All Forum Posts by: Leigh Jones

Welcome. Im in Cave Springs. :-) 

I kind of bought a deal. I actually bought and moved into a new house, and rented the one I moved out of, Mar 1. Its funny, my neighbor was selling his home FSBO. I called him and said I'd buy it. He needed a place to rent for a year while he built a new home, so, we just did a house swap. I bought his for under his asking price AND he paid my closing costs, and I gave him a screaming deal on the rent while he built his house. The rental is a 3/2/2 on a huge lot in Cave Springs. When I bought it for myself I put as little down as possible (5% plus closing costs). When I get my next renter in there, it'll CF like $300. Not a "home run" since my PITI is so high, but, its an addition to the portfolio at very little money down, and 3.5% fixed for 30yr.

I bought a SFR in a small Bentonville neighborhood in Oct 2019. I paid ask price, BUT it didn't need any work, and it is 2 miles from where the new Walmart Home Office will be....so it will NEVER be vacant as long as Walmart is here. Funnily enough though, my renters so far have not been Walmart HO employees. Rent $1095, PITI $735 (25% down), Prop mgmt 10%. In Brandon's terms, this isn't a "home run"... I'd call it a "single". I'm looking to stack though. I've been eyeing Ft Smith because the properties are way cheaper. Who wants to partner? ;-)

@Grayson Spittel

Since you have already read a few books and got some suggestions, what are YOUR recommendations now? I'm also looking for a small multifamily book. I only have SFRs in my portfolio... wanting to stack. 

Nice to meet you. I live in Cave Springs and own 3 rentals (one is by the new HQ location). Ive been thinking about getting a meet up going, but after this pandemic is over. I'm a newbie too, so I only have a couple 'connections'. 

I'd love to see what agents others recommend... there are SO any agents that are just "okay". 

I Also live and invest in NWA (2 single family properties). Hello everyone! 

Aden, Ive got 2 rentals here in NWA, one in another state. 

Since interest rates SO low, Id suggest you buy yourself a 3 or 4 bd house and rent the rooms to [reliable!] friends. You can put as little as 5% down, and in some towns like Cave Springs or Lowell you can get a mortgage with 0% down ! ("Rural Development" they call it).   Think about it...your first deal for NO cash invested, no creative financing needed. You live for free and have income youre not "working" for.  

Also!  Have you started building credit?  You'll need this to qualify for a mortgage if this is the route you choose.   You can start by getting a credit card, using it for gas or whatever, and paying it off in full every month. Talk to a lender or a bank about building credit and they'll have advice. 

@Anthony, we had a luxury kitchen done. All new cabinets, Wall removed, new header/beam, moved all plumbing and electric, granite, LVT floors, etc.  

(obviously you could get a way cheaper kitchen for a rental by just resurfacing and painting)

Following. I would like to also hear others' experiences in this area as I live here, and invest here. 

I used Bear State Handypro Solutions on my own personal home, and was happy with the high-quality work, especially the sub he used for cabinets.    However,  I didnt work with Bear State as an investor on a tight timeline, so I cant speak to that. I was pretty flexible.   I got about 5 quotes for a job on my personal home; the quotes ranged from 28k-55k. Bear State was 33k (not the cheapest, but no where near the most). 

If you ever just need painting for a rental, I recommend Osvaldo's. He has always squeezed me in when I needed him.  He's quick and very reasonably priced.

Thanks, you two, for your input!