All Forum Posts by: Darren Flater

Right now the frost is over three feet deep. I'm guessing you should be able to get that started in a month or so If things ever heat up. I would guess that with bank financing you should be able to work on that soon after you close.

I agree with most people. I have bought two properties close to market value that I didn't put any cash down. Bill is right you need to consider all the factors. Some times it's good some times it's not. The reason I would buy is that someone else is paying for my house and building my equity.

@Luke M. I think he means non principal and interest. But he also added 10% for repairs. Basically if you use the 50% rule that means your putting that money in the bank and saving it for when those repairs come up. So if you use that then I'm not sure you need to add maintenance. Must be in Waterloo based on your taxes. The way I look at it. Your getting a deal and your gonna let someone else pay for it. If it were me I'd buy that all day. You have a great interest rate. If you are concerned about cash flow you could always go with a 30yr note.

I am building a cash reserve fund of two years worth of all my expenses. That includes personal life and business. This way I'm able to handle the hard times. Now I know I'm gonna get a bunch of hate for saying this but I hold some of that money in gold, silver, and platinum and also carry a large whole life policy on my wife, son, and myself. Not looking for high returns just a good place to keep my reserves.

I live in a mobile home and drive moderate cars that get paid off. Then I refinance them again for the down payment on another house. I figure ill let my paid off houses buy all my toys in the next 5-10 years. All my friends with toys are broke and can't figure out how I can keep buying all these houses.

@Roy N. You are correct. I forgot that when we did that on our house that most the knobs were broken off. We only had a few spots that were trouble.

Im not an expert at all but I know as a buy and hold investor the best way to get threw the hard time is to have large cash reserves. I think many people would say that it would have helped them if they would have had more cash on hand. I agree that whole life policies are not the best investment but its a great place for me to build up a large cash reserve that I can access when I need it. Now I understand that its not the best investment but I look at it as a safety net in case I die or the market crashes. I plan to use that cash as a personal loan to purchase properties once I have two years worth of expenses set aside. Im not arguing which is right or wrong just giving my personal opinion

I would say Its a definite yes if you were keeping it. But since you are rehabbing I would still consider it. I would absolutely replace any that you expose. Sometimes you can get lucky and string new wire threw while pulling out the old wire. It might be good peace of mind for the new home owners knowing that they have better wiring in there house. if all the old houses are k&t it might make your house a little more desirable. thats my 2 cents anyways

I love rural towns. The crime rate is very low. We live half an hour away from a large town which helps us get great tenants that want small town schools for there kids. I have very little turn over and I'm always getting calls for places to rent. Right now we are experiencing high rental demand and no places to rent. The only problem with small towns is that everyone seems to know my business and they think I must be rich. Lol

I agree to put in what other rentals near by are using. tip 1 dont glue down any counter tops. kitchens or bathrooms. that way you can replace them without recking the cabnits. I use a flat base paint so if i go back and touch up paint you cant tell where it was. that way when tennants move out i dont have to paint the entire place.