All Forum Posts by: Fran Bourassa

Welcome!  I've been investing in the Green Bay area for the lion's share of 20 years, I'd be happy to chat if you're interested.  

You got it.  I sent a message.

I am an active investor with the vast majority of my holdings within the 920 area.  How can I help?

I'd agree with Ben - while possible, it's fairly unlikely that you'd find an investor that would be willing to put up a significant portion (or all of) the downpayment to work with someone that essentially has no experience.  After you have a proven track record, finding money is not exceptionally difficult if that's what you're looking to do.

If you're serious about investing, if I were in your shoes and just getting started I'd focus on getting your foundation as solid as possible.  You will qualify for owner occupied financing (longer terms, lower rates, higher loan-to-value ratios) rarely - take advantage when you can.  From a long term standpoint, I'd focus on purchasing a multi unit (ideally four, at least three) unit building that you can move into and get a bit of experience under your belt.  Assuming you buy right, it will reduce your living expenses considerably and give you the opportunity to start saving for your next deal more aggressively.  

Despite what many folks will tell you, cash is important as reserves, emergency funds or downpayment.  If you're really excited about the industry and are confident this is going to be your long term plan, get a job (or jobs) in areas that will either save you money in the future or allow you to sharpen your skills as an investor.  Installing floors, handyman type work, tiling, installing windows, etc.  Even if longer term you aren't planning on doing the work yourself, in the beginning it'll help you save some money while you earn it, all the while providing a great education that will give you an edge as an investor.

Best of luck!

Welcome Matthew!

I am an active investor and own a property management company in the Green Bay market - I'd be happy to chat with you.  Let me know if you'd like to connect.

Absolutely.  From a personal perspective, I held onto a W2 far too long but on the flip side it allowed me to scale much faster because all of my business income rolled into more and more properties.  The sooner you get that snowball rolling, the larger it will be.  I coach newer investors all the time on a few specific points.  Perhaps you'll find value, perhaps not.  

- Pick the most important metric for your near/mid term goals and stick with it.  This is a game of tradeoffs and there is no property that will have them all.  Do what is most important to you for now and acquire that asset, again and again.  Cash Flow and Appreciation are enemies - usually the best cash flowing properties appreciate the slowest, High Appreciation properties often don't cash flow

-Investing in Real Estate is not a get rich quick scheme - it's a get rich slow plan

- Real estate is one of the few investments where time eventually will heal all wounds.  Rents will go up, properties will appreciate.  A bad buy 10 years ago looks like a smoking deal right now.

- Don't forget all of the benefits of owning a rental property.  Even if you net $1 in cashflow over the next 20 years on a property, someone will still have paid your mortgage off, you've likely had tax advantages that have decreased your taxable income and the property has almost certainly appreciated.

- You can never lose money in Real Estate - if anything, you simply pay tuition :)

 As always, if there is anything else I can do please let me know!

 I might be not quite understanding the question - if I miss it, let me know.

In terms of volume, there probably are more upper/lower duplexes than side by sides in total, but that gradually shifts - it's rare for an upper/lower duplex to be built nowadays.

There is fierce competition for side by side duplexes which drives the prices up in the Green Bay (and surrounding ) markets - primarily caused by owner occupants.  Unfortunately, with prices as high as they are relative to rent most side by side duplexes don't meet investor metrics, but they certainly are appealing to owner occupants who typically will have the bulk or all of their mortgage paid by the other side.  

Speaking very generally here, upper/lower duplexes are much less appealing to owner occupants and so the prices are normally much, much less per unit for purchase but the rents are similar.  From a metric standpoint, many investors (myself included) find them much more appealing and they tend to cashflow considerably more per door than a side by side duplex.

All that to say, a each deal should be analyzed individually and a decision made on each of it's merits.  Around here, upper/lower duplexes don't appreciate anywhere near as much as side side by sides, demand is lower for those units (though in this strong of a market it doesn't make much of a difference) and they are generally a bit more difficult to sell.  The upside for cashflow is significant, however.

Single family homes as well as larger multifamily projects also tend to cashflow less per door than upper/lower duplexes, usually by a significant margin.  The advantages of a single family home are usually related to faster appreciation relative to other asset types, longer duration of tenancy (less turnover/vacancy costs) and the easiest to liquidate.  Larger multifamily tend to be more appealing for folks looking to either simply place their funds somewhere and get a decent return, force appreciation through increased rents/stabilization or like the convenience of having a lot of units in one place.  There are a lot of additional costs in this space that folks don't tend to think about initially - landscaping, snow removal, salting, common area cleaning/maintenance, and the cost of commercial grade supplies.  A residential doorknob is $30, a commercial grade doorknob is around $200.

Please let me know if you have any more questions!

For context, I'm an active investor and own a property management company headquartered in Green Bay.  

I imagine there is a huge degree of difference depending on the specific market, but if you're looking at cash flow per door in the Green Bay and/or surrounding areas, specifically upper/lower duplexes will come out on top with rare exception.  

Certainly, they don't appreciate anywhere near as quickly as single family homes or side by side duplexes, but that's the tradeoff.  When I first started investing I purchased almost exclusively single family homes and side by sides, but when cash flow became a much more important metric for me I leaned heavily into upper/lower duplexes.  As far as an overall strategy, especially when first starting out, having strong cashflow is extremely important - it will help you weather those inevitable bumps that you'll come across throughout your investing career, but if they occur in the beginning before strong cashflow is established they can be catastrophic.  

I'd agree with Ben's comments above, it can be very difficult for an inexperienced investor to take down a bigger building and/or complex.  Not impossible, but the odds are stacked against you and often you are competing with extremely well qualified and experienced investors.

I've been hearing for years that people have been just killing it in the short term rental space, but I'm a conservative investor at heart and while revenue is frequently higher, there are many additional expenses and often an exceptional amount of volatility just inherent with short duration stays.  We've had a number of clients convert their short term rentals into long term rentals or sell them off because they were not performing as anticipated.  That said, obviously there are many others out there that have found success.

At any rate, best of luck to you!  If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.