group of folks.