All Forum Posts by: Ruth Lyons

Hi Bryce,

You could reach out to Stephen Kehoe. He's on BP and his company is LockBox Property Management. 

Best of luck, Ruth

@Brian Ellis Congrats!!!  My advice is to be a sponge and learn as much as you can as quickly as you can. Build a network of honest, hardworking people like yourself and avoid the naysayers. Crank it hard the first few years to get cash-flow coming in as soon as you can and don't be afraid to take carefully calculated risks with a pre-determined Plan B and exit strategy. Best of luck to you. Stay in touch with us here on BP -- would love to hear about your challenges and successes.

Love reading everyone's responses; thanks all for sharing. As Joshua Bullis says it depends on your investing goals and the specific opportunities available in your local market. And markets are constantly changing so sometimes flipping makes sense and sometimes you can't find a deal to flip where the numbers will work. It also depends on your strengths, connections, capabilities and access to capital. I started with rentals and when my portfolio was full, moved to flipping. 

I agree. Online learning through CE Shop is what I did. 

For more information from a lead inspector in Baltimore, you can google “Sachs Realty lead paint YouTube”. You’ll find a video interview with Neil Roseman.

@Erik Donough I concur with the suggestion to dump it into your HELOC so you have the most "cash" possible for your next purchase instead of the mortgage which becomes trapped equity. That has worked well for me.

I think it depends on how much REI you intend to do, your investment strategy, your risk tolerance and other factors.

There is at least one downside I ran into. I purchased and rehabbed a property using an LLC I set up for that property. Then that LLC had to be dissolved when I applied for a mortgage. The lender wouldn't lend money to my LLC -- granted I probably could have found a lender who would but by the time they realized the title was not in my name but in an LLC, I was halfway through the loan application process (using my personal assets and income to qualify for the loan) and I really didn't want to start over.

For asset protection, I got a $3 million personal umbrella liability insurance policy. I haven't tested this out (thankfully) but I understand that the insurance company will send their lawyers to protect the first $3 million they'd be out if a frivolous lawsuit was filed against me. 

Welcome Logan! I hope you and your wife find that youlove REI as much as I do. I'm in Maryland and would love to connect. I'm in the middle of a flip right now in Owings Mills. Maybe you want to drop by and see it first-hand.

Hi Brad, First, congrats on getting yourself in a position to get started! I can't recommend any specific courses other than the advice you've already heard -- to dive in and read forum Q&As and listen to podcasts here. The best way to learn is to jump in and get started. Do your research to find a good deal and research what you need to know to make good decisions as you move forward with that deal. When my son was young, he was in 4-H and their motto was "learn by doing". You won't know what you don't know until you're moving forward and need to figure it out. 

Agree with Russell that there are no "hidden" charges. You need to pay the usual closing costs, transfer taxes, title insurance, etc. 

Hard to find profitable deals? Yes, but not impossible at least in Baltimore county. I just closed (8/21) on a 3 level end unit townhome (3 bed, 4 bath) in Owings Mills. All in, including closing costs and title insurance, was $192K. Rehab is $22K. ARV is $265-$273K. I'm a realtor and don't pay myself a commission so this flip will be very profitable.
Granted, I lost a few nights sleep worrying about it because I put a non-refundable EMD without seeing it in person on 4/3 in the middle of the COVID uncertainty and media hype. Wholesaler's deal with seller was that she had as much time as she wanted to move and could leave anything behind. That's why we didn't close until August. Took 2 days (and a 3 ton dumpster!) to clean it out, but I'll have it on the market mid-late September.