All Forum Posts by: Raphael Collazo

Hey everyone!

Today is the day! We'll be hosting our meeting at "The Manhattan Project" on Frankfort Ave from 6:30 - 8:30 pm. If you haven't been there before, I've provided the address below:

2101 Frankfort Ave, Louisville, KY 40206

Looking forward to seeing you all there!

All the best,

I saw that proposal. It’s going to be interesting to see how it plays out over the next few months.

Really cool deal man! I plan on buying more multi-family units in the future. I'll use this post as motivation to keep grinding away as I look for great multi-unit deals here in Louisville!

Hey Mohamed!

Welcome to the BP community. I'm a big fan of multi-family investing and I actually bought my first investment property (4-plex) last November. My girlfriend and I renovated the property and currently live in one of the units while renting out the others to tenants. This strategy, "house-hacking", is talked about in detail on the forums and in many of the BiggerPockets books. Are you looking to do something similar with your investment or are you purely buying the property for investment purposes? One of the benefits of being an owner-occupant is that you may qualify for better mortgage terms with your lender. If the property is 4 units or less, you may qualify for an FHA loan that only requires a 3.5% down payment at closing. Along with that, you may also be able to utilize a 203k loan which allows you to finance the renovations of the property, roll those costs into your home loan and amortize them over 30 years. This can be a great way for a new investor to get into an investment property without a large up-front investment (20-25% down payment + potential renovation costs).

As far as your potential investment property, I would be careful about buying any property near a flood zone. Currently, the federal government is subsidizing the cost of flood insurance but the government has made it clear that they plan to phase out the subsidies over time. This could significantly increase flood insurance prices across the US and if not properly accounted for in your calculations, could cause a positively cash-flowing property to go in the red. 

Along with that, properties that have more than 4 units are considered "commercial" properties by lenders. This means that you won't be able to qualify for conventional loans to fund the investment. Instead, you'll have to apply for a commercial loan which has different terms and conditions than conventional loans. Prior to doing your calculations, I would talk to a mortgage broker to determine what your monthly out of pocket cost would be for a commercial loan with the mortgage you're looking to take on. I'm in no way saying that this is not a great deal, it's just important to consider all the variables when making such a big investment decision. Hope this information helped and I'm excited to see you around the forums!

All the best,

Hey @Lucas Lawson!

Welcome to the wonderful world of real estate investing. I would have to agree with Jason's point that you really need to figure out what your goals are prior to deciding on your investment strategy. Do you want to work in the real estate business full-time or do you want to pursue another profession while maintaining a porfolio of rentals? Do you love working with your hands and managing contractors or would you prefer managing tenants and optimizing a property's rental income over time?  Along with that, it's also important to identify why you want to get into real estate investment in the first place. What's the one thing; that burning desire you can reference when the going gets tough and you feel like hanging up the gloves? There will be many difficult moments ahead in whatever career path you decide to pursue so it's important to get clear on your vision so you can battle through the obstacles you'll invitably face. Let this desire dictate the path you take and you'll be in a much better postion to maximize the value you gain from the experience. Hope this helps and good luck on your new journey!

All the best, 

Hey @Joseph Nance!

I have a contractor that does some good work. I’ll PM you his contact info.

Hey Matt,

Yah I use Kentucky Farm Bureau. They offer competitive rates and have been solid so far.

Hey everyone,

We organized a real estate investor meetup a few weeks ago and it was a HUGE success! We're planning on hosting another one the last Wednesday of this month (4/24/2019) at the Manhattan Project on Frankfort Ave. If you're in the Louisville area and are interested in meeting other like-minded real estate investors, I highly encourage you to stop by! I've posted the event in the "Real Estate Events and Happenings" section of the site. 

All the best, 

Hey everyone!

The Louisville Real Estate Investor Meet Up group is for aspiring, beginning and full-time real estate investors interested in networking with other like-minded individuals. During our monthly meetings, we share ideas, learn from one another and host speakers who talk about subjects related to real estate investment.

In this meeting, Raphael Collazo will share his insights on effective goal setting and how you can use these techniques to better reach your real estate investment goals. The event starts at 6:30 pm and Raphael will begin his talk around 7:30 pm. Come join us for a night of networking, learning and enjoyment as we utilize the great space provided to us by The Manhattan Project!

Event Date: April 24, 2019

Location Name: The Manhattan Project

Location Address: 2101 Frankfort Ave.

Event Link: Louisville Real Estate Networking Meet Up

Let me know if you have any questions and I look forward to seeing you all there!

All the best,

Welcome @Jacob Huelsman !

That's funny that you mention that. I just recently moved into my 4-plex in Old Louisville with my girlfriend and we've been enjoying it so far. House-hacking is a great option and has afforded us the opportunity to cover a significant portion of our monthly housing expenses with the rent from the other units. Looking forward to your contributions to the forum and keep us posted on your progress with the 4-plex in New Albany!

All the best,