All Forum Posts by: Justin Lanciault

Quote from @Kobe Carr:

Looking to get started with real-estate and would Dallas Texas be a good start for a beginner 

 I have a sfh in Fort Worth, beware your property taxes. Also, most people in Texas confuse semi-detached homes with duplexes so make sure what you are looking at actually has two units.

Quote from @Naveen Kumar:

Thanks @Caroline Gerardo. The lender said they looked at the reserves and the upcoming needed repairs and think that they association is under funded. The property is in PG county, MD. These are low rise, 3 floor buildings. 

How do I find a mortgage broker that can assist? The buyer was fully qualified and is putting down a healthy downpayment. 

I don't know for a fact, but I have been told (and have done it myself but that was in 2021) that if you put down 15% or more that the lender does a "limited review" and doesn't really look at those things, but I may be wrong. I'd suggest calling a few mortgage brokers and explaining to them the situation and seeing what they can do.

Quote from @Paul Gupta:

Hi, I just closed on my first rentals in DC/MD area (one in each).  In California, I rely on apartment association's very detailed forms (www.aacsc.org).  Here, I cannot find any such equivalent w/ downloadable forms, any help would be welcome.  Thanks.

Looked at:

https://www.thelpa.com/lpa/associations/maryland.html
https://www.mareia.com/MemberBenefits.aspx
https://www.pma-dc.org/
https://www.mmhaonline.org/

Thanks much.

 There are a number of disclosures that are required by law in DC and MD, you'll want to speak to a realtor who does a decent amount of rentals (not me lol, I just do my own now) or a property manager. Additionally you'll need a license in both jurisdictions so you will want to have the home inspected, etc.

Quote from @Christian M. Conroy:

@Justin Lanciault - The logic I had initially been using was that I'd be able to maximize my cash return on investment by having lower investment up front. And it would allow me to potentially start building wealth off of the cash flow sooner than if I was more in the hole from a higher down payment. That was me operating under the assumption that the choices were either a 3.5% FHA loan for a duplex, for example, or a 20% conventional loan.

Maybe that was incorrect? Sounds like you're saying that it is not as hard to get a lower down percent conventional as I originally thought? 

 In 2018 I bought 3 investment properties all with 20% down, in 2020 and 2021 I bought two primary residences, 1 a year. I put down 5% (since I wasn't a first time homebuyer) and then 10% but that was a unique situation. 

@Christian M. Conroy that is correct, but 1st why would you want to do that? and 2nd there are multiple criteria related to using an fha a 2nd time and not having an open fha loan at the same time is just one of the criteria.

an fha loan will be more expensive upfront then a conventional loan; its good to get your foot in the door the first time (hence why first-time homebuyers use it often) but if you have the ability to go conventional go conventional, every time.

@Christian M. Conroy There is no rule that says you can't buy a property at 3.5% and then another at 5% and then a 3rd, etc. I think you might be confusing a cash-out refi with this strategy. My advice would be to buy at 3% down or 3.5% if you can get a duplex (when using an FHA on a multi-family you become subject to the self-sufficiency test.) Then another at 3.5% if a sfh, and then 5% or 10%, etc.

Also, in our area, generally rents are higher than mortgages. So all you need to cashflow is the note + plus expenses + $1. Nows thats not alot of cashflow, but you if you are too set on getting a ridiculous number, well you are going to get nothing and be stuck in "analysis mode."

Quote from @Andy Vasquez:

I put my first house on Zillow this Friday. The responses have been less than enthusiastic :)

What other sites should I use to list the house in the DC area?

I live down the street from there:

1) you are not getting those kinds of rents on Sherman Ave for the condition of this property (renovation is at least 10 years old)

2) Pics are weird

3) The only homes getting 4500 and up are the 4 story victorians which I know you aren't if you are on Sherman Ave

4) a 700 credit score is more restrictive then applying for a mortgage so you will have less applicants 

Quote from @Jack Seiden:

Quote from @YiBing T.:

Can anyone recommend a title company in the DC metro area that handles Subject To or Seller Financing transactions? I recently came across Pace Morby's video on the "subject to" real estate deals, and I am interested in learning more about it. Thank you all. 

The vast majority of subject to deals with the exception of fha, va and usda loans are basically a form of mortgage fraud, certainly for the seller in the deal and possibly for the buyer, I doubt any reputable title company will want to risk legal liability on a subject to deal unless it is one of the above loan products.

If it's mortgage fraud why is it on the HUD-1 and CD?

Quote from @Remi Nguyen:

Thank you @Justin Lanciault. Yes I have an agent to call "buyer agent", but not yet officially, i.e have not signed the "exclusive right to represent" agreement nor the consent of dual agency. I wanted to stop and ask first :) 

You're right. Apparently, there are 3 licensed individuals involved here. I read around in this forum and see that people are mainly concerned about price. I was wondering if either agent has enough incentive to withhold/share information of the buyer/seller just to speed up the transaction but may potentially go against the buyer's interest. 

Your answer did help. So thank you :)

You can ask what the commission is but lets assume its 2.5% of the sales price. So if the sales price is 500k the commission to the buyer’s agent is 12,500. Lets say the sales price goes up to 550k the commission becomes 13,750. To me an extra 1,750 is not worth risking a loosing a buyer over and there is not much incentive to do so. Buyers should always make an offer feel comfortable with and the agent should sell it regardless of their affiliation. Now if there are multiple offers the price may or may not have to go up, but that has nothing to do with were the agent hangs their license.   

Quote from @Remi Nguyen:

I requested to tour a house with my buyer agent and liked it (i.e. the event of choosing the house was not initiated by the agent). After my agent discussed it with the listing agent, we decided to make an official offer at a number I feel comfortable with. Turns out they are in the same broker firm (I realize it when signing the offer letter). So I stopped and asked my agent about any potential conflict of interest, they said they never met the listing agent - the firm is big they each of them operate very independently without seeing each other.

The seller already signed consent of dual agency months ago when they listed the house. 

If I already felt that the price was reasonable - not worrying the agent would convince me to go with a higher than the market price, what else should I watch out for if I wanted to proceed with a dual agency? 

Any advice is much appreciated. Thank you!

Dual agency in Maryland is very different from the rest of the country. In DC or VA I could represent the seller and buyer as an agent, but only the broker can be a dual agent in MD. So 3 licensed people are involved - the broker, the seller's agent, and the buyer's agent; as long as the seller consents there is no issue. I am not sure what you would need to watch out for that is different then in a transaction not involving dual agency - i.e. get an inspection, get an appraisal; make a competitive offer that you like.

I have participated in dual agency in MD and there were no issues with that (there were issues with a sucky lender and title company lol but those were not related to agency).

Also, assuming you are represented by the buyer agent you should have already consented to dual agency when you signed representation paperwork.