All Forum Posts by: Lara White

@Greg Schreffler Which market were you drawn to in particular in their list? What made you decide on that market?  Also, curious like @Account Closed what draws you to turnkey? (Time/Ease/??)

@Ben Bartkowski Welcome to the BP Forums!  I'm a former Coastie married to the Air Force stuck in the middle of the country with no ocean.  Good thing the people are great here :) LOL!

The forums are a great place to learn and bounce ideas off of each other.  Take advantage of the wealth of knowledge here.  Welcome!

@Dominic Pizzi So are you in Tuscaloosa?  Or Huntsville? Or somewhere in between? lol  I grew up in Tuscaloosa, and both my hubby and I went to UA but I worked at Alabama Credit Union for a couple of years which has offices in both towns, although I'm not as familiar with Huntsville!  I remember it's real estate was a little more pricey because of the Space center.

@Max Reynolds Yes... but I would use caution if you are the vet selling their VA loan interest. https://www.veteransunited.com... 

If you are the buyer trying to assume a VA loan, it's a potential great deal for you. I refinanced my current primary at 2.25% last year .... so I would have a great one for someone to assume. Check out the fees required, but if you can find one to assume, it's probably a great rate!

Hi @Dominic Pizzi!  I'm originally from Tuscaloosa, it's a great little city!   The closer you get to campus... the better I think. I don't have anything there anymore. My properties are in Florida and here in the Oklahoma City metro now.  Where in T-town did you buy?

@Nathan Holt As a few others as commented... be very cautious writing legal documents if you are not an attorney.  I have a lease that my attorney wrote up for my use-- I don't use the state forms either.

It's not expensive in the overall scheme of things. And the lawyer shouldn't have to re-invent the wheel, just add what you'd like put in! 

@Victor Alberto Vidana  I think as long as the deal makes sense - an investor/flipper will buy it.  I have a client/flipper that is looking for smaller places to do. Do you have anything near north OKC/Edmond/Guthrie?  Send me a PM on what you have if so!

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $110,000
Cash invested: $26,000

Super cute little rental in a great area. 2 bedroom, 1 bath. Great backyard. Fully fenced in, with a garage and storm shelter. Projected rent is around $1000 (2 bedroom/1 bathroom).

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

I knew what a great area, and cute little house this was. Once the prior deal fell through I took my husband over to see it, and he agreed with me. So we put an offer in on it.

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

I had it under contract with a client, who is a newbie investor and she just talked herself out of it. So I bought it!

How did you finance this deal?

Commercial portfolio loan with my local banker. 75% down payment, 20 yr amort. 6.5% PITI will be about $780/month. So it won't be a huge cash flow, only about $200/month. But if I had gone with a 30 year/20% down payment loan, it would have be a lot better - so it's all in perspective!!

How did you add value to the deal?

Needs VERY little work, $7000 - and only that much because I'm having 2 enormous trees cut down in the back yard ($4000). I had a sewer clean-out installed ($650). Electrical upgrade ($2000). And will do little odds and ends, but pretty rent ready!

What was the outcome?

Appraised at $120,000! So I have an instant $10,000 equity.

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

I represented myself.

@Alicia Marks I am closing on my next property on Wednesday. I used to use conventional lending (Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac), but I have been buying my properties in my LLC name lately. So I use a local commercial lender (@Adam Hurst @ Armstrong Bank). Been a lot easier and faster. It's only a 20 year amortization and I put 25% down, but I'm personally good with that. I've used my VA loan a couple of times in the past, but I probably won't use that anymore b/c of the funding fee.

Investment Info:

Other buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $340,000
Cash invested: $60,000

Joint Venture with another Bigger Pockets member. The house is near the state capital and OU Medical Center. There is a garage apartment in the back that is separate from the main house. We paid $340K, and the appraised amount came in at $420K! We do have to make some repairs, but otherwise it's pretty much ready to rent.

How did you finance this deal?

Local commercial lender.

How did you add value to the deal?

We will be doing some renovations.