All Forum Posts by: Justin Messenger

I still have the same connection problem with Stessa. It's too bad, it used to keep me logged in with no problems. 

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Enid.

Purchase price: $80,000
Cash invested: $12,000

A small 1950s house that has been added to over the years, more than doubling its original size. We purchased it as a primary residence then converted it into a rental.

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

The price of the house for the 1,700 sq ft size, location next to a school, two driveways, RV parking, a good roof, and an attached shop at the end of the 2 car garage. It has a very large yard around the house. This was an ugly house with an out of control lawn with potential for forced appreciation. It also has potential for appreciation due to its location.

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

Found it online.

How did you finance this deal?

Conventional loan.

How did you add value to the deal?

Killed the weeds in the lawn, put down sod, rehabbed the nasty garage and shop to make them look appealing, added a finished attic storage area to the garage, painted kitchen cabinets, installed new AC and all new plumbing.

What was the outcome?

It has been great. It rented on the first day and they are still there.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

People appreciate great garages and parking for their vehicles and RV trailers. In this market those features bring up the rent value of the property .

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

Craig at RE/MAX

@Ryan Johnston I understand it’s also best to pay yourself every two weeks so it looks like a normal paycheck.

@Marc Ferguson To tell to truth I didn’t initially purchase the house as a rental investment, I was tired of blowing my money on a rental house and I needed a house with lots of parking for my vehicles. So that was my first goal. After living the house I looked at our finances and decided we could pull the trigger to start a real estate business. We spent 8 months trying to close on a particular rental house but it fell through at the very last second when they asked me to sight a waiver on title insurance and a title check. I walked away from the closing.

We found a larger house, closed on it and changed our strategy by moving there and renting out the first house. I refinanced the first house and also got a HELOC based on the new appraisal which I then used to replace the central air system. The first house rented for $400 more than I initially expected it too, thanks to our improvements that made it presentable.

The new house is two stories and after renovations we plan to house hack by renting out the upper level. At that time I will not be spending any of my W2 income on mortgages which is my 2nd goal.

@Mindy Jensen what does it cost?

After months of hard work making property improvements in my spare time we have rented the house. I was shocked how fast it went and if I had more homes I could have filled them too. We had one day of showings and with a contract signed the following day. I listed on Facebook Marketplace and used Tenant Cloud for screening. Purchased the 1953 house for 80k. 1 acre, 1,700 SF, 3 bed, 1.5 bath with 2 car garage and built in work shop. It also has a paved 20ft. long boat or RV parking lot. Spent 12k on all new plumbing and central heat & air. Mortgage/insurance/property tax total is $540 month. Rent collected is $1,200 month plus 10 bucks for a pet fee. Now we can focus on renovating the new investment home we moved into. My wife can’t wait to rent it out too.

I’m looking to network with people in the area. I’m preparing my first house for rent and am going to try Airbnb part time in the 2 story house I am moving into. That will be our house hack. My wife is taking a class to get a real estate agent license. Our goal is to build a full time single home and multi family rental business.