All Forum Posts by: Ian Olmsted

Open a business checking account and pool money in that account.  Either put both of your names on the account or form a company and open the account under the company name.   

So if she pays property management out of $600 cash flow....  is it really cash flow?

If you are getting a mortgage, you are using credit.  So why would you be against building credit when your goal is to have credit?  If you are going to go "full Ramsey", start saving and pay cash for your properties.  If you are undisciplined, getting a credit card can get you in trouble quickly.  Credit cards aren't a bad idea, but using them irresponsibly is.

Think about it.

Live as cheaply as humanly possible, invest as much as humanly possible.  Spend your 20's hustling and getting ahead.  Marry somebody who is as driven as you are.

@James C. is on point about teaching your kids the ropes from day 1.  When my daughter was 2, she was at the job site helping me "paint" with a brush and a cup of water while I rehabbed.  Do so well and lead by example so that they don't feel the need to go to college unless they really want to (I have a PhD but could have made way more money spending 9+  post-secondary years investing in real estate).

Start a legacy.  Get out there and crush it.

 I look at Louisville in 4 chunks.  North of 64, east of 65 is where all the wealthy folks live (Oldham County) prices are high though.  South of 64 and east of 65 is probably your best bet.  A mix of middle class and working class.  Jeffersontown sounds like what you're looking for.  Solid B all day long.  North of 64, west of 65: Old Louisville and U of L have some gems, but it can be hit or miss.  Shively is a war zone.  West of 65, south of 64 is a mix of rough characters that slowly blends more towards rural(ish) working class as you get farther southwest. 

All of this is pertains to areas inside and immediately outside 265 (Gene Snyder as we call it)

If you want B/C class, look at Radcliff, KY.  It is the area closest to Fort Knox.  Everybody rents and the military provides steady income to a lot of businesses. 

Great advice Jim!  The term "buying a low paying job" comes to mind when discussing the difference between working on a business vs. in it. 

Hey Jim, I really appreciate the feedback. 

My long term plan is to build a buy and hold portfolio that is professionally managed so I can spend maximum time with my family.  I enjoy flipping, but so far the two I've done, all work was done by me alone - future flips will need to have margin to pay others to do a majority of the work. 

I have a good relationship with a handful of realtors and a property management company, but nothing as far as wholesalers or brokers.  I didn't get serious about learning about "driving for dollars", direct mail, etc until a few months ago.  I will use those techniques in the future.  My wife is extremely risk averse and has been the one to encourage me to prioritize student loans - I've gone from 60k to 25k in the last 3-4 years.  At this point, I'm paying about $250 a month and the interest is 4%. 

You mentioned MFH buy and hold - that's exactly what I have been looking at today and as luck would have it, I was looking at the Lexington market.  Any suggestions as far as neighborhoods or specific areas in Lexington to focus on?  When the time comes, 2-300k 4-plex could be the way to go. 

I'll be attending the June REIA meeting here in Louisville.

Hi everybody, I've been reading this site for a few years but finally decided to make an account.  Let me give you a little history before taking an informal poll on how to move forward. 

In 2013, my wife and I sold a house that we flipped while living in.  Bought for 35k, sold for 85k, netted 22k after taxes. 

Later in 2013, we bought a small farm for 220k and used all of the 22k as a down payment.  15 year fixed.  This is where we live and are raising our kids.  We owe 150k currently.  10 more years and it's paid for.

In 2015 we flipped a house that we bought for 47k, sold for 78k. I cashed out all of the 15k principal from my roth IRA (amassed during grad school) for the down payment on a construction loan. Never made a monthly payment and netted 10k after taxes. The 10k profit was used to pay down student loans

In 2016, I took the original 15k and bought a rental for 80k, completely renovated and move-in ready.  Rent is 895/month.  All rent goes into a separate account.  After conservatively budgeting for management, vacancy, repairs, etc I allocate $100/month profit that will be reinvested.  Since this money came out of a retirement account, I don't plan on spending a single dollar of cash-flow outside of reinvesting. 

Where I am today: I owe 150k on a house worth 250k, I have 50k in a 401(k) and a rental house worth 85-90k that I owe 65k on.  I have 25k in student loans remaining.  From my 96k salary, I save 6% through the 401(k) which is matched.  I save $400/month making 4k+ net per month after taxes, 401(k), etc.  I have 10k in savings, but our furnace is getting up in age and I don't want to blow all my cash reserves.  Mortgage is $1650 per month. 

So!  Where would you go from here?  I would like to continue doing deals, (flip or rental) but there seems to be little margin in flipping due to minimal inventory and lots of competition in Elizabethtown, KY where I currently invest.  My recent focus has been analyzing rentals.  Do I expand using a home equity loan, wait until I pull together more cash, or take a 401(k) loan?  Are there low down payment options I haven't considered?  (maybe tomorrow's BP podcast will have the answers!) 

Just curious to see what others would do if they were in my shoes.  I troll Zillow and always look at houses when I drive around, but being on the sidelines is killing me!  Then again, if a correction is coming, this might be working out for the best.