All Forum Posts by: Maria Moya

Hey y'all, given the recent NAR settlement i was wondering how this will play out as a first time home buyer? My understanding is: most sellers will pay their commission, but what if they don't or they only pay a portion of it? What is common practice as far as the contractual agreement between the agent and the buyer in the event the seller does not pay or only pays a portion of the agreement (i.e if the seller only pays 1-1.5%)? Would greatly appreciate the feedback. For instance, is it common to state to pay a flat fee of only up to $x amount in the event the seller does not cover the cost? If so, what is a flat fee amount?

Hello, my spouse and I are looking into new constructions in the Orlando area. We’re first time home buyers and debating on whether to get a realtor or represent ourselves. Figured we could try to negotiate lot premiums, design incentives and closing cost incentives ourself. 

Given FL dual agency laws and the recent NAR, what would this mean as far as commissions? Would we be able to pocket the buyer commission to remedy the final sales price or closing costs?

Hello, my spouse and I are looking into new constructions in the Orlando area. We're first time home buyers and debating on whether to get a realtor or represent ourselves. Given FL dual agency laws and the recent NAR, what would this mean as far as commissions? Would we be able to pocket the buyer commission to remedy the final sales price or closing costs? (Edit: I meant to post this via the Orange County FL forum)

Thank you for your reply Nicolas! We have great +750 credit scores, a +6 month emergency fund, money set aside for the down payment (both emergency fund and down payment are cash sitting in a high yield savings and rolling 4 wk treasury) in addition to a taxable brokerage account I have built throughout the years in the event we need to leverage it for a pledge asset line. Most of the money in that taxable account is in a S&P 500 etf. I have spent the last 2-3 years building this financial moat in hopes that we could start our REI journey. We are both 32 and 29 so very new to real estate. The whole appeal in REI was to maybe create a small business on the side with my spouse as a way to: eventually secure supplemental income, start building equity in RE and maybe creating a small business together in RE that would help us obtain financial freedom

after hearing how risky things can be, I’m trying to learn: what are other RE investors doing to make money despite the risks around home repairs, vacancy, additional expenses (i.e property managers), etc. And where/how should we get started? I have been trying to follow bigger pockets to educate myself(tips and tricks for funding, info on how to make REI more passive,etc.) How did you teach yourself about real estate? For instance, how did you learn how to identify class-A locations? So far, when I look at a property I tend to look at: what did other properties in the area sell for, how are the schools (I.e if I want to attract families), how much does rent typically go for in that area, how much is property taxes in that area,etc.

Hello, I was wondering if there were REI investors in the Orlando market that would like to catch up sometime? I'd love to learn about tips and tricks that have worked for folks investing in the Orlando FL area

Hello everyone, anyone I have spoke to about REI in my personal life all tell me the same thing: don't get into real estate

They are all people who have had properties themselves, have tried to rent them out and have told me horror stories of tenants and how repair costs or costs to property managers make it disadvantageous to earn profit or scale

I’m trying to invest with my spouse who is also included in these conversations. My spouse was already wary of investing into Real estate, but after hearing these conversations from family and friends, I can tell their concerns expand

that said, I would love to know how people on here got started with their spouse. How did they know the property they would invest in would cash flow and/or build equity over the long run? I was thinking about investing in Orlando or Tampa, but I actually don’t know if either markets are actually advantageous. I grew up in Orlando which is why I wanted to start there because I know the good vs bad areas but hearing no one in my circle make money from a rental property makes me concern. But I’m not sure if Orlando is a “good” market. I’d love to learn about other people have done that were actually successful and what made them successful 

Thank you for the question! I was thinking: what if we get started in real estate as a primary residence in Orlando or Tampa but we rent in New England. Then as the first property builds equity from our tenants, we purchase our 2nd investment property and eventually leverage our 2nd property to purchase our 3rd. But I figured the place where we would live ourselves would be a rental. The reason being: we’d love to live long term in New England but we’re very discouraged by the housing market up here (a lot of expensive run down properties and seems like a lot of red tape)

Thank you for the reply, that make sense. We’re on the same page as far as buying in Orlando (or Tampa) and renting it out. My concern is I tend to be less risk adverse especially with short term losses if the long term gain is worthwhile (i.e maybe the property might not cash flow today but it gains more equity). Last thing I want to do is bite more than my spouse was willing to chew as far as risk. Or perhaps we mitigate that risk with properties I would be able to buy outright in cash in the event anything happens, especially for our first property 

Hello all, I was wondering if it’s advisable to invest with your spouse? I’m really into purchasing real estate as an investment property and renting it out rather than buying real estate to live in it. My spouse is interested in the concept of living in a home. That said, I figured our first property could be our primary residence in Orlando, FL (we currently live/rent in New England). After living in the primary property in Orlando I figured we could move back to New England and rent that property out which seems like a win-win as far as getting a conventional loan rather an investment loan. It would be easier (i.e combining capital) and nice to have a common goal but I’m not sure if it’s advisable if my spouse’s mindset isn’t as investment oriented

Hello everyone, I'm a new investor in the real estate space. We currently reside in Massachusetts but I grew up in FL. As such, I'm currently looking into investing (ideally buy and hold) in either the Orlando or Tampa area. I'd love to learn more about things like: what other options can I consider for liability protection besides an LLC(I haven't met a lender willing to lend via an LLC), what are some gotchas to be wary of,etc. But most importantly, I'd like to connect with other like minded individuals