All Forum Posts by: Joshua Filkill

Quote from @Dillon Heinaman:

I am currently in a duplex that I purchased in August of 22'. I ended up having to put down 15% on the place when I found out that it is standard you can't put down any less on multi-family anymore. I currently don't have any FHA loans going, here is kind of what I think I want.

4+ Bedroom 2+ Bathroom house near a University with an FHA loan (Hopefully with an ADU).

This seems to be my best house-hacking option at this point. Any advice? Would y'all go a different route? Are there lenders out there that will FHA multi-family still?

 I typically recommend going for as many units as you can to make the most of the low down payment, this would be up to 4 units to keep it residential. This can depend on price points in your market, your comfortability to manage up to 4 units or ability to find a good PM or limitations in multifamily in areas of your market that you'd want to live in. Many people still do the rent by the room strategy and have success, which I assume is what you were implying that you'd do. 

Talk to lenders in your area about low down payment programs that they may offer, but to answer your question yes you can use an FHA loan for up to 4 units. Just remember to calculate the numbers for when you move out to make sure buying a SF vs. a multi family makes sense.

Quote from @Tyler Harland:

I am a Canadian Citizen looking to make the move to investing in the US. I am looking for a strong cash-flowing market to get my feet wet investing outside of Canada for the first time. Looking for any advice on markets and areas that could be a good starting point, and any contacts in those areas anyone would recommend. Thanks!

As @Janie G. mentioned, Cleveland is a great market for cash flow and has a low purchase price entry point. I'm an investor/realtor in the Cleveland area so feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

The answer can depend on quite a few factors. What is your end goal? Is it to get out of your day job in a shorter period of time by stacking up cash flowing properties, or do you not mind working your day job and are more focused on creating a large amount of wealth through appreciation for later in life? Are you up for the risk of betting on the market for appreciation?

Cash flow vs. appreciation is constantly debated but really comes down to what your end goal is. 

@Mostafa Faghih Columbus is a great market for STR and MTR. There are a few people in my office that run many Airbnbs and have good success with them. Columbus is home to Nationwide Children's Hospital and Wexner Medical Center which get a lot of travel nurses. Also, Columbus has done well in attracting businesses to expand operations here. Columbus is also home to Ohio State which has a student population around 60,000 and is extremely busy during gameday/weekends with people traveling from all over and staying in hotels/Airbnbs.

Let me know if you want to talk about Columbus more in depth!

If just starting, networking and education are key. Bigger Pockets has great books on all sorts of subjects, they helped me to get started. Attend local meetups, network with investors, investor friendly realtors that may have off market deals, lenders, PMs, etc. Don't reinvent the wheel, find others that are doing it successfully and learn from them. 

For the most part I always recommend a house hack to get started since you have to live somewhere and it's a great strategy to get your first property under your belt. Try finding a 2-4 unit property in your area that you can use to eliminate your housing expense and that will cash flow once you move out. Talk to local lenders in your area to see if they have any low down payment programs.

If you don't mind living with your parents, and they also don't mind you staying there, then you can put your money to work elsewhere and house hack once you decide to move out. BRRRR and fix and flips usually aren't recommended for first time investors to do by themselves so try going to local meetups or networking events and see how you can get involved in one and learn from them. Bring something to the table and they will gladly help you. Good luck!

Quote from @Eric Cooper:

Investment Info:

Small multi-family (2-4 units) buy & hold investment in Fruitdale.

Purchase price: $405,000
Cash invested: $20,000

Contributors:
Jonathan Anderson

Turn Key duplex in Greenville SC

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Originally planned as a house hack, I sought a duplex that did not require a lot of work so my partner and I could immediately start living in it and list the other side. Due to its proximity to Greenville hospitals and medical schools, I plan to turn this into a MTR/STR in the future.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

My brilliant agent found this deal off market and we offered asking price with a seller concession for half closing costs.

How did you finance this deal?

I used a 3.5% FHA loan to finance the deal.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

This was my first deal and although I don't regret how it turned out, I would do things completely different for my next deal. I think buying from a builder leaves less room for negotiating and buying new leaves fewer opportunities for value add. All things considered this deal was a great way to dip my feet into the wild market of real estate investing.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

Agent: Johnathan Anderson
Lender: Brian McIntosh
Inspector: Brett Evans
If you are buying in the Greenville SC area, these are great people to work with.

 Congrats!

Quote from @Wilexis Ventura-Matos:

Hey guys, I’m 23 with my own business. Saved enough $ and now turning to RE for my path to financial freedom. I keep getting recommended to house hack but I just don’t know what that is exactly can you guys help explain it to me, thank you.

 I recommend reading The House Hacking Strategy by Craig Curelop. It's a great read and will teach you all of the steps of house hacking. Good luck!

Quote from @Dan Bowersock:

What are some ways that investors are connecting with homeowners? mailers? cold calling? texts? 

I've used deal machine and PropStream before and don't "love" either. Heard batchleads was good or maybe jerry nortons "propwire" 

Anyone have advice or recs?  

People have had success with all the options you mentioned. Pick one that you like the most and stick with it. It’s a numbers game and may take a bit of time to see results so try not to get too discouraged if it takes awhile. 

Quote from @Chase Freund:

I am new to the real estate world but have absolutely fallen in love with the industry in just a couple of months. The best part about real estate in my opinion is the networking. Not only is it required to be successful but it is truly one of the greatest joys within the job. 

I am just curious how other agents find investors and what kind of networking they do to be successful? 

Local meetups, Facebook groups, Bigger Pockets, networking events just to name a few. Also just tell everyone what you do, you never know when a random connection could lead to finding a great deal.