All Forum Posts by: Ray Johnson

@Victoria Sood I use Cozy, Realtor.com, Craigslist. In regards to the standards for the applicant pool: 1) Background check 2) Credit Score of 700 or higher (Good credit) 3) Income must be 33% of rent or DTI ratio on the credit report Whether I've received a tenant via Craigslist or Realtor.com the outcome is always the same, good quality pool of applicants

@Dylan Snyder I think @Sam Shueh made a great point, I'd also like to add that you should find out what the current zoning is and the possibility to change zoning since it's such a large piece of land you may have may be able to maximize the land purchase

@Bill Zepeda I have new construction condos in my portfolio. In the Washington DC area you have to have a strategy in order to cash flow, I buy them as owner occupied and stay in them for 1 year (the only downside) to get the cheaper rate is moving more often, I only buy into small buildings/projects so the HOA dues are low. There are several other strategies involved like don't use the builder upgrades offered, you'll be able to add finishes for much less, offer lower prices for lower floor units since most primary residence buyers all want the higher floors with the best view, the builders have a hard time selling lower floors in most projects so those are the easy targets at the end of Year/Quarter closings.

@Delmas Edwards this isn't a regular cash out refi, this is a Subprime solicitation that will be filled fees, and unexpected cost. The clear signs are accepting credit scores as low as 580, and rates between 7-13% which are far higher than current market rates. This is targeted for someone who's uniformed or in a tight situation and this is their only resort to access cash, Do your research, you'll find better options are available

@Adam Sechrist It will mostly depend on the bank holding the Asset and the Asset Manager. I've purchased several REO assets and the timeline and requirements have varied on each deal. My most recent REO which I got from a Bank of America portfolio closed very quickly. They wanted Highest and Best offers only by the given deadline date. Proof of funds at offering price, EMD was left to the submitter, I gave an EMD of 25% to show I was serious about this deal. We closed in 37 days from offer date

@Scott Walsh I don't see the cost for your rehabbing of the units to get them in the position to be able to increase the rents. If your looking at $45 A month profit per door, after you rehab each unit you won't see a profit for many many years.

@Dennis Williams I think you will need to add more information to your post to get an informed response for a deal at this level. First off if you're looking to build an entire community, you're going to need a syndication to do this deal, no one investor, will or should be putting up the entire $60 million. 1) Do you own the land for this residential community? 2) Has the land been zoned for this special use? 3) Are there any tax credits already received or will be received for this special use project 4) Is the infrastructure for the special use utilities already in place? 5) I'm assuming that since you have the $60 million number, you already have the answers to all of these since these are just a few of the 100's of questions I would have before I can provide an informed response. Let us know a little more Thanks

@Nancy Roth what are the conditions of the properties? Age, last rehabbed, type of appliances, flooring, etc? Since cost and rents are similar these may be some factors to consider as they will come into play at some point in the property equation

@Jason Woodson I think it all depends on what you'll be gaining in exchange for a lower return. I only have properties in high density, middle class neighborhoods (A - B ) areas. Depending on the property I will get around $400 +/- per month on the cash flow side, what I give up in exchange for the higher Cash flow, is constant Tier 1 renters, and almost zero vacancy. Another benefit of being in a high density area is I'm able to have my renter qualifications set at Good credit only and good DTI ratios without thinning the candidate pool too much. The longest I've gone vacant on any property is 1 month, and I've never had a late payment from a tenant. As a passive investor I intentionally chose this path since it works best for me. What will you be getting in return for the smaller cash flow?

@Mary Joe The Washington DC area, in the Northwest areas for sure will get you those types of returns. I have a few condos in DC and they cashflow well, Just make sure to stay with the low-rise condo's and not the high-rise buildings, those are the ones that have insane HOA dues. @Russell Brazil is a great resource in the DC area and knows which neighborhoods will get you your moneys worth versus the ones that are charging high prices just because its Northwest DC.