All Forum Posts by: Mike V.

Plumbing and pricing are my two biggest concerns. A camera inspection can reveal any waste pipe issues.
Pricing - in my area, slab homes are not very common and seem to be worth about 20-25% less than a comparable home with a basement. Make sure it is not in a flood plain. Most slab homes I have looked at are in a flood plain or very close to it (very high water table).

Great discussion. For me the potential for appreciation is one of several motivators that keeps me excited about investing, but I won't buy a property unless it will cash flow using the 50% rule. I cannot endure month by month agony (losing money) just with the hope of appreciation - I'm too cheap for that. I do find myself expecting more cash flow on properties in low income areas because I believe those areas are most at risk when it comes to appreciation.

$10/meeting or $75/year. I just joined in March but already well worth the money.

I do 30 year since it lowers my monthly debt payment which allows me to borrow more in the future. My bank that I had been using is now allowing even less of my collected rent as income so keeping my monthly debt low becomes even more important.

I have used my HELOC on my personal residence for down payment and rehab cost on several investment properties and then refinanced them after a year (seasoning requirement). Yes there is risk there but if you buy at a big enough discount that risk is minimized. When you do refinance be prepared to pay more in points and/or rates since the banks will penalize you for a cash out refinance. For me this is still the cheaper way of doing it.
Also, I have looked high and low for anyone that will do a HELOC on investment property and so far no luck.

I am bidding on my 3rd HUD home and this time when I was rejected they followed up not with a counter offer but with a statement of what they would take if I wanted to bid again. Is this a new development or have they been doing this all along and I never noticed?

Here is my limited experience, I have two SFR one for $850 and one for $1450 that I require 1st, last, security, and pet deposit up front. That definitely knocks a number of prospects out but I have found that those that have that much cash up front tend to be a little more financially secure. So far it hasn't hurt me on vacancies (I have only had 3 days of vacancy in the last couple of years) but I keep both homes in perfect condition, priced competitively and both have been recently rehabbed. When the market picks back up I'm guessing this will be harder and harder to do since those with that much cash will probably be buying not renting but for now it is working for me.

I just did a conventional 75% LTV with a local bank for a loan amount of 40K. They charged me an extra 1/2 point since the value was under 50K. So yes you can definately do smaller loans but expect to pay a little more for it.

I would definitely take out a mortgage just from a liability standpoint. The LLC is good for shielding your personal assets from lawsuits but it sounds like the LLC is richer than you so I would reverse that. Keep that rental property as poor as possible to take away any incentive to sue.

I have been totally slacking on the whole networking aspect of investing. Anyone have good recommendations for REI clubs.
Thanks.