All Forum Posts by: James Allen

@Account Closed - Thanks for your thoughts but can you please explain.... In my opinion Atlanta is one of the best places to invest at the moment. Rising appreciation on the way coming from an influx of population, job/economy growth in these coming years and is one of the best cash flowing cities and median price to rent cities you can invest in. For buy and hold, it makes perfect sense, you would be the first of the many I've talked with to tell me I'm wrong with this assessment. What am I missing? 

So I'm just closing on our first investment property in Atlanta, GA in the next 1-2 weeks. I should have enough cash in the bank left over for putting a deposit on our first live in residential place in California. I'm trying to make sure I'm buying at the right time however. 

Everything I've seen thus far about the market in California is pointing us towards hitting our peak of the market within the next couple years or so and there's not much to grow, also we're only predicted to have a small bump down in the market from what I've seen and not like the crash of 2008 from what I've seen. However, with mortgage interest rates predicting to go up this year and the next upcoming years and with their still being some room to grab some minimal appreciation along the way, I'm trying to determine if now is a good time for my family to buy a home before rates start going above 5 and maybe even to six in the next few years? Any advice would be appreciated...

Hello BP Community,

I have my first property under contract. It's in a good neighborhood in Decatur (30032). It's in a highly appreciating area but from the inspection we got bad news that the electrical needs to be fixed which got quoted at $5,000-$7,000 that I wasn't expecting to do. It's now a bit below my desirable COCROI but I feel it has a lot of potential for appreciation over the next couple years with the neighborhood trending towards a B from a C+. My due diligence ends tonight 9pm PST so I'm looking for some final thoughts if I should stick with the deal or leave it behind. 

Address: 1194 Weston Dr. Decatur, GA 30032

Purchase Price: $91,000

Property Type: Duplex

Unit 1: 3 Beds, 1 Bath

Unit 2: 2 Beds, 1 Bath

Total Sq ft: about 1,886

Sq Lt. 1/3-1/2 acre (In a hurry and forgot the exact number)

Yr Built: 1966

Rental income: 1550 ($850 for the 3 bed, $700 for 2 bed) (Am I off on this estimation?) 

Property taxes: 134 

Insurance: 48

Cap ex: 155

Vacancy: 155

Property management: 230 

Maintenance: 75

Misc: 75

Mortgage: 385

Utilities: 0

Total expenses: 1257

Cash flow: 293/month

Down payment: 18200

Closing costs: 3000 (Seller contributing $1000 of the $4000)

Repairs: 25000-27000 (Quoted by GC)

Total expenses: 48200

Annual cash flow: 3516

Cocroi: 7.3%

Any advice would be great! Thank you

thank you Chris. Yes, I'm aware I can go through a RE agent however, my goal is to make more lower offers on MLS listings and I don't want to waste a RE agents time doing that. So it sounds like I am able to do it after all. Thank you!

Hello BP Community,

I've been thinking about getting licensed as a RE Agent in the state I am currently investing in. My question is "is it possible to be licensed and make offers as a RE Agent in a state where I don't currently reside?" 

Hello BP Community

So I've come across this out of state property I'm prepared to make an offer on. Wanted to get your thoughts on it first. 

Property Type: Duplex

two 3 bed 1 baths just over 1,000 sq ft. each. 

Neighborhood: C

Rental Income: $1400/month

Property Management: $204 (8% plus leasing fee and renewed leasing) 

Cap Ex: $140

Maintenance: $70

Vacancy: $140

Property Taxes: $28 (current taxes, will probably rise) 

Insurance: $78

Mortgage: $402/month (currently pre approved at 4.875%) (pretty sure I can shop and get a better rate)  

Travel: $50 (Freedom to travel every 4-5 months should I need to) 

Utilities: $0 (Tenant pays all) 

• Water/Sewage: $0
• Gas: $0
• Electricity: $0
• Trash - $0

Total Expenses: $ 1116/month

Cash Flow: $284/month

Possible Maximum offer: $95,000 (I will obviously initially offer lower) 

Downpayment: $19,000

Closing Costs: $4,000

Repairs: $10,000 (Paint, Cleaning, potential HVAC installation, couple new windows) 

Total Investment: 33,000

Annual Cash Flow: $3,408

COCROI: 10.3% 

Please let me know your thoughts?

Hello Atlanta RE Agents,

First and foremost, I am currently looking to meet up with an Atlanta Real Estate Agent that I can work with to purchase investment properties.

I am a Multi-Family buy & hold investor with cash reserves ready to purchase my first of many properties. I am flying out from Los Angeles for the weekend of January 15th-17th to drive the streets of Atlanta and analyze block by block. I'm currently interested in the zip codes 30315, 30310, and 30314 but am not opposed to other areas should the right deal come along. I am particularly looking for a RE Agent with a great knowledge of the local market. I am free to meet in person either Saturday, January 16th or January 17th. 

Thanks,

James

@David Nguyen - I'm planning on visiting from January 13th-15th. 

@Victoria Townsend - Hi Victoria, it's taken a while to get to this point and I wanted to do it locally first. The main reason however was rent to price ratio but after that, I researched the macroeconomics in that area such as unemployment, population growth, job growth, etc. and compared them to other great cash flowing areas. The icing on the cake was also how it's appreciating, it's potential and flights aren't too expensive out there from where I am. I don't currently have a rental at the moment, trying to make sure I'm covering all my bases first. They always say you make your money when you buy not when you sell, so understanding your local market is a must! 

@Juan Jackson - Hi Juan, my strategy consists of buy and hold with multifamily units (2-4 units). I'm open to A,B, and even C properties (at the right price) but avoiding war zone areas. I'm looking at a price point of $150,000 and lower at the moment however, if the cash flow and COCROI is right then I would feel comfortable up to $250,000.