All Forum Posts by: Matt Deibel

@Chris K. I think its a great goal.  And continue reaching out as items come up, the folks on BP love to help.

@Husein Merchant do you have any idea where you want to invest?  Living in southern CA myself, I can promise you there are much better rentals in other markets in the United States.  Also, with the interest rates where they are today I highly recommend using leverage to start your investment portfolio.  I'd love to help you find your first property!

@Peter MacKercher I'm curious, what do you mean by market it right?  Lets say I find a deal, how would I market it right and such that I protect my interest?  Does this require being licensed?

@Chris K. 

I'd have to see the actual operating costs from history to make a qualified judgement. But I think there are better deals to be had elsewhere. The only kicker is you are getting this with your VA loan for 0 down.

With that being said, I don't think this is a bad investment necessarily.  It will be great experience getting your feet wet and I think it will cash flow if managed properly.  The only other major concerns I can think of are the roof, the neighborhood, and the age of the property.

@Mike Johnson 

I'm interested, how did you come up with that investment strategy?  I have to say I agree with the previous posts, with the rates where they are at today borrow as much cheap money as you can, 30 year loans are the way to go.

I believe pretty firmly in what I call the 1.3% rule.  Basically the same thing as the 1% or 2% rule, but 1.3%.  I've found a lot of great properties that rent for at least 1.3% of the purchase price, and often times you can find these types of properties in good neighborhoods.  Be careful though, do your due diligence and ask lots of questions when looking into potential investment properties.  If the investment brokers can't give you straight answers to your questions, that should be an immediate red flag!  I recommend running properties by the BP community for advice if needed.

I think there are other options, I live nearby and know the rental market around here is not the best.  You can find better returns looking elsewhere, and live in a decent rental to save up money to buy more investment property.  Buying property around here will probably tie up a lot of your purchasing power (although I don't know your financial situation).  Food for thought.

For Dallas this seems like a decent price point. Important factors with SFR are the age of the home, expected repairs, what is the condition of the roof, etc... Also find out about the school district and take a look around the neighborhood. Note what kind of cars people are driving, what kind of people live in the area, do the houses have curb appeal.

I would even recommend knocking on neighbors doors and talking to them and asking about the neighborhood.

I think this market, especially with the high property taxes, is just about at the cash flow limit.  I would recommend other markets if you're looking for cash flow.  I think if you invest here you would be banking on potential appreciation.

@Mike Purvis there are some options available.  you can look for a property with seller financing and see if they are willing to accept a smaller down payment.  Also some lenders will allow a seller carry-back (2nd loan) on a property, which can go towards the down payment.  I've used a carry-back before to purchase 2 duplexes for 15% down out of my pocket.

As far as buying abroad, I think its an excellent idea.  Often times the best rental properties are not in nearby markets.  I've purchased all of my properties out of state, and I use property management companies.  The key is finding people you trust. A good start is leveraging your network (biggerpockets).  Once you find potential candidates, a good way to build trust is asking a lot of questions, listen for fishy answers or people trying to side step certain questions.

@Brandon Tahincioglu  there are tons of people out there who offer turnkey properties in just about every market.  I've purchased only turnkey out of state properties in multiple markets in my investment career.  I think finding people you trust is extremely important.  A good way to build trust is asking a lot of questions, listen for fishy answers or people trying to side step certain questions.  And as far as finding a market, I suggest you look at anything you can get your hands on.  Create your own pro forma, don't use the returns provided by a seller, and analyze the properties yourself.  Also set your investment criteria, do you want old properties that have been rehabbed, or brand new properties?  And what kind of area do you want to be in, class A or class C?  This should get you started.

@Gilbert Velez understandable, and there very well may be some great rentals in nearby areas, I haven't looked into markets over there.  If your interested shoot me a message and I'll send you some information on the first property I ever bought.