All Forum Posts by: Nicholas L.

@Marcus Auerbach

i peruse condo listings in FL periodically and what i see more and more is a lot of 'low' prices with sky high monthly HOA fees. i really don't know how that plays out. @Jay Hinrichs what do you think - will those old buildings be able to recover with new owners that can better afford the HOA fees?

@Reyna Ayala

hire a PM and let them worry about it

@Brad Tull

if you're buying entirely with borrowed money it will be extremely difficult to be profitable even in the long term. especially if you're saying you'll use a HELOC - HELOC money is expensive money.  during the draw period (typically) you won't even be paying down principal unless you make extra payments.

so unless you have cash i would wait.  but let me know if i'm missing something

@Mark Towey

a couple things - from the seller's perspective, it means the seller doesn't have to wait the full 30 years to get the proceeds, and from the buyer's perspective, hopefully in that 5 years appreciation and maybe some updates have increased the value such that when you refinance you don't have to bring any additional cash.  

if you find a seller that wants to wait longer / spread payments out differently that's fine too.

@Kisaki Nicole Kaopua

rather than looking for a mentor or partner, i would start by building a network.  if you're not doing so already, i'd go to meetups and just work on making friends and business contacts.  note: some meetups will be pitch-oriented where there will be networking but also a sales pitch.  my advice: go to those, meet everyone you can, politely listen to the pitch, and don't buy anything.  i did this early in my career and it was helpful.

another option would be to build your own working group / beginner mastermind of people in your same position.  that way there's a level playing field, no one is trying to take advantage of anyone, and you can all learn from each other.  i bet there are lots of other investors in Virginia in your same position - you just need to find 3-5 of them to do this.

hope this helps - happy to help further

i used to live in Northern Virginia and still have a rental property there 

@Dan Porat

check out anything by Tarl Yarber.  he does some incredibly detailed walkthroughs on BRRRRs and flips and he covers the types of costs that are often overlooked.  you can find him on YouTube and he was on the BP podcast a few times.

@Luke Fruge

Hello - just curious - why not invest where you are located?

@Tom Grieshammer

the best bang for your buck, if your lifestyle permits it, is to house hack.  at 26 - you could build a portfolio just by house hacking every 1-2 years for the next 5-10 years.

@Michael P.

should not the capital of the US be changed to Columbus

@Shaylynn O'Leary

I think I may have posted this in response to you in another thread a while back, but here goes again.

If you pick a random "low cost" market like the ones you named, don't know anyone there, don't set up a network, buy random properties, and turn them over to people you've never met to manage, you will most likely lose money.  I'm not saying that's your plan, but we just see so many examples of this happening in the forums.  Random example from this week:

Sell at a loss or rent at a loss

On the other hand, if you are willing to put some time in by traveling to the market, spending time getting a network set up, screening dozens or even hundreds of properties, and taking the time to get set up right, you increase your chance of success.  I just never see anyone willing to do that.  They get entranced by the supposedly low prices and buy just to buy.

Also, I know this wasn't your question, but it seems like you've ruled out Oregon.  Too expensive?  The upside of the higher priced markets is a higher barrier of entry which keeps a lot of people out. If you want to do MTR, that gives you a shot at increasing your rents and supporting ownership of a higher priced property.  

Conversely, anyone can buy a random house in the midwest, underestimate capex, and... lose money.  Higher rates and tremendous demand for inventory by both owner occupants and investors have resulted in an inventory shortage all over the US - in Oregon and in Ohio.

Hope this gives you some things to think about.  Not trying to be discouraging, just realistic.  Happy to dialogue more.  I invest primarily in Pittsburgh and if you asked me I'd probably try to talk you OUT of investing here unless you're willing to follow the steps I outlined about getting situated.  =)