All Forum Posts by: Jason Kern

Hi All, 

I've got my first one in the portfolio. I closed in December and it's a single family home. I saved up and paid cash for it because I was nervous about borrowing. So now I'm on the hunt for a second property and will have to finance. I've got some cash for the downpayment and have found a lender that'll give me 90% of the purchase price for 30 years fixed at 4.8+%. It seems like a good deal and I'm angling to get the second one that'll be net positive at least $200mo. Does this make sense? It seems much better than any of the Fannie/Freddie deals with less $$ out of pocket. 

Al - Do you have a formula for how much cash to keep on hand relative to debt? I've heard you should hold 2 years worth of liabilities. That seems excessive but, maybe?

Hi All, 

I'm currently building a portfolio of buy/hold properties in Idaho. I've got my first SFR and it's going well. As I'm shaping up for my second purchase I'm thinking back to 09 when I was working as a broker and saw so many people get upside down in their mortgages. Anyone survive 09 with buy/hold properties? Anyone blow it and learn what NOT to do? Just want to keep my eye on the market cycles as I build my portfolio so I can weather a storm if needed. My thought is to make sure I'm always at 75/25 or better LTV with properties so I can back out in softer market with minimal damage to the bottom line. Also, making sure there's room in my NOI to reduce rent if needed but still cover the liabilities/debt service. Looking to be aggressive but smart to build some income.