All Forum Posts by: Brian G.

Hey Lawrence,

As it relates to traditional financing...

As far as I know a NOO (Non Owner Occ) investment property is going to require 20%-25% down depending on the lender.

You could however:

#1 Get a partner on the next property (ie their borrowing ability + your cash)

or

#2 Live in your current duplex for at least 1 full year then I believe you can get FHA lending on the next property if you intend to move into that as your primary residence. You would then turn your current duplex into a full rental and then live in the new triplex/quad.

All the best!

Hey Jason,

I can't speak from experience as an investor but I can as a dad.

If the area is decent and the school is desirable I believe buy and hold can work to your advantage. Of course that is if it fits with your long term strategy.

Having multiple exit strategies is always a good thing. Knowing you could flip or buy and hold is a great comfort going into a deal.

Many families need to be in walking distance to a school due to circumstances.

For the right tenant (ie someone who needs their child close to school) they would pay more for the proximity.

Many families struggle getting their kids to and from school and want their JH kid to walk to school (or ride a bike) and get home by themselves especially if they perceive it to be safe.

Here are a few ideas to gather more information to help your decision making:

#1 I think speaking to a few families who have kids in the area may give you a great idea of the value they would perceive in being close to that particular school.

#2 You could also observe what it is like before and after school. Are the kids out of control or mostly behaved?

#3 You could also talk with a few neighbors and get their honest feedback as to positives vs. negatives in living there.

#4 I think a local realtor could also effectively weigh in on the value of the property as it relates to the school (ie resale value after flip or down the road).

All the best!

Hey Mike,

Make sure you do your homework if they do "gift" you the amount.

Unfortunately there are limits on how much a parent/s may gift their children without triggering gift tax by the IRS.

The IRS is the last entity on earth that you want to have future issues with.

I would seek advice from a tax professional BEFORE making a final decision.

All the best!

Make sure you don't by an expensive software program to do this.

There are products sold based on saving mortgage payers thousands of dollars.

All you have to do is what Steve said above...and it is free!

All the best.

I want to encourage you to add the following book to your business library:

The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason

It is short and sweet and gives some great financial principals for success.

Happy New Year BP nation.

Happy hunting!

Hey Jacob,

Becoming a landlord by default has it's dangers.

Here is something to consider...

Imagine that you already live in Houston right now. Would you purchase the home you are currently living in as a rental? If so maybe it makes sense to keep it. If not you should consider letting it go as soon as financially feasible.

You have to consider vacancy loss, maintenance and repairs to hold a property long term. It sounds like you could make do on the short term (ie a year or two?) which may make sense if selling it before you move would cost you a significant amount of money (ie $10K+).

If home prices are appreciating steadily and holding onto it for a year or two means you would not lose a significant amount (ie $10K) then that makes sense.

The more savings you have right now the easier it is to take that risk.

If you are on the edge with your overall finances it would be best to sell.

Hope that helps.

Given that I am a Dodgers fan we will have to set baseball aside since the Cardinals have OWNED us for way too long.

Welcome and All the best!

Here is my thought:

If you did not already own each of these properties would you purchase each of them today?

If so that means you are satisfied with their performance and you should probably keep them.

If not you should probably let them go at some point and ideally recoup as much investment as possible.

Ultimately it's about maximizing property performance.

All the best!

What's up BP Nation?

My name is Brian. I'm a happily married man of almost 20 years with 6 (Six!) kids. I have been in pastoral ministry for 10 years now. I love what I do - it's truly my calling in life. I am a Christian. I grew up in a broken home and ultimately turned to drug addiction to self medicate. I put my faith in Jesus at 22 years of age and my life truly changed.

I live in Burbank, home of NBC, Disney, WB, etc. In the words of Johnny Carson "beautiful downtown Burbank." The challenge we face as a family is the cost of living due to family size and So-Cal real estate prices!

We do own (1) 2 unit rental property in northern California that cash flows well. We would love to purchase a home some day in Burbank but the median house price is a hefty $500K. Need I say more?

I've been reading many posts on BP and now I'm ready to engage.

My primary motivation for real estate investment is for retirement income.

My primary goal is to buy & hold long term cash flowing rental properties.

Right now I feel pretty confident because I dominated a family game of Monopoly today! I brokered my first 3-player deal!

I hope to be an encouragement to some of the BP nation.

All the best,

Brian