All Forum Posts by: Ko Kashiwagi

Hi Dylan,

It seems like you would need to save up cash either way (and likely increase credit score). Whether you BRRRR or do seller financing, it's very unlikely you can do a deal $0 down. Saving up cash and increasing your credit score wouldn't hurt you any way even if you find a good creative finance deal.

Hi Kobe,

Have you looked into AirDNA? The data is not always accurate but it gives you basic information as a baseline. In general, the most sure way to confirm data is to actually look at the listings on Airbnb and Vrbo.

Hi Ben,

A great way to learn is to partner of deals with a mentor - for example, you can bring in the downpayment and the mentor can help you through the rehab. Finding the right contract will be a very difficult task to discern, so it's also important to get multiple bids as you interview them.

Hi Griffin,

If you build good relationships with contractors, they could walk through the property before the purchase, given you have high confidence in pushing. You can also get utilize the inspection period to obtain multiple bids from contractors. If you ask detailed bids for each items and look across multiple bids, you can confidently estimate the overall rehab cost.

In general, the best practice is to pay the contractor across multiple payments - before rehab, during and after. Some investors pay extra or deduct for quicker/late completion.

Hi Mashal,

There are many ways to source deals. Cold calling, direct mail, social media advertisement, door knocking, agent leads, software and list providers are some of them.

Hi Jack,

If you are really willing to move anywhere I would personally opt for:

1. States that have landlord-friendly rental laws (ex. TX, FL, AL, AZ, PA, NC)

2. City where you can cash flow at least by the time you move out

3. B-C class neighborhood

Have you considered the city you currently live in, or a nearby city? Alternatively, investing out of state instead of a house hack?

Hi Brett,

Personally, I'd also consider the chance of keeping the W-2 while investing the 30k savings + 80k HELOC. This is enough capital to take a lot of risk without quitting the W-2 as you can do flips and BRRRRs to quickly leverage the cash. Even if you make mistakes, you have a consistent stream of income to regain the capital and start again.

If you have high risk tolerant and a positive outlook on becoming an agent, your plan sounds really good. Income is always the biggest driver to increase wealth at the beginning, and this seems like a great transition.

Hi Vlad,

I think this ultimately depends on your goal in really state. If you are looking to gain experience and build your own portfolio, having full control is important and will cultivate the most experience. I personally wouldn’t pay 5% over market though, as you can buy properties at the right price as long as you keep on making offers.

If you want to take a much more passive approach to real estate (for example - no intention of becoming a full time investor and is busy with employment), becoming a LP is not a bad idea.

Hi Ronin,

There are a couple alternative options you have. For example, you could cash-out refinance the property to and use the cash downpayment to fund your next property.

You can also move out of the primary resident, rent it out (for 2+ years) and do a 1031 exchange, which would defer the taxes.

A Deferred Sale Trust is another strategy, where you can sell the property to a trust in exchange for a promissory note. By paying taxes on the income you receive from the trust, you can potentially spread the tax burden over many years.

Hi Molly,

Since, you are merely using one loan to pay off another, it doesn't seem like an efficient use of capital (especially if the loan you are paying for the primary has low rates). Also considering you are paying lender fees, it could be costing you more. Does your current rental property not cash flow positively?

The most common strategy is to use the existing equity to put into another downpayment and buy another property - this provides an effective use of leverage as you are expanding your portfolio. Ultimately, it sounds like the decision would depend on the interest savings you'd get.