All Forum Posts by: Mateo Oquendo-Chandler

 Dayton is just waiting its turn for companies to use the space that's there. Once there is overflow from those larger markets they will spread closer to the area. At this point, it's now of matter of if it will happen but when. 

Been a long 12 months searching through the MLS for the next deal. I have started trying to take time to drive around and look for vacant homes or For Sale by Owner signs in my local area. Some of my family have seen how well my first rental has done since 2020 and want to work with me and invest along side me in my journey. I know that it is important to align goals and have a clear understanding of how to structure the partnership. I know one family member will want to just invest money and be paid passively, but I don't know how to decide what ROI is reasonable. I know there are a lot of ways to creatively structure the payback such as monthly, quarterly, etc. but I wanted to see what ways people have had success with recently.

For the people that have/had partnerships, what questions do you wish you would have asked at the beginning that you didn't think about at the time?

 I agree that Dayton is pretty cheap and has some areas that are starting to be developed. I expect it will soon follow the trend that parts of Columbus has over the past 5 years. It wont be immediate but it's on the way.

 I can agree with Zachary. I have a rental here that does very well in this market. Even with rising interest rates, there are a lot of opportunities to cash flow. You can also consider that Cincinnati has UC and Xavier for college student rentals and a lot of large hospitals and big corporate business names that help to keep some communities moving forward with jobs.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $170,000
Cash invested: $27,000

My first single family rental property. Got lucky with a small $80/month HOA fee where they handle cutting the grass and managing the community common areas.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

Great neighborhood. This home appeared to have been foreclosed on judging by the condition it was left in. The damage was cosmetic. The listing price was low enough that within a few weeks i had built some sweat equity.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Spent about 6-7 months doing daily searches in a few cincinnati areas on Zillow. One day I found this property listed on Zillow. Asking price was $180,000 - I Offered $165,000 - Seller Countered at $175,000- I Countered at $169,000 - Seller's final offer was $170,000- Which I accepted.

How did you finance this deal?

Bank Loan and used an Ohio First Time Home Buyer program, which allowed me to waive PMI, put little to no money down. I decided to put 10% down to lower monthly mortgage payment to about $1,000/month. The bank also helped me apply for a $5,000 grant to go towards down payment as well, which ended up being about 3%.

How did you add value to the deal?

Holes in the wall were repaired. New paint, upgraded to vinyl floor on first floor, replaced carpet, new blinds, and replaced all the floor boards and rotten rails on the back deck. Also, installed stainless steel appliances and included washer dryer to offer a great value to the tenant.

What was the outcome?

3 months of work and rented within a week of listing it on Facebook. Turned out to be a grand slam and I am blessed to have had the opportunity to have this as my first.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I wanted to get a contractor in for a quote so that I could understand the cost of having the work doing versus farming it out myself, but even that proved to be hard. I think this was caused by the fact I was the one bringing the material and was just wanting a quote for labor and most companies weren't a fan of that.
I learned that coming soon posts/ads were a great help for getting foot traffic along with showing some of the before and afters.
Patience is virtue.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I had a great real estate agent that helped me through the entire process and was very great at communicating with me and the seller's agent. Sometimes my agent would follow up daily until she received an answer to show she was serious about doing business.
I was recommended a wonderful loan officer who helped me with getting pre-approved the same day and was more than willing to adjust my pre-approval letter when I was sending in POF for offers.

@Jace Loos Congrats on being the pillar of change in your environment and offering the opportunity for a new perspective. I graduated from UC in 2018 in the MET program. Bought my first rental property in 2020, so I have been there. Similar to what others have said, take your time and learn what is it you want from real estate. Write yourself a goal of what you wish to accomplish, the areas you want to focus on, and the style of properties that interest you. It is very easy to get overwhelmed when starting out without any criteria's in mind.