All Forum Posts by: Jared Viernes

Those of you who invest in the Wichita, Kansas area should be made aware of an upcoming event important to every investor. For those of you that don’t already know, the city and the private sector have been in discussions about how we can update the Riverfront area to help Wichita compete on the national level when it comes to attracting conventions and performing arts events. There is a lot of discussion about whether to keep century II or tear it down and build something modern. 

Next Thursday at 6:30 PM the commission will be revealing five different potential scenarios which include the potential economic cost and additional incomes. Anyone who owns property in Delano should be particularly interested. Come with me to check out what is possible and make sure your voice is heard.

@Jonathan R. your outlook on investing and life is heartwarming. I hope that the majority of us feel as you do. It’s definitely important to give back to the community when we have the capability to do so. Please share more of these types of stories! It’s great for the community and a good influence on the rest of us. Keep up the great work! Also, I’ll be ending my MBA this December and coming out of command too so my time schedule will free up significantly. I still need to see one of your projects!

I just came across a news story which discussed a new trend that could have major real estate implications if it takes off. Anyone heard of the helicopter Ubers? 

https://www.citylab.com/transp...

If NASA is correct and it is a burgeoning industry. We had better start buying in the boondocks surrounding major metropolitan areas. Probably those with better weather.

Your thoughts?

@Jonathan R. don’t know if you heard about what was put out at the WSU economic outlook conference. If you haven’t already check out the housing report. The bottom line though:

Wichita home developers can only make a profit at the higher end because of the cost of materials. But high end is a buyer’s market here. For those in the first time homeowner range, housing prices are expected to appreciate in the area as a whole by over 7%.

I love the WSU area and encourage everyone to think about investing in the area. Keep us updated and hope it sells for you my man.

@Kyle Zdrojewski welcome! There are quite a few active members in he Wichita area.  Do a search in meetup and Facebook for real estate, rental owners, and landlords association.  There are quite a few investing clubs in the area you can join and meet like minded individuals.

Best of luck to you!

Its difficult to find "deals" with the VA loan because it requires you purchase a home imwhich meets minimum property requirements (MPRs). Most deals that are easy to find are distressed properties that cant be approved for a conventional loan let alone a VA.

The nice thing about the VA loan is you can get in at 0 down and request up to 4% in seller paid assistance. This means you can literally get in with 0% or very nearly 0% out of pocket.

Think of it this way: are you currently paying rent? What is the total opportunity cost of continuing to pay rent while you search for the best deal? Might it not be a better choice to find a place that works and allows you to put away more money per month by combining income from tenants and what you would have paid in rent minus expenses. Every month you will earn excess money because you have made the choice to purchase and rent out a multiunit. That extra savings can be put away to build the liquid capital necessary to purchase a really good deal because cash gets you more options. 

Sometimes its useful to think about a deal in terms of its opportunity cost. Especially with a VA loan.

@Aqeelah M. you should definitely read @David Greene’s book about investing in real estate long distance. On the financing section he goes over how to find a great lender and what to look for.  One piece of advice he gives is to develop the relationship before making the purchase so you know that your lender understands your plan.  You give yourself the best chance possible by clearly identifying your criteria, plan, and team you will use.  Greene’s book has a lot of actionable tips to implement and should help guide you.

Good luck! There is a big community of investors here in Wichita who love to help other investors, make friends.

@Aqeelah M. the website @William Carpenter is talking about can give you a whole lot more information about the property than just the property tax. Make sure to find the property record card and you can get a ton of info about the property, including when it was built, legal improvements that were made, how well the property has been maintained, and the last county appraisal valuation as well as when it occurred.  You can find the owners name and address.

This same website will give you a list of people behind on their property taxes too. It is a great tool every investor must learn to use.

Be careful with POAs, probably want to speak to a lawyer. Also, fyi if the person who made the POA is deceased it is no longer good. Good luck man, find a way to crack this nut.

@Kevin Polite Tulsa, OKC, and KC have had some more economic growth than Wichita in the past few years.  I don’t think Wichita is all that great a place if you are looking for appreciation, mostly we just get the standard 1-3% per year.

That being said there are definitely some places with a lot of potential.  I absolutely agree with you on the Delano area being a good buy, in fact I just closed on a house there last month.  I hope the Fairmount area will clean up a little more with the innovation campus just north of there and would give it a fair chance with the help of the city.

I think there is a lot of opportunities for traditional purchase cash flow and BRRRR strategies and you can get in at much lower prices than most area. Much much lower.