All Forum Posts by: Mathew Wray

I know this is an old thread...Ed O. Did the refi from Chase work? I shy away from any refi offers in the mail. They all seem too good to be true.

Mathew

Brian,

I'm so glad to hear an experienced poster say what you did! I'm new and don't pretend to know everything but I've always had trouble with the hangups around a cap rate (maybe because I'm in an expensive market I'm prejudiced). It seems like just one more metric that can be manipulated to either prove or disprove a deal where as the return is a hard number to analyze.

Brings to mind the old Mark Twain quote about lies, damned lies, and statistics.

Mathew

Joe,

I've run into the same problem when trying to use cap rates and the 50% rule in analyzing potential deals in the Portland area. It's a really high price market and I think you'll have a lot of difficulty finding anything that works out even remotely close to the "rules" but, in my novice opinion, you have to find a deal that works for you. Does it appreciate? Does it have cash flow with the financing you can get? Is there room for instant equity in the sale? If you can find a deal that can work for you then do it and learn the rules on your own. Neither of mine have conformed to either rule but I've still made money in equity, taxes, and asset increases...with some cash flow. Not great, but some. I guess what I'm saying is if it works for you do it and make your own rules.

Mathew

Welcome Nick!

As you can see I'm a new member to BP as well. Jeff is right (I've seen his posts on a number of forums and he always has great points) about the difficulty in Portland. That being said I believe you can make money in the Portland area, you just need to be extremely picky and you'll definitely want to plan on having supplemental income. If I would've quit my job to be a full time RE investor when I bought my duplex I'd currently be eating out of a dumpster!! Are you planning on investing in Gresham or Portland proper? I do know that property is cheaper on the far Eastern and Western parts of the metro area.

Val,

Thanks for serving! I've got one input not mentioned here, although the others certainly have more experience. After a few years out of the Marines I had done a lot of research and jumped into a FHA 203 owner/occupied loan on a duplex that had instant equity. Lived in one half the required year and then bought a SFR with my VA loan. I tried to buy a duplex before the SFR and I had a lot of trouble with the VA appraisers. The consistently undervalued the rental properties. As I had it explained to me a lot of new appraisers start out getting VA appraisals for experience before advancing into the world of better paying private appraisals. But that's just speculation. So definitely be prepared to lose a deal or two when working with the VA.

Also, be careful on the zero down loans. I learned the hard way (apparently I didn't do enough research) that without 20% equity in the SFR I can't count the rental income coming in towards a future loan (even though it cash flows nicely) and it does count against my DTI ratios for another conventional loan. So my advice is to definitely do it. Take advantage of the loans you've earned with your service, but be patient and find a place that will get you to that 20% equity conventional banks require to count the rental income with a minimum of effort on your part.

If I'm wrong or someone knows a way around the 20% to count for rental income rule please feel free to correct me! I still hold out hope...

Mathew

I've asked around people I trust and have done a lot of reading. During that time I've come to the conclusion that I should definitely start attending some local real estate investment clubs. The benefits certainly seem to far out weigh the possible negatives. However, on the other hand I don't have a whole lot of extra time on my hands to be running around trying out different clubs to find a serious one. I'd hate to go and spend two hours being pandered to by a salesman/woman. Does anyone know of any solid clubs here in the Portland metro area? Anyone been to NWREIA meetings? Any other groups?

Thanks for any help,

Mathew

Hello!

My name is Mathew and I've been lurking on Bigger Pockets reading and getting a free education for about a year. I own a few rental properties and have been self managing for about three years. Over the last few years I've slowly been dialing down a business concept and have been positioning myself to start my own property management company here in Portland Oregon. I have a competitive advantage already worked out and have clients lined up just waiting for me to finish the licensing process. I guess I just wanted to say how excited I am to be here and how much I've learned over the last year reading. And also how happy I am to start contributing to the community here.

I'm open to any questions anyone has.

Mathew

Hello everyone,

This is my first post after almost a year of lurking on Bigger Pockets. I've slowly been refining my strategy and fulfilling my legal obligations and am just waiting on final results from the state before I can sign contracts and begin managing other people's properties. In the last three years I've been managing my own and using a local manager associations rental forms. But now that I'm ready to strike out on my own I'm having trouble finding a good, vetted Property Manager Agreement. They don't have those forms and when I search online I get a lot of fairly basic, non-specific legal forms. Does anyone know where I can buy a copy of an agreement or does anyone have a good management agreement that I can use?

Any advice on where to turn would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks and I'm so excited to be here posting!

Mathew