All Forum Posts by: Ola Dantis

Houston continues to be a strong market for us, as it is poised to be the 3rd largest city overtaking Chicago in the future. In addition, we have the largest Medical center in the entire world. 

We are not only actively doing deals here but we have a deal under contract now and we are local to the market so we are well aware of the intricate market dynamics compared to out-of-state investors. 

I did this and I realized that it was more of a hassle and it was best for me to focus my energy on buying deals. 

Sure, you may save money by representing but at the end of the day, you are still going to pay for other services such as title companies, surveyors, or whoever so just add agent fees to the mix. 

One of the biggest mistakes I see people make is "in order for me to start REI I should get or not get my real estate license". 

Absolutely no correlation, as most successful investors don't have a RE license. I'd encourage you to focus all your energy on investing.

Buying about 200 units in 2021 alone and hoping to 3x that achievement in 2022, I will try my absolute best to share some tactics that have worked for me. 

How did you get over the analysis hurdle?
🏡 Appreciating that REI is Forgiving. Not surprisingly, unlike the stock market, where if you lose money it kinds of just evaporates, real estate is mostly forgiving and there is some room for error. Now, this is not to say that you cannot lose capital in REI, you certainly can. However, if you educate yourself (say read a lot of books and listen to podcasts for about 1 year) then you should be ready to start small and invest, understanding the fundamentals.

💰Mentally reduce the zeros in your mind. I know this is a weird one but I think one of the main reasons people are in the AP mode is they can't get rid of the thought of losing all this money if they "mess up". When we start calculating in our heads, oh no, if I lose this $10,000 or $20,000 I have saved up for so long I will have nothing left we erect a pretty strong mental wall we can never overcome. But if we can force our minds to see the numbers in lower denominations then we are able to move in faith and take action.

Did you find out more that you wish you would have known? 
💪 Post-Closing Work (Asset Management). Absolutely, the reality is that, in life, we learn every day no matter what craft or path we have chosen to pursue and REI is no different. The biggest one for me is deeply appreciating that buying an asset is just the start of the process. Many newbie investors can forget the post-closing process because they are so focused or perhaps in love with the chase of the 1st deal and, understandably, briefly lose sight of the real work that comes after that. Remind yourself that Analysis Paralysis is just part of the acquisition process and that completing vanishes after you acquire a property, as you will not have the luxury of Analysis Paralysis with the amount of work in front of you.

Did the move work out, or were you able to change your approach to make it successful?
💡Constant Iteration and Self Assessment. Usually, investors need to stay nimble because every deal is different and you must be ready to be flexible and to pivot at a moment's notice. I remember when I started REI and I guess I watched too much HGTV and thought I wanted to flip house. Well, I left multifamily for a bit to try my hand in flipping! Personally, it wasn't my cup of tea so I quickly went back to what I was doing.

At the end of the day, Know Thyself and just do it (many before us have done it so it can't be rocket science) lol

Great questions @Alicia Marks!

"He suggested that since I'm raising the funds from others, have them give it to me now and place in the account."

He said this? Then first and foremost, you might need a new loan broker, for sure! 

More importantly, the big question, for you, is can I actually raise the capital needed from family and friends to close this deal in 60 days or less?

The reason I bring this is up is many people will tell you "sure, sure I will invest with you when you find a property" and then when you do find the deal, some people just poof disappear from the face of the planet 🤔(first-hand experience here lol).  

Now, if you have, say, 10 investors who have verbally committed $100k then I say pull the trigger and put the EMD down.

Remember, there is no loan if the equity isn't lined up! 

Who says there are no deals on the MLS and LoopNet?!!!!

Wow. Great job to you and your wife!

I think the very first thing is knowing your buying power. 

Why? Because investing usually involved putting some kind of money into the game, yes, I get that many strategies require that you put something else like sweat equity, which is great. That said, it is always nice to have some money on hand, and this capital doesn't have to be your own money, it could someone else's money, say a family or friend. 

Now, before you start taking other people's money make sure that you are well versed in the particular strategy you are looking to invest in. 

Keep the momentum up!

Honestly, this is precisely the conundrum we face every day as entrepreneurs or landlords: the balance of being human and business rationality. 

Believe it or not, I have the same exact situation right, just one lady though, however, we have property management between us, as owners, and the tenant. 

That said, the bank requires that the mortgage be paid (on time and at current interest rates), the contractors who work on the property like to be paid at current market rents, and your investors (if you have any) want a return based on today's expectations. 

At the end of the day, I don't think anyone here is saying lose your soul and kick the ladies out to the curb but I think a letter explaining your plan would definitely suffice and you would be pleasantly surprised that they might be able to pay the current rates. 

Obviously, if you wanted to provide affordable housing you would (or should) go down that route, which is also profitable actually! 

It all boils down to emotional intelligence and treating people with dignity, traits I can sense from you. 

I'd say start by making the tenants fill out an estoppel agreement (if you don't have a copy, Google it). 

- Start your relationship with the tenants on a professional basis and kept it that way.
- Make sure that all service requests go through an online portal (tenantcloud.com is a free website/app), never via a call or text. 
- Never accept cash. 

These are a few pointers. 

At the end of the day, I like the philosophy of Fair, but Firm. 

Good luck and congrats on the acquisition! 🎉

Based on the $5000 as a downpayment, this would get a duplex or triplex for $142,857 (3.5% FHA Loan) excluding any closing costs or rehab costs.

So, I'd suggest you increase that number to $15k or $20k as you already know that the Houston market is hot for multifamily small or large. 

Another solution is to look for a duplex a couple of hours away from Houston if you are starting with a little bit of cash. 

 Isn't that fascinating to see if the Median Home Value keeps going but we had a dip in the Household Median Income?

This can't be sustainable in the long long term, say 100 years from now. 

By then again, I guess most people will say who cares what happens in 100 years from now...