All Forum Posts by: Shawn McCormick

@Joshua Herrera welcome! I'm here in Orlando too and have helped dozens of B.P. members purchase STR here. I would be happy to have a call sometime to discuss your plans and see what I can do to help avoid some of the mistakes and also what to look for in this market as it is very competitive.

I'm also on the board of CFRI, the local chapter of the National REIA so that might be a good resource for you to check out too.

There is a link in my profile if you want to set up a call. 

Best of luck!

@Raj A. I have a few referrals for other areas closer to Orlando. But my office has a PM office with well over 1000 properties they manage. I can put you in touch with someone if you still need.

Hi Adrian, my company (ERA Grizzard) has an entire property management arm with ( I could be off), but around 1800 units under management. Plus we have 7 offices around Orlando and looking to acquire more next year. Let me know and I can set up an interview with the broker/owner. 

@Truong Vu You have some valid concerns, but most investments, whether for your personal use or long term holding property is usually about leveraging what you have. You don't really mention investing in real estate, so this is just a purchase for your personal use. 

I'm in the Orlando market and it is definately softening now and favors buyers. Alhtough values continue to appreciate, home prices are coming down as competition gets heated with more homes on the market. You can negotiate pretty well right now and we'll see what the next two months bring with the Fed meeting again and the election. 

In my opinion, you should probably not put all 50% down. Use less of that and either get the seller to buy down your interest rate or you can do it and have a comfortable mortgage payment and still plenty left for your emergency fund. If the economy gets better, you might be able to refinance and/or if you make more money, pay down the principal later if that is what you really want. Rates are high now, but if they go down, more buyers will enter the market and drive prices back up. So now is a good time to buy if you leverage your ability to put a good amount down and close...that is attractive to sellers that are eager to get out of their property. 

I hope this helps, best of luck to you! Reach out if I can help in any other way. 

@Kevin S. I hold all of my properties in land trusts with a third party trustee. My LLC is the beneficiary of the trust. Land trusts provide excellent anonymity and then your LLC should provide the protection you want. Although I've been using trusts for years, I am literally just doing my estate planning and my attorney said I did everything right to be able to pass my properties down to my kids. I have two great trust attorneys if you'd like to give them a call.

I'll let someone else chime in about the insurance piece. 

@Jose Rodriguez Welcome! I'm local here in Orlando. There are several groups that have meetings, check the 'get started' tab up top and look for any that are listed there, plus the meetup app and I am on the board of the local REIA. That's a great place to start, we have over 1000 local members and hold about 20 meet ups a month. If you want more information on that, let me know. We actually have our main meeting coming up on November 12. Check out Central Florida Realty Investors (cfri).

Best of luck!

Hi @Fernando Belmonte I've been a member here on Bigger Pockets for quite some time and have helped dozens of members to purchase and sell homes in the Orlando Metro. I'd be happy to have a call to see if we can help each other. You can go to my profile and schedule a call if you like. 

Hi @Ramatu Kuyateh. If you plan to make Florida your primary than you won't have to put 20% down. The underwriter of your loan may want to see your current property be leased and make sure that it covers your PITI, but that will depend on the guidelines of your lender. That is a loan requirement, not just a Florida thing. However, depending on your loan type, if you put less than 20% down, you may have PMI (private mortgage insurance) which will make your monthly payment higher by up to a couple hundred dollars. I have some great lenders here that you could speak with about all of that. They will be able to talk to you about rates also. Since you aren't looking until next year, you wont' be able to get a rate quote now, most likely not until you are under contract and they can lock that in.

Not sure that there are any 'gotchas' when buying here that would be different than any other place. Be aware of insurance rates, they are higher than most other states. Some communities have CDD (community development district) fees. Its basically a tax that is over an above your property taxes and is used to pay back the developer that built out the infrastructure and amenities of the community. And of course, most homes have HOA's (homeowners associations) that can be $20-$250/month to pay for community maintenance, sometimes lawn care, cable/internet, amenity upkeep, pool, security etc.

Reach out if I can be of any assistance. Best of luck!

Thank you @Michael Baum!

Hi @Mariangela Ciciarelli. This market is literally built for STR and yes, there are thousands of units and yes, it is very competative. Having said that you can make money here, but choosing the right neighborhood (resort) is key. Many other have warned about HOA's...stay away from any neighborhood that doesn't have an HOA and isn't zoned specifically to be STR. Orlando is not like the rest of the country where you can have a cabin in the woods or a treehouse and be unique..we are built for 75 Million visitors a year and they all need accommodations.

Most of the more successful units are larger and have fantastic themed rooms/garages etc. You can do well with a more simple approach, but it won't be easy either way. The days of just putting something up and hoping for the best are long gone. 

Here are two of my clients, this is what you need to be doing and many do it at a much higher level than these. 

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1014578316554072541?viralityEnt...

https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/1020198834070920531?source_impr...

Depending on your goals (using it for you and your family a few times a year and hoping it pays for itself, parking some cash for a few years and hoping for appreciation or strictly cash flow) will determine what size home and what your budget should be. This is not as passive as it is thought to be, but can be profitable and fun if you run it like a business. 

Happy to dive much deeper if you would like to set up a call. 

Best of luck!

@Emmanuel Okelola Welcome and congrats on taking the beginning steps, asking for help is hard to do for so many. Taking 'effective' action is what you need to do next, find out what your goal really is and work backwards in discovering what you need to do to achieve it. Saving for a downpayment is obvious. But you need to learn all about landlord/tenant laws, how to do basic repairs, know what average labor and material costs are for common projects. learn about payment systems, how to interview property managers, tenants and handyman services, build a team of realtors, contractors, title, hard/private money lenders, inspectors, appraisers and soooo much more. 

As Jonathan said, attend some meet ups, we have quite a few here in Orlando. I am actually on the board of CFRI the local chapter for the National REIA. You should come check it out and network with other local investors of all experience levels, ask lots of questions and pay attention to the content provided. I can get you a free guestpass if you like.

Best of luck to you.