All Forum Posts by: Mohammad Foro

Does anyone know of a tool that allows searching for real estate by entering formulas for "positive cashflow"?

My formula is not complex... something like this:

High school rating > 8
"(Estimated Rent x 12) - HOA - Prop Tax - Insurance @ 0.3% - Vacancy @ 5% of rent - Debt Service @ 8%" > 0

I want to be able to customize the metrics, and find properties I can purchase as an investment.

If anyone is an avid user of StockRover and their custom metrics, that is exactly what I am looking for - but for real estate. I am happy to pay for it.

And for Dayton, be sure to put aside 30% for non-payment for rent + eviction costs.

Yes, really.

Marvin - I understand that you are on a tight budget, but the truth is that you need to invest a lot more in your website before people will start using it.

Real estate involves high value transactions which means that people have to really trust a website to start actively using it. The current design and functionality of your website does not encourage any level of trust - it is quite obvious it has been built by someone with very little web design knowledge.

Dont get me wrong - as a I founder I know just how hard it is to try to launch a new venture; but I think with the current website, you have launched something which is not an MVP (i.e. it is not actually viable).

I suggest you invest some money into building a well designed website before you start marketing it.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news - but it's better that you hear it sooner rather than later.

AFAIK banks wont do HELOC on investment properties. If you find one that does, please share - I would be very interested in working with them myself.

I think this is why most investors buy distressed property. They get to add value by doing some rehab work. Then they finance it based on the ARV. This allows them to pull all the money out, even the down payment. That way, you have all the funds back and can hold without worrying that it will take years to get the down payment back.

Has anyone on BP used azbidder.com to buy foreclosures?

I am interested in using them to bid on foreclosures in Nevada, but that requires me to put full sum of cashiers checks with them - so basically $400K in cashiers checks.

Im a bit hesitant since I dont actually know how trustworthy they are. Is anyone actively using them or used them in the past?

In State / Out of State?

In state for now.

Strategy?
Buying commutable to SF but not in rent control areas.

Type of properties?
Prefer 2-4 units or SFH.

Looking for?
Wholesalers to bring properties in the Bay Area.

Can offer / knowledgeable about?
Not much in REI right now.

Thanks guys - I will try to follow through with the suggestions and talk to an accountant about it.

@Roy N. - yes, I am in the process of looking for an accountant, but it's hard when not in the country. I intend to attend some REI meetups when I arrive and hopefully get some references to good accountants in the Oakland area.
Also, the suggestion of making it a captial investment (or possibly a loan) to the corp is something that I am very open to - just need to sit down with an accountant to make sure of it's tax implications.

@Bill Gulley - I specifically dont want an LLC because of the pass-through taxation. Im in a high tax bracket regarding income tax ($150K+), I dont want all profits to come directly to me as income tax, I want to control the timing of when I withdraw profits from the corp.

I do agree with you regarding the insurance - again something that I need to research on so I can get the best insurance policy for my situation.

this would make sense if there wasn't much equity in the property (i.e. high LTV ratio like almost all other investors). But since I will only be taking a small mortgage on the property (and possibly no mortgage at all), if I assign it to a corp, I am in essence giving away my asset, ready to be stolen via litigation.

My aim is to keep the asset, but create a buffer layer - mitigating any liability.