All Forum Posts by: Juan Reyes

Everyone has a different way of working. You may find that the more established the contractor the less you may have to put down at first. The reason for this is that many contractors may have to come out of their own pocket for some of the initial startup money if you don't put enough down. I personally usually request a 30 percent minimum down and a payment schedule where I get paid as I complete certain project milestones.

I am interested in some PR property as well. Feel free to pm or email me.

I agree with JP Smith! Don't give them another chance, people show you who they are believe them. Unfortunately a good contractor will probably cost you more then a crappy one. The reason being is that the good contractor actually plans on finishing the work correctly whereas the bad one could careless as long as he has made his money. Personally I always Google their company name and search to find reviews or testimonies. If they are professional they probably have some of this on the Internet and interestingly enough I find that once there are public reviews if they did anything bad past clients are much more likely to leave bad comments about them, as they are outraged by the good reviews. You will most likely never find a perfect contractor but I rather pay a bit more and get the job done correctly. Having to fix mistakes from other contractors usually ends up being more expensive.

You should be able to qualify for a rehab or renovation loan. These exist for for investment properties as well. They will lend based off of the value of the property AFTER the work would be completed. I believe some banks may even allow owner contractors to do the work depending on what exactly the renovations are. There are a few programs you may want to look into. A lot of these don't require a huge down payment. Just be sure to do your research, and understand that depending on the loan and the size of the renovations the money may be released in draws as the work is being completed. But sometimes you may even mortgage your fees and payments until the work is done. Look into some of these programs they may be useful.

I just recently worked on a mortgage for a 3 family house for a client. The cash flow was seriously great. I'm going to start looking into buffalo for my own investments as it isn't too far from me. Best of luck on your second deal hope you have some great success!

How do you find these mortgage notes ?

Best of luck to you ! You have the right attitude, turning not having experience into a positive. Good Stuff. Listen to the BP podcast, read as much as you can, and try to go to networking meetings and seminars in your local area. Meetup.com is a good place to start just search for real estate meet ups.

As a mortgage officer myself I can't tell you that there is a whole array of loans for VA borrowers. Try to find out what you qualify for first you might be in a better position then you think.

Are you sure you can't qualify for a mortgage without using your primary residence ? If at all possible It might not be a bad idea to consider doing a separate mortgage. Maybe even under a corporate entity. It all depends on what your plans are. Some mortgages will accept 65% LTV and underwrite based on rental income. All depends on what you want to do.

Hey ! it seems we are not too far from each other. Best of luck to you