All Forum Posts by: Jason Hudson

Makes sense on a mobile home park / commercial/ higher unit multi family. A non refundable deposit absolutely does NOT make sense. Are you dealing with a “shady” wholesaler and not the seller?

Is it a commercial or multi family deal? It is typical. Owners don't want their time wasted. I would just have your window of due diligence or verbiage to protect you. Another option is an LOI. It's not a contract but shows your intent. If the initial walk through/financials look good then the formal contract is sent

@Jason Hudson While HELOC are generally for short-term purposes, people have to used it to purchase properties---but mostly so they can act like an all-cash investor. Nonetheless, with HELOC the closing costs are much lower (appraisal + recording), which likely around $750. There are also lenders giving introductory low rates for HELOCs--I seen 2.40% for two years and 3 3/8% afterwards. HELOCs also gives you the flexibility to pay it back without late payment penalties. Cash out refi has a higher closing cost of $3-4K. But make sure you calculate theses into your DTI ratio. Also I don't know what kind of rates you have on your existing loan (where you have $150K left). A HELOC will keep that rate intact. But if you have a very low rate, the Cash Out refi will replace your existing loan with a new larger mortgage with new market rates.

If it is 4 units or less, most likely conventional. So you have no investment properties you own currently. To do the HELOC or cash-out refi, do you own a primary residence? And if you do, does it have enough equity? Some lenders would let HELOCs go up to 85% loan-to-value. But mostly likely its 80% for HELOC and Cash out refi. And even if you did that, would the proceeds you pull out be enough for the whole purchase of this new investment? If not, then it may be just to fund your down payment. Conventional investment would require 25% down. But you may be able to get FHA with 3.5% or less if the home meets certain conditions. Speak to a lender or mortgage broker and double check your debt-to-income ratios to make sure you qualify.

@Jason Hudson , property management is still fundamentally the same as most service businesses.

Advertising:  Consider Google Ads utilizing keywords that are intended for 'conversions' and not 'education'.  For example, property manager near me vs. how to hire a property manager.  You'll notice a difference in costs per click but focus should be on cost per conversions.

Referrals:  The best marketing is positive word-of-mouth and referrals.  One of the first tasks I would do it survey my existing clients.  For happy clients, reach out personally and ask them for referrals.  Odds are they know other landlords nearby.  This also works with non-clients: vendors, realtors, etc.

SEO Marketing:  A long term approach is building a website that is effective and can rank well on Google.  A successful SEO campaign takes 9-12 months if you're starting from scratch.  Eventually you'll rank on Local Map Pack and the top websites.