All Forum Posts by: Doug McLeod

So what did you think of the seminar?

If you join as a plus member, you will get access to some forms and likely find an assignment contract you can copy.

Renting out.  Started with our old house when we moved as the kids got bigger.  Kept with that because we were looking to build passive income and we had some capital and good credit that allowed us to get started. 

Wholesaling and flipping are jobs.  They can become systematized businesses that require less time than most jobs, but when you are just starting out they will be jobs for sure. However, if you have only a little money and time work another part time job, wholesaling or flipping can work pretty well.  If you have a full time job and a family and lots of time commitments, you want to be as passive as possible.

Welcome to BP.  Check out the podcasts, blogs, and books mentioned under the "Learn" category on the menu bar at the top.  Ask questions on the forums as you have them.  Happy investing!

Welcome to BP.  Check out the podcasts, blogs, and books.  Ask questions on the forums as you have them.  Happy investing!

Congrats on saving up your money!

With all due respect to your parents, their experience with FHA 25 years ago should not be a deciding factor. FHA is likely the best option for super low downpayment. You should check into it. If you can find a 3-4plex that needs some work in a good area, you can also check out the FHA 203K programs which can provide some of the repair funding in addition to the purchase. You might also ask about seller financing.

Not sure what the right formula is, but since downtime is essentially vacancy, it seems you would be double dipping to add the 5% vacancy.

Welcome to BP!  Check out the podcast, the blogs, and the books.  Ask questions on the forums as you have them.

I'd suggest you pick one of the areas you mention (wholesaling, flipping, rentals) and study up.  When you say multi-unit residential, do you mean apartments?  Or just neighborhoods where he is building multiple single family houses?

Do you have a CPA?  If not, this is why you need one.  An experienced house hacker in a 4-plex who is also accounting savvy might give you a pretty good answer, but a CPA who handles lots of RE clients would be best.

For FHA loans I think the PMI does not go away, but I could be wrong - most likely you will need to refinance at some point to get out of PMI. If it is possible to get out of it, you would need to first pay the principal down to 80% of home value at time the loan was made.

Good job!  Making me feel lazy and unsophisticated.  ;-)