All Forum Posts by: John Williams

Are there any lenders accepting a 10% down payment on a second home (jumbo) mortgage? Seems most are requiring 20-25% these days.

I’ve been to Dave Ramsey’s leadership seminar in Nashville. He offers a lot of good advice and occasionally offers some bad advice.

It’s good to get rid of credit card debt and auto loans, but you shouldn’t consider mortgage debt to be as terrible as Dave makes it out to be.

Watch Graham Stephan’s YouTube video on Dave Ramsey. He explains how Ramsey got burned in the ‘80s by taking out 90-day loans to flip houses. No wonder he’s debt-averse... he was using debt in a way which was MUCH riskier than a 30yr fixed mortgage.

Thanks @Julie McCoy!

You mention the importance of “developing systems”. Are you referring to things like having excess supplies on site, having a handyman and professional cleaner on call, getting the lawn mowed regularly, etc?

What other systems should I be thinking about? Any tools or mobile apps you use to help manage the process?

I’m considering buying a second home which I’d rent out in Airbnb/VRBO for part of the year.

What are the biggest mistakes you made when buying a vacation rental? What do you know now that you knew then?

@Michael Baum In some parts of the lake, town regulations prohibit short-term rentals. In other areas, HOA agreements limit the number of rental properties in the neighborhood. And in other areas, I've been warned, neighbors will make such a fuss that I'll wish I had picked another location just to avoid the headache.

I'd be interested to learn how people manage out-of-state STR properties. Just hire a cleaner after each guest stay? Who cuts the grass and takes out the trash?

I'm interested in buying a waterfront property at a nearby lake so I can stay there a few weeks a year and rent it out (short-term) for the rest of the year.

Lots of homes on this lake don't allow short-term rentals, so ideally, I'd like to find a home which is already being used as a vacation rental. But how can I go about making an offer on these properties when they're not on the market? Any suggestions? Should I just consider reaching out to the owner directly to inquire about whether they're interested in selling?

@Daniel Ferster Did you ever find a good cleaning service to use? I'm also considering a rental property on Lake Gaston and am interested in learning more about options for cleaning services.

Please forgive me for asking what is surely a stupid question....

Obviously, a mortgage lender can file foreclosure if a borrower missed payments. But can they begin foreclosure proceedings just because the borrower is “underwater” (even if the borrower continues to pay on time)?

That’s inspiring, @Cary Plummer. I’m nervous about buying a local property because my 9-5 keeps me busy. Meanwhile, you’re working the 9-5 and buying three properties out of state. Well done.