All Forum Posts by: Nicolaas W.

Thats awesome that you got experience managing your parents properties. I also like the idea of rehab, if I do not feel completely clueless.

Any tips on purchasing a duplex? I am planning to do the same with my first investment, and living in one side. I will be going to school and using my VA home loan + GI bill which gives me housing money, to pay my mortgage.

hey guys,

I have decided to focus on making my first investment property be a duplex in the Austin area. I plan to live in one side and rent the other. So I figured the best thing to learn about these subjects and my target area was to set up keyword searches, but man, I did not expect so many updates continually all day every day. I have to say it is kind of de-motivating (can I use that word) when I want to learn more about real estate and I am trying to do the right thing by focusing on a market that I am interested in, but seeing so many things popping up sometimes I can get a little lost.

what things do you do to set up and tailor your BP account to what you are trying to learn on?

I am new, I have not made an investments yet, and I am trying to become well educated, yet I feel a little overwhelmed, and when that happens, I tend to tune out.

Also, how do you learn from someone when you feel like you have nothing to offer them? I would like to learn about real estate and I love win-win deals, but when you know nothing about something, how do not sound like a needy selfish person? I would like to contribute to BP as best I can, but not sure how.

another thing @Dawn Anastasi,

is that because I was around so many different people in the military, you can learn to recognize qualities in someone, so what I could even do ( I have not researched the legality of this, I am just brainstorming) is start them out on 1 month and explain that it is to make sure that they are suitable for the chemistry of the apartment, if so and everything goes well, we continue on. I want to base all my calculations off of just the 3/2 and act as if I am not renting out the bedroom, that way I do not have to feel forced to rent it out. However if I choose to, I can, and can be thorough in it.

@Suzie B.

thanks for the input, by comps to you comparisons? Im still learning the abbreviations everyone uses, I have seen duplex's going anywhere from 100k and up. depends on the area. Houses I believe are going 60k and up. but since I will be living in it and the location will be more critical it will probably be 80k and up. I have learned to tolerate/live with all different kinds of people, and as long as I do not hear them snoring I can adapt. In the military, even if the guy you shared a room with was fine, the guy next door could be a total mess and you would have to learn a civilized way of dealing with it. However, filling that second bedroom would not be my main concern, my concern would be the other unit. Also as stated above, Since I will be having my expenses covered up to $1400 a month, that will allow me more time to be more subjective with my room mate choice.
I should start looking at comparative prices though, I am glad you brought that to light.

@Dawn Anastasi

I totally understand, and this person would definitely be screened. But then again, I am coming from the military, and you do not pick your room mate, you are assigned one, and it is a WHOLE lot of effort to get them replaced. Not to mention we share what is a comparison to a studio apartment together, so having my own room and sharing a main living area really is not a concern to me, seeing as how I have been sharing a room with someone for quite some time, sometimes even two people. The biggest disagreements I see coming up are cleaning schedule, and him eating my food :)

not to troll this, but look up the VA requirements for the loan, I believe for any multi-family property, it has to be one single lot, and no detached units

hello fellow bp'ers

I am seeking advice on what steps I need to take next.

I have read the bigger pockets beginners guide, and from the two other books I have read I know I want to either invest in a SFR or a duplex as my first property, with intentions to be an owner occupier because I will be going to school while living there. Through being a veteran I can use the GI Bill or equivalent for housing expenses up to $1400 a month. My goal is to pay the mortgage and expenses with that money, that way, any income from the tenants is extra, I see this as a great way to get a solid 2-3 years of payments in, as well as building up a cushion for problems, and future investments, and If I am in between tenants I am not "loosing money" so much as lacking extra income.

I will be aiming for the Austin area or between Round Rock and Austin. I understand that is general but I am moving there in a month, I will be able to narrow that selection upon arrival. I am a veteran so I am lucky enough to be able to get a VA home loan, which is what I plan to finance the property with, seeing as how I can get a no money down loan.

what I am thinking I need to do next is,

get pre approved for a loan? doing this will tell me how much I am eligible for without any money down.

research the areas better, such as school district, travel time to businesses, travel time to UT at Austin (for graduate students) and Austin community college.

if I go with an SFR I think I will need to aim near UT or central Austin because my target market will be young professionals or graduate students to rent out rooms since I will be living in.

however if it is a duplex I can aim for both locations near businesses and in a school district, because I do not wish to invest in a duplex unless atleast one side is a 3/2 because it will be more attractive for a family. if the other side is a 2/1 I can rent out the other room that I will not be living in. I see this as a better source of income than the SFR live in, however I do not want to close out the SFR idea. actually now that I write this, maybe I should just focus on the duplex's and then when I build up more investment money for a down payment I can purchase a SFR and not live in at all, therefore more ROI(?) because I could rent to a whole family.

either way. advice / someone to steer me in the right direction would be great. I hope that you can see that I do have my eyes set in a direction I just need my blinders adjusted to help me hone in on goals, I like simply having a list of things to start knocking out, I find it more effective.

thanks guys, and gals!

welcome Riley, how's Austin? I'm moving there end of september separating from the military. I am looking to purchase my first property with my VA loan, and use my GI BILL housing benefits to help me pay the mortgage. Looking into 3/2 SFR and duplex's.

Congrats on being smart with your money and and investing.

this is all awesome info!

A lot of this advice can be applied to other aspects of life as well. And on the most recent BP PODCAST the guy from austin mentioned finding something and sticking with it. Once you are a Master. Then move to something else. I too must figure out what I want to master

I hear that