All Forum Posts by: Matt B.

Hi Lorena, 

If you're trying to invest while abroad I'd just start by reaching out the agents who represent the properties that you're interested in. Either that or find a buyers agent in Florida in the area you wish to invest in. 

An experienced and knowledgable agent is worth their weight in gold. They can provide references for just about everything you need, including but not limited to: lawyers, property management, lenders, contractors and more. 

Don't restrict your investment decisions based solely on the geographical locations of friends and family. There's an entire world full of opportunities!

My opinion may not be popular, but I think BTC is doomed to fail, be it 10 or 100 years. 

The amount of bitcoin is finite, and right now spending BTC is not common practice. Most people treat it like gold, and are just watching it appreciate. That being said, as people continue this, they start using more secure methods to store their BTC in things like paper wallets or hardware wallets (USB drives & paper QR codes) - over time these physical wallets will inevitably break in some fashion or another. As years pass, the total amount will slowly decline

On a side note, its worth mentioning that using BTC historical performance as a reference is like testing a new drug on 100 people before releasing it to the general public for use. Not nearly enough information has been gathered to accurately predict its future performance. 

The biggest difference would probably be financing. if you are getting a mortgage, generally speaking, it's likely that you will need to make a larger downpayment at a higher interest rate (assuming you have no properties or collateral within the continental US). 

This can be overcome by partnering with a local, and they may be able to help get better terms for the loan. Furthermore, there are lenders who focus on helping foreign investors, often times specific to certain geographical areas. You may be able to get good terms from them. 

hi everybody, was wondering how people here determine their exit cap-rate. Is it just off of comparables (even then, finding a future comparable isn't really possible when modeling the properties performance for the next 5-10+ years). I've read it can be done off of historic cap-rates, but a neighborhood can develop a lot in a 5-10 year time-span, so using historic rates doesn't sound particularly accurate. 

I understand the math for going-in caps and exit caps, that's easy enough. Hypothetically speaking though, couldn't a person just buy a property at $1,000,000 with a 10% cap rate ($100,000 NOI) and 5 years later sell it at a 5% cap, and lets assume the the last years NOI is $125,000 making the sales price $2,500,000.

My point being, although the NOI did make a 25% increase in 5-years time, but does that really support the additional $1,000,000+ at the sale? that's a 150% increase!  If it remained a 10% cap with an NOI of $125,000, then it'd  only be selling for $1,250,000. 

So, there must be some other determiners or market influences for exit cap rates, otherwise people would just buy a property at a 10 Cap and flip at a 4 Cap, and defend it by saying "the numbers make sense", right?

Congrats on the win - it's always refreshing to read some good news, especially during the tough times people have been going through this past year. 

Wanted to get some input from the BP community regarding how one might approach submitting an LOI for a Master Lease Agreement as opposed to buying a property with an agent.

Since agents make a commission on the sale, I don't see why an agent would be motivated speak with their client about this (regardless of if they have a fiduciary obligation). While this offer may not be favorable for the agent, it is quite good for the owner.

(I should mention that a dual-agency agreement has been signed between the seller, agent and myself)

Perhaps I'm imagining a worse case scenario, but I can't help but think an agent would have a bad-attitude towards this kind of offer since it would affect their commission. Instead of discussing the good & bad  with the seller, they instead may just put a strong emphasis on the negative in hopes the offer is rejected.

A better question may be, how could one structure such an offer so that the agent is likely to go in with a positive attitude (despite the offer being for the seller) .

Any and all suggestions are appreciated!

If you already have properties that can be used as collateral I don't see why not. To my knowledge non-us citizens will be charged a higher rate, as you mentioned, but id risk it and just give a mortgage lender a call and ask.

i don't think anyone would laugh at you for asking. The worst would be kind "no". If they did laugh, I don't think I would want to work with that kind of person anyways.

that all being said, not all lenders are made equal. Some don't work with foreign nationals and some make an effort to focus on assisting foreigners. So find  a lender that meets your needs.

Good luck!

If they have some assets in the US it shouldn't be too difficult to use that as collateral in order to obtain the loan. 

If they have no assets in the US, I believe it's possible but you'd have to do some searching for the right lender; someone who specializes in foreign investors

You ought to be licensed as a realtor if you want to wholesale in Illinois. Wholesaling is considered a licensed activity in the state of IL. 

I've never heard that you can't double close in the state however. I'd check with the NAR or IDFPR for additional confirmation on that bit.

Good luck