All Forum Posts by: Marc Estepa

@Jason Lam, More to chew on!  I’ll hit him up and see what his thoughts are.  I figured this was going to be complicated.  That might actually make sense to sell just because of the complications of trying to utilize the funds to invest in the US.  I know he was managing himself for awhile, but now that he’s back in the US - that PM is key.  Don’t know how that’s going for him now.

I’ve been trying to encourage him to get involved with BP, but it’s intimidating to him and sometimes over his head.  

I think it’s an awesome resource to get connected, network and learn.  Plus I have no issues asking what I don’t know.  

@Jason Lam - Wow!  I’m still picking up my jaw off the floor thinking about that appreciation he had.  $200K over 10 years ago to $700K now?!   My god.  I wonder if it’s still worth that much.  

Anyway, I just started researching this as well and noted that there are a few US banks that operate in the Philippines such as Bank of America, Citibank and a few others.  

I'm assuming they could possibly send appraisers over to that condo to appraise it's value and hopefully do a HELOC to allow him to invest in the US. We'll see. I'll pass the message!

I was looking at buying In the Philippines myself for the past few years but never pulled the trigger because I didn’t quite understand the market or the specifics of purchasing as a US citizen.  I was traveling back and forth so much, it actually made sense to buy.  Unfortunately with CoVID, it’s changed quite a few things for me.  

Anyway, thanks for the insight!  Good luck with your investing in the US!  I’m trying to expand my portfolio as well!

@Jason Lam I’m not the one trying to borrow the money, my buddy is. He was living and working in the Philippines for the last decade and just returned to the US a few months ago. I believe he is a dual citizen.  Up until this point, he no longer has income coming from the Philippines that I know of, as he works here now.

I briefly asked about numbers and my understanding is that it rents at about $2000 USD a month.  The condo is paid off free and clear, so it’s pure cash flow minus operating costs.  I know nothing about the condo other than it’s in Rockwell and paid off.  

He wants to invest in the US, but the tricky thing is understanding how to deploy the funds from a Philippine based property to the US.  

Unless a US Bank is willing to accept his paperwork from the property saying it’s his, and willing to go to the Philippines to do an appraisal and look at comps to determine it’s worth, I don’t know.  

Do you invest at all overseas, or just in the Philippines?

@Jason Lam, thanks for the response! This question is geared toward my friend.  Both him and I are FILAM born and raised in the US.  

Without getting into all the details, his father gifted him this property many years ago as Rockwell was being built.  My buddy lived in the Philippines for about 10 years.  He lived there for awhile and then ended up using it as a rental toward the end.  I just came back and forth due to work.

As CoVID hit, I ended up having to leave before all travel stopped.  My Buddy was going through a transition in life and returned here to the US.

He still uses that home as a rental, but now that he's curious about real estate and has returned back to the US, he is curious about financing. I suggested a HELOC on that homes once it's free and clear. But again I don't know how to advise him as it's a Philippine bank and he's trying to use funds toward property in the US.

What else does he need to know to make it happen?

Asking for a friend!  I have a buddy who was gifted a property under his name in the Philippines.  It is a high end Condo in the Rockwell area of Manila and is owned free and clear.  It is apparently valued at $700,000 USD.

He is a US Citizen, lived in the Philippines for 10 years and has recently moved back to the US.  He wants to deploy the cash to invest in US Real Estate and get started.

Does anyone have experience with this - specifically in the Philippines?  What does he need to do to deploy this cash from an overseas, Philippines bank to use in the US?  

Thanks in advance!

@Bob Norton, thanks! BP has opened my eyes so much that I am currently in the process of rehauling everything with regards to my finances.  I wish to God I had found BP years ago.  Things would be so much more different.  

As a landlord currently managing properties, everyone says that you are running a business. In doing so, do you get all the traditional protections and tax write offs as any other business owner?  

Doing my taxes last year, my former tax professional mentioned that I can take two trips a year to visit my properties out of state and to list their costs as a business tax write off.   

I only own two properties out of state currently, but how many different tax write offs are you allowed as a business owner? Do I need to create an LLC or have a business license in order to be official?

Up until I found BP about 4 months ago, I had no idea what I was doing.  I own properties I had purchased from previous duty stations and loosely managed them from out of state. 

Now that I’ve been enlightened on how to properly run this as a business, I have revamped everything.  I am doing more video calls, I’m revamping my book keeping, I've dedicated a separate room as a home office and basically spending more time properly running this business the way I should’ve years ago.  

As a result of spending a lot more time running this as a business - can I write off certain business expenses outside of two trips a year to visit my properties?  

For example, I purchased a new laptop and have purchased different software to help automate my systems for landlording.  I’ve purchased a desk, better lighting for video business calls and even set up a separate cellphone line dedicated for real estate alone.  Are these business tax write offs?  I’ve heard of people writing off a portion of their mortgage because a bedroom was dedicated as a business office.  

Mine isn’t exactly a glamorous business office as it’s the only space I could set aside in the house for some privacy.  It’s basically the dog’s room with tough boxes stacked on one another with a laptop in the corner of the house.  Does that count?!

Just looking for guidance on what’s allowed and what isn’t when it comes to tax write offs as a business owner.   

@Richard Roman - I KNOW RIGHT?!  Where was BP 20 years ago when I was trying to be an adult?!  I ask questions and I receive the best education ever.  I can’t stop taking all of this in.  The real estate investor community has been nothing but helpful to me and I can’t be any more thankful.  I’ve learned more in 3 months than I have with real world experience in 20 years!

Thanks @Chris Mills! If I can't use it toward my primary residence, that just means I can continue forward with the FHA 203K loan and use the 1031 exchange toward another home! That's actually good news! Appreciate the knowledge truly. Starting out, I feel like I'm just gathering knowledge all the time so I know how to properly use my options. It's overwhelming. People suggest different options and I'm just sitting here writing them all down and then asking the stupid question, "what's an FHA 203K loan? What's a 1031 exchange?" I'll make sure to always pass the knowledge back to the community. Everyone has been nothing but helpful.

@Dave Foster, whoa.  You’ve SOLD me!  I’m super new to BP and have found myself trying to fix a lot.  I’m going to shoot you a note in a bit