All Forum Posts by: Matias Torres

Congrats on the deal @Brian McDonough. I am curious about the bold move you made on waiving inspection and appraisal contingency. Were you able to walk the property and estimate your costs based on your construction background?

Also, would you be open to sharing your interest in your HELOC? My wife and I used the HELOC on a property we owned for an earnest money deposit in an offer we placed for a different property but got the "daily interest accrual anxiety" if that is a thing. About 6 months ago our rate sat at 8.67%, which makes you get very good at getting creative with paying the money back asap.

Thanks for your post!

That rehab looks amazing! Can we talk about the guts it took for you and your partner to pour $90K into a $150K property? Commendable for sure. Three questions I have for you: 1) Where did you guys get the money? 2)How much did the money cost? 3) Is your profit figure the money in your pocket? (pre-tax vs. after-tax). Sorry if the questions are dumb. Congrats!

Hello Gloria, I think it is awesome that you are thinking the way you are this early in your life.

If I was your age, I would join the National Guard in your state doing a job that you are curious about doing. The military will give you multiple qualities, investment vehicles, life-long benefits, relatively short commitments, and opportunities to change your job in the case you don't like it once your initial training is complete.

The VA loan is a 0% down loan product that is unmatched by any other, you can also use it over and over again. I am not a recruiter or anything like that, don't worry. I am a helicopter pilot that got started in life mid 20's because of various life circumstances. Everything I have done in real estate has been made 10X easier via the military.

Of course, the military is not for everyone (as a career) but I believe all people would be better after serving even for a very short period. I would love to connect with you and assist you in anything you need.

Good luck with your journey!

Investment Info:

Large multi-family (5+ units) buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $1,750,000

House hack/ Buy & Hold Rental property in the best possible location we could have asked for. A really great deal that was acquired through much trial and error.

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

Thinking a bit bigger than we were comfortable with combined with supportive people around us cheering us on. In the Southern California market, we knew we would need strength in numbers, and by numbers, I mean the number of doors.

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

We found this deal while shopping for another home, cold calling in Zillow. I inquired about a different property and happen to connect with a commercial broker that had a number of deals lined up, this was the one that fit our buy box the best. At first, it seemed hard to believe because of how well it fit what we were looking to buy, but in time all of the elements came together.

How did you finance this deal?

Jumbo VA 3.99% 30yr fixed rate. We hoped the loan process would be easier since it was our 2nd VA loan, but it turns out Jumbo VA is significantly different than regular VA, especially when you add a zero to the end of the loan amount.

How did you add value to the deal?

We plan on rehabbing the units to the best of our ability in the coming months as cash & vacancy allow.

What was the outcome?

The outcome is ongoing, we just got in, and we have everything left to learn.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Analyze as many properties as possible and be crystal clear on what you are looking for.
Do not waste time pursuing properties that will not help you achieve your goals.
Do not set and forget your pre-approval letter, interest rates change often, and your affordability changes right along with the rates.
Jumbo loans are challenging. The underwriting process is thorough, simple but hard, taxiing but possible.
Trust but verify, and work harder than all the people helping you.

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

Spencer Thomas and his team on the lending side of the house were wonderful. Alec Kara commercial broker was kind and by default the MVP for bringing us the deal.

Investment Info:

Single-family residence other investment in Rialto.

Purchase price: $335,000
Cash invested: $10,000
Sale price: $560,000

This was my wife and I's first home, we bought it as a primary residence and then sold it to scale up to a house hack.

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

Initially, we never thought we were in a good place to invest, let alone in the expensive assets category. Luckily, through the VA loan, we were able to buy without thinking it would open us up and give us the capital for a bigger investment.

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

MLS through a residential realtor that was recommended by a friend from work.

How did you finance this deal?

Freshly earned VA loan (right after my first deployment). Initially, we used the CalVet VA loan, which is a loan product in the State of California funded by taxpayers for veterans. The initial rate in 2016 was a 3.25% 30yr fixed and then we financed into a 2.25% 30yr fixed in 2020.

How did you add value to the deal?

We did light work on one of the bathrooms, financed solar, painted the exterior, purchased a water softener, and remodeled the kitchen. In that order from less expensive to most expensive.

What was the outcome?

Funny enough aside from the exterior paint, none of the improvements were looked at as value add more than just blind "home improvement" at the time, perhaps a better description would be a coincidental value add. Between the improvements and the asset appreciation, the home went up $225K.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

Definitely, be intentional about the money you spend on an expensive asset and seek to add value with an eye on your desired outcome.

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

Calvet Home loans was a great lender. Deborah Hibma was of great help during the acquisition phase (I am not aware if she does any purely RE investing deals). The Gwilt Real Estate team was excellent on the exit strategy and made the sale a breeze at a price we were happy with.

Following this post.

Newbie RE investor here as well. My wife and I just sold my single-family home, we're in the process of purchasing a 4 unit property, and rent 3 units while living in one.

We are planning on transferring the new "to-be" property into a CA land trust owned by us to start off, then possibly transferring it to a WY/DE entity.

@Gleb Dmitriyenko, out of curiosity, what's your plan with this property in the future? I know that NorCal home prices are skyrocketing too.

@Michael Plaks that's fair, I am only opening the umbrella before it starts raining. Thanks, I appreciate the situational awareness tip.

Hello Jessica, my wife and I are also from Southern California and would be quite interested in attending one. We'll be following this post!

@Dustin Haug thanks for posting this! My wife and I also looking for a tax strategist/ CPA. @Michael Plaks I went ahead and reached out to your tax expert recommendations.

Bigger pockets community always coming in hot with the assist.

Hello Ryan,

Newbie here; I am buying my second home/first investment/primary home/house hack(4-plex) in Southern California. I can definitely relate to the issues you have brought up.

In the future, I would like to understand the bottom line, the so what of what I need to know to make a decision. It seems as though the line between "serious" and "minor" repairs is blurred and sometimes even just removed as more and more potential repairs pile on.

I am a simple man, and when things get too complicated for me to 1)understand and/or 2)be able to explain in 30 seconds or less, I walk the other way. Nobody got time for that.

Thank you for posting this!