All Forum Posts by: Jared Bouzek

@Account Closed Yep if you're VA eligible that would be a huge advantage for you. One thing to keep in mind is that the VA loan does require some landlord experience in order to count your rental income from the other units as qualifying income. Have you ever owned any rental properties or maybe worked for a property management company? Anything that has a link to being a landlord or managing properties could potentially be used to me the experience requirement if it makes sense to an underwriter.

@Stephen McCracken Flipping with conventional mortgages can be problematic - not necessarily impossible. Conventional mortgages have appraisal standards, so you may run into issues if you're buying properties in pretty rough condition. 

Another thing is if you're purchasing with a conventional mortgage, rehabbing, and then selling in less than six months, you're probably only going to accomplish that once with a loan officer. We have clauses in our contracts that state we have to pay back our commission if you pay off a mortgage early - usually within 6 months. Conventional lenders just can't turn a profit in that short of a time-frame. So when your loan officer loses their commission, they probably won't want to work with you again.

@Account Closed If you're planning to live in the property you purchase, that opens the door to owner-occupied financing. Down payments in the 3.5% - 5% range are available depending on which program you go with. 

I will say that I think those rent numbers are pretty high for a multifamily property in the Springs. In my experience for clients purchasing multifamily in Colorado Springs, I see a range of $750 - $1,100 or so per month depending on number of rooms & square footage of the unit.

@Eric S. Awesome. I think you'll really like the change if you've spent your entire life on the coast. My wife and I moved here almost four years ago and we love it. We're planning to stay long-term. It's pretty easy to get up into the mountains from about anywhere in the Denver area. Plenty of hiking, biking, and skiing spots.

@Eric S. Good luck on your trip out here. That's quite a move from the east coast. What made you choose Colorado?

@Katie Miller Welcome to Bigger Pockets and Denver. Good luck getting starting with your investing. :)

@Bo S. If I were in your shoes, I would make sure you're connected with a solid loan officer who is calculating your DTI correctly for you. As you continue to acquire more properties, your DTI should improve (decrease) if you are buying good, cash-flowing properties because you have rental income from those properties.

@Troy H. Community 2nds are down payments assistance programs that are backed by a community program that is designed to encourage home ownership among lower income people. They are typically backed by funding from a government organization such as the city or county. Down payment assistance is provided in the form of a 2nd mortgage and each one can be designed differently. Some of them are forgiven after a certain period of time. Some of them you never have to make payments on - you just pay them off when you sell the home. It just depends on the program.

@Scott Hibbert Make sure you connect with @Chris Mason if you haven't already. He is located in Oakland and could help you with a lot of your questions about that market.

Thanks for the mention @Matt M.

@Matt Giannino Welcome to Bigger Pockets. You've discovered the best resource for REI available. Good luck getting started. @Matt M. would be a great connection for you. Let me know what questions you have on the lending side.