All Forum Posts by: John Doah

Thanks for the reply, I’m a little confused though, why would I want a 24 month loan, the monthly payments would be killer as I plan to live there not flip it 

Hello everyone, I live in the DFW area in a historic district. I am currently renting, but I have eyed some distressed craftsman homes that I could fix up and have a nice home. The catch is that they will need significant repair, and all the sellers adverts say "cash offers only", "hard money".  I called one listing agent, and she told me the house could not qualify for a conventional loan because it is in too bad of a shape. I know there is the 203(k) loan, but one of the problems with this loan is that the house has to be finished within 6 months. I just don't see a historic home in a preservation district requiring board approvals and permits ever being done in 6 months. The house across the street from my current rental is being restored and I've lived here 6 months now. They were working on it before I moved in and they are only *just* beginning to start working on the interior now. They still need to put in all the windows and pour the concrete on the drive way and paint the outside of the house - and this is all being done by professional contractors. 

That being said, is there *any* way for me - as a first time home owner - to get a loan to fix up the house? I have one year left on my lease and I could use that time to have the fixer-upper being worked on so I could move in once my lease ended. 

Thanks,

Here is another one. I drove by it and looked at the adjacent homes. This one is listed almost at the same price as a home on the end of the block of similar size and not in shambles. 

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/810-Woodlawn-Av...

Thanks for the replies. Here is a classic case of what I see: 724 W 7th St, Dallas, TX 75208  on zillow.  $279,900k. Totally wrecked. No central A/C. The houses around it all say they are 280-290k values, and some have more rooms. It's listed as a 'duplex' but the zoning states it is a single family home. The price has been cut by $20k from its original ask, but it's still over priced substantially, IMO. It should be priced at least $50k below the adjacent homes to account for the amount of time and money it will take to rehab it. 

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/724-W-7th-St-Dallas-TX-75208/26709147_zpid/

Hello everyone,

I am new to the DFW area. I currently live in Winnetka Heights and think there is promising potential here with the old historic buildings, but I am struggling to find anything half way descent for sale that could be turned into a rental property. What I see now are buildings that are literally falling down and the asking price is basically the same as the rest of the surrounding houses in the same street that are not in disrepair. One listing has been there for over 150 days and they want 600k with a wrecked interior. Meanwhile, there is a fully restored triplex  a few streets down for 699k. Everything inside it has been gone over. It seems people are delusional about what their properties are worth because they all want to "cash out".  Given the historic preserve nature, I can foresee rehabbing these older homes with a ton of red tape associated with it. Furthermore, these houses are all made out of ship lap, which means they have zero insulation and single pane windows and the ones I am seeing do not have any type of central air conditioning. It looks like a money pit to bring them back to life, and the average income in Oak Cliff is a paltry 45k a year, so you'll be hard pressed to ask for $1700 a month (I noticed they just built tons - and are building tons more - brand new apartments left and right which I would think would depress the rent market for the older surrounding busted up homes).  I would say that so far crime here is really rampant. There is constant gun fire at night, and car/home invasions. Given that it is considered an 'up and coming area', compared to the rest of Dallas, I feel like it is priced as a fully gentrified and mature area with low crime - which it is not. If someone is familiar with the area and actually has some properties here, I would be very interested to have a discussion and hear your thoughts. 

Thanks and have a great day,

J.D.