All Forum Posts by: Chace Fraser

Hi @Brian Bradley I'm interested also. Can you please send me the info as well?

@Elliot Terekhin congrats on the purchase! House hacking is an awesome strategy to get into real estate investing. Were you able to bring down your housing costs at all?

Hi @John Bartlett and welcome! I second at what @Jay Hinrichs says about RareBird. We also work with a lot of investors and have a property management company here in the Portland area. If you'd ever like to meet up and chat shoot me a DM!

My form of fishing is what I call BBB... bobber, beer, and buddies! If any golfers out there need help... I may just be your guy (Former PGA golf instructor)!

Hi @Brandon Cormier ! Everything @Richard Sherman said is great. In regards to investing with student loans, yes, it's absolutely possible. Some people will tell you it’s irresponsible and to pay off all of your loans first and some will say they get a higher return on their investments than the interest rates they pay on their loans so the money is better spent investing in real estate. Another option, very “Rich Dad Poor Dad” style, is to buy an asset to pay off the liability. The question becomes how comfortable are you with debt? What is important is that you have all of your finances in order and are prepared (mentally and financially) to invest if that’s what you decide to do.

@Tyler Erickson welcome and keep it rockin'! What investment strategy do you plan on using moving forward?

Hi @Aaron Diehl and welcome to BP!

If you are using a low down payment, it's not really realistic to expect to be cash flow positive. When an investor is looking at being cash flow positive, they are typically putting down 25 percent or more. If you are in a high demand metro area, it's simply not realistic to expect to be cash flow positive if you are putting down 0-10%.

Now if that is all the capital you have, that is what it is....is it better to keep renting than to buy? Typically it is better to buy. Better to build your own equity through the debt pay down, enjoy the tax benefits of ownership, and garner the equity of an appreciating asset. You just can't expect to cash flow on an initial purchase with a low down payment. Now with time and rent growth, what could be a negative cash flow property might very well become a cash flow king, but that takes patience.

Another way to increase cash flow would be renting out rooms in the unit you live in, either Airbnb or longer term.

Hi @Cory Zach , check out the events page on the site too... it's a great way to find local meetups and meet people face to face.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/521-events-and-happenings 

Hi @Adam Best and welcome! As many have said on this thread there are a lot of BP members in and around Portland. "Mobile University" is one of my favorites. I also found it very useful to go and be around people who were already doing what I wanted to do. When I first started I was a fly on the wall; absorbing everything I could. Later on I would talk with people, and when I got to the point where I knew the next level of education was experience, I jumped in! And oh boy that's when the real learning began!

A great place to find local meetups is either meetup.com and searching "real estate" or, better yet, here under the "network" tab and selecting "events." Here's the link too.

Best of luck and maybe we'll run into one another!

Hi @Kyle Hern ! Where are you looking to house hack? I'm in Portland and am helping someone close on a duplex they're planning on house hacking right now. I'd be happy to meet up if you're in the area and/or help you find an agent where you are.

Let me know!

Hi @Brad Phillips , no worries! It'd be great to meet up and "talk shop." I'll PM you and we can get something set up!