All Forum Posts by: Kristen B.

Thanks for the helpful advice! As a 25 year-old woman studying for my RE license, this sort of thing scares me all the time. I agree 100% with the tracking advice, not just for showing houses but in general. My car broke down on a really dark road a few months ago (non-RE related) and my partner was able to find me because of remote GPS even though I had no idea where I was and was in a shady part of town. 

Another helpful thing I've found is holding your keys in your hand with your car key sticking out between two fingers while making a fist. It sounds silly, but if you're trying to get to your car and someone attacks you, you can easily stab your attacker with the key. Always makes me feel a little safer. Guns and tasers work though too!

Hey guys,

There is a property that I am interested in that becomes available early next week that is being sold via a bankruptcy trustee sale. I am a cash buyer looking for my first flip project but I am mostly familiar with REOs. While I am confident with the numbers aspect and analysis, this is my first time stumbling upon this type of sale. 

My understanding is that these properties are often sold free and clear of liens, which I like. The listing agent who is to represent the seller mentioned she has never executed one of these sales before and seemed to be having a hard time describing the process. I am wary of being in a blind leading the blind situation. She said the process is similar to a short sale but requires court approval.

Obviously, I will be researching this more throughout the weekend but I was just wondering about other investors' experiences have been in the past with these sort of sales. Do you prefer them? As there is an additional approval needed via the court, have you found them to be a much more lengthy process or is it more of just a slight hiccup? Any advice would be helpful. I have been guaranteed first-look of the property as soon as the REA gets the keys and if it checks out, I'd like to put in an offer ASAP. Just want to be a little cautious before I jump in.

Thanks in advance. You guys rock!

KB

Hey guys,

One of the properties we are getting rid of closes within the next 30 days. $360k will be capital gains profit and I need to find the best way to reinvest (flipping & buy/hold) without taking a huge tax hit. 

Does anyone local know of any good accountants in the Tampa Bay area who are REI friendly?

All suggestions, how long you've worked with them, etc. would be helpful. I always prefer word-of-mouth referrals over google searches when possible.

Thanks in advance!

- KB 

@Kevin Booker I live in the Northdale area and look for flips in the Carrollwood area on a regular basis. While your buying price sounds awesome, I'd worry about someone else trying to buy that property who wants to actually live in it. They would not be looking to make a profit, they'd just be looking for a less expensive house in a good area and would be willing to pay more than you are able to for the purpose of flipping while still getting a great deal because they got their home for less. Unless it has serious mold or structural issues that would prevent a bank from giving it the approval for traditional financing, securing the house at all could be a struggle. Any painting and flooring you could do a homeowner and nonflipper might be just as willing to do themselves. 

I also am going to have to side with some of the other people commenting. I know it sucks to get excited about a property and then have people try to dissuade you from it but it doesn't feel like you have enough of a cushion for mistakes. $5k would make me uncomfortable. Have you looked into using the 70% rule? It's not always applicable but it's a good rule to loosely base your finances on when analyzing a property.  

Good luck!

Welcome to Bigger Pockets @Cliff Parchmon! I'm in real estate for the same reason :) I don't have children (yet) but the thought of being able to leave my family something one day is definitely a motivator. 

I live in the area as well. Please feel free to reach out anytime. 

Best of luck!

-KB

Welcome to Bigger Pockets! :) If you are looking to invest in Florida, I'd check out the Bigger Pockets Real Estate Investment Market Index that was just posted today at: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2015/10/14...

The best cities to invest in the state would be Tampa, Orlando, and Miami. I can't give advice on Orlando and Miami (I don't live in these cities or know their markets very well), but in Tampa you'd be hard-pressed to find a property that will be $60k total for price of property + the cost of renovations. Can it be done? Sure. Can it be rented? Probably. The quality of tenants though will not be the best and the area will be questionable. If you are going to have a property manager, this might not matter but if you are going to manage these properties on your own, I'd be cautious and make sure to get a good deposit. For that price range, you might investigate New Port Richey, Florida -- which has cheap property but blue collar neighborhoods that aren't as sketchy as the $60k Tampa markets. There are lots of foreclosures in this area and competition but if you can find a way to get them rented, there could be some profit potential.

Have you considered college towns? College students always need a place to stay, cheap property or not. While they are messy and you'll definitely need a deposit, you can require co-signers (like their parents) and not have to worry about rent being late. 

Good luck!

Welcome to BP! I love the search feature for the forum. I can usually find whatever info I'm looking for there. The podcasts are also really helpful and easy to download to put on your phone.

Good luck! Happy wholesaling! :)

Thanks @Jeff Morelock! Very well put. That's a great way to look at it. I'll keep in mind that the 70% rule doesn't always apply when moving forward. Any advice (especially from REO agents -- you guys know your investor markets!) is always appreciated.

I just wanted to say thank-you to everyone who commented for all your kind words and advice. I'll look into some of the financing options that were mentioned. We look forward to working in the area. 

Hi everyone :) I'm the daughter! (Already a BP member.)

I'm graduating with a 3.8 GPA and a Bachelor's Degree in Marketing from USF in fifty-something days and I am a former accounting major. I found that while I enjoyed accounting, I did not want to work for a big 4 company or make it my full-time job. That said, the education that provided launched me into wanting to pursue real estate investing, which I found more challenging and exciting. My fiance is a software engineer and also wanted to get into real estate investing. Since deciding this, we've saved around 30k for our first home and I've encouraged my father to sell his fully paid-off Hyde Park bungalow for capital so we could start flipping. We have not been leveraging our money or taking advantage of OPM. Very rarely does a $400k property make a good rental. For us, it made more sense to go into flipping OR -- if we stayed with rentals -- to leverage our money, buy cheaper properties, and gain a lot more cashflow with multiple properties than one paid-off expensive home.

I know Tampa is a tight market for new flippers. I hope to focus in on Logan Gate (Citrus Park), Carrollwood Meadows, Lutz, and Plantation areas. I live in Northdale, my dad lives in South Tampa. I pick these areas because I live on this side of town and am very comfortable with the neighborhoods: they have decent schools in family neighborhoods and starter-size homes (3br/2ba) that are easy to sell. Most of my real estate education has been right here from Bigger Pockets. I follow the 70% rule, I analyze properties on a regular basis and feel comfortable pulling comps for the areas I focus on. I feel comfortable estimating reno costs and am not above pulling up old carpet and soaking underlayment (as I learned very recently!) and will soon be getting my real estate license so that I may gain access to the MLS and work in that area as well. Every few weeks my fiance and I are able to find a deal that passes all my tests but we're never able to get the financing (despite almost an 800 credit score) because most are REOs and need too much work OR someone beats us there! As many of you know, cash is king, so I'm really excited my dad is willing to start this up with me. He is great at the structural and damage side of houses, I'm great at the design and financial aspect.

Anyway, looking forward to working in the same area as some of you all :) And looking forward to networking! Any tips for two newbies are always appreciated!