All Forum Posts by: Jeff Whitener

Hey everybody,

My wife and I are looking to build a team here in NYC for our property in SC, because we are now set up to start making more purchases in SC. We are looking to move to SC in about 3 years. We need a RE CPA, RE attorney and just financial advisor in general. Anyone have any good contacts they would feel comfortable sharing?

Thanks Simon,
Im def going to check closer on the local rents. There is a friend of the family in there right now, so we didn't give it a lot of thought at first b/c he is VERY reliable and we don't have to worry about maintenance, plus at first we weren't thinking about RE being a means of income at the time. The area is very rural SC so the rent's are just not very high in general, but we just started getting it all together in Feb and there has to be some ways that we can save a little money.
I think that we have decided to take a HELOC out on the property w/ the idea of using it as a down payment for another one. We are in the process of getting approved now. We figured that even if it costs us a little bit each month to pay for the HELOC, we would have been saving that money for a down payment anyway, and this way we can get started on buying a house now instead of in a year or so. We are trying to structure it so it is less than $300 a month payment for the HELOC, so we are covered.

I completely agree with you though about selling it for a better income on another property. I think we will really start to consider that once we have another house up and running and we need another down payment. Anyone have any thoughts about this?

To add a little more detail, we currently don't have a reserve that we could use for a down payment on a new property, and it would take us about 1.5 yrs to really build that up considering that we are in the process of paying off CC's from our wedding.

Hey guys, thanks for all the helpful input. We are netting about $300 a month right now w/ no mortgage payment. With our cap rate being 3%-3.5%, but no mortgage, I assumed (perhaps incorrectly?) that this could be a good long term play for us, to take a HELOC or equity loan out for a new property.

Based on every bodies feedback, my real question is, do I worry about a low cap rate when there is no mortgage and positive cash flow? If we were to buy another property from the sell of this one, whats better? option a) the new house w/ a higher cap rate, but less cash flow and a mortgage or option b) sticking with no mortgage, cash flow and a low cap rate. (we don't need the cash flow, but it is nice building up a cash pile for unexpected costs). Our goal being to purchase many properties for long term holds w/ cash flow? thoughts?

Im def going to have to give this some more thought. My brother owns half the house though and i would only be able to keep half of the money from the sell. He doesn't really have any interest in investing from Japan. would you still feel the same way if i only had the 60000 in cash?

The deed is shared 50/50 between my brother and I. The property was appraised at $140,000 and there was enough in the account to pay for all the fees and taxes of inheriting it. My brother and I have discussed different options, but neither one of us really want to sell it, especially now that we are receiving rent on it. He is actually in Japan and doesn't really do anything with the property, but is willing to let me do what ever I think is best to invest in other properties for me and my wife.

I certainly miss spoke about the rest being cash flow. I only wanted to speak about there being no mortgage. Im not really sure of the cap rate yet b/c we just started getting rent in Feb, but assuming a 5% vacancy rate and 1% maintanance rate, $800 rent, $2200 taxes and $1400 insurance, im looking at about 3%cap rate, which now that I look at it from that perspective, maybe selling and buying something with better numbers, makes more sense. hmmmmm...

Hey everybody,
So my brother and I inherited my grandmothers house about a year ago and now are renting it out. The house is paid in full, so everything after taxes and insurance is cash flow, which is great. I however, don't know where to go from here. I've become very interested in long term holds now after getting this property, but dont know if the best move is to get a HELOC, equity loan or mortgage on the house to buy another investment property. I live in NYC and the property is in upper state SC. I will be moving to the SC area in about 3 years. I want to buy more properties in SC. Any thoughts on the best option to take advantage of this oppurtunity

Hey Jason, great to have you on the site. My wife and I are starting to look at Charleston as our first place to start investing. We actually went to CofC a few years ago and now live in NYC. We are planning on moving back to the area in 3-4 yrs. We love it there and can't wait to get back. We are really looking to long term hold there. How has the work you have been doing going?

thanks so much Karen,
I'm really looking forward to getting started. I know that me being up here is going to be a hurdle to jump, but I think its possible. Not quite sure NYC is the best place to start. :)

I appreciate your advice

the shows are great, can't wait for the next one. Karen Rittenhouse has done quite well in a short time period