All Forum Posts by: Joshua Chen

Yeah make sure to thoroughly conduct background checks on private institutions you lend from. There are scams out there to be wary of.

Oh you just go around meeting people and building relationships! Like you can use the "Network" tab here on BP, or talk to people in the forums like right now. And then ask around and see who can offer you private money!

It's possible to use short term hard money and then refinance to a loan with lower interest rates.

hm.. it depends on how you are with your family. In certain cases, just a verbal agreement is good enough. Though that's only if you get along well with your family, unlike my family.

Welcome to BP, Jon!

The first thing you'll have to do is define your investment strategy. How do you plan to make cash on your deals? Flipping? Rentals? Wholesale? Look into the various ways you can make cash and pick the strategy that clicks with you best.

You don't need to spend money until you actually require their services, but it's a good idea to begin building your relationships with team members as early as you can.

hm.. when you have a contract on the property, you can include a "financing contingency" in the contract. This is a clause which states that if you are unable to find adequate financing in the alloted time frame, you are allowed to back out of the deal with no repercussions. And sometimes, if the seller is more motivated to sell than you are motivated to buy, the seller will *help* you buy it by offering you easy terms, such as the exit strategy known as seller financing. This is basically where the seller holds a promissory note, with an agreement that you will pay him/her back over time rather than a lump sum all at once. Essentially, the seller him/herself "becomes the bank." To negotiate a condition like this, you'll have to talk to your seller and ask if he/she would be open to the possibility of providing seller financing. I also want to point out that in some cases you can get "pre-approved" for loans ahead of time. It wouldn't mean you have every little detail in all the stars lined up like in analysis paralysis, but it would mean you have some of puzzle pieces in place.

Just throwing this onto the table, it's also possible to do a "live in rent" if you want to consider that. It's basically a strategy where you live in one unit of a multifamily property and rent out the other units. They call it house hacking here on BP. One advantage is that it allows you to make use of the FHA loan, which has a very low 3.5% down payment. In my opinion, it's quite a secure and reliable method for starting out, which is why I'm using it to start out. Food for thought!

Condos in and of themselves have unique advantages and disadvantages that you'll have to research. For example, one disadvantage is that in certain exit strategies, it's harder to "add value" to condos.