All Forum Posts by: Tanya S.

Welcome to BP @Dave Madden If you are working at the Pentagon, I would look at Arlington, as there are some wonderful walkable neighborhoods with lots of amenities that will put you within a stone's throw of your office. Easiest commute ever! SF homes in your price range in Arlington will generally be older, pre-WWII built homes (think lots of brick), townhouses will be newer. Demand is high and inventory low, so good properties priced well move quickly. Terrific rental market - I've owned three rentals in Arlington (2 SFH and a condo) and tenants are very high quality, professional types. Rentals, as long as they are priced correctly, don't sit long. Due to the tenant quality, they've been easy to manage myself, even from overseas. Alexandria is also worth a look, as a lot of areas link up with express buses that go directly to the Pentagon. In any case, you're in a great situation with tons of good options.

@Mark Bourscheid  Like you I have a full-time job  (not real estate related) and just wanted my license to do real estate deals on my own on the side. I did the coursework to get my RE license at Keller Williams and liked the team atmosphere there and focus on developing agents, but commission splits were more favorable to part-time investors like myself at brokerages like Fairfax Realty and Samson. (I'm currently with Fairfax). 

Despite the great commission splits at these brokerages, there are still lots of fees in this business just to get and keep your license current, and as James mentioned, you may find it's not worth the time it takes, when that time can be better used sourcing deals.  Happy to chat more offline about my experiences if you have more questions. good luck!

Hi @Greg Letourneau and welcome to BP. I have an attorney in Arlington I used for a seller finance deal and liked him very much. He is old school in the best way - very reasonable fees, spends time patiently explaining things over the phone and looks out for you. He also has his own title company and is a registered title agent, so can help in that way too. It appears I can't post phone numbers or emails Here (outside the Marketplace forum), so send me a contact request and I'll send you his contact info.

David! Nice to see you here. How is Panama? Long time no see since the summit of the Americas. Fun times. We've been in Rome since the beginning of June - hope you and the family are well.

Hit me up here or on email - I've purchased 7 properties in the last few years, 4 in the DC area and 3 out of state. Just sold one in Arlington and bought another (also in Arlington) using seller finance earlier in May. I imagine schools are also going to be a factor for you...

In any case, happy to help.

hey @Kristina Inglis did you give Jim a call? I can resend contact info if you need it.

Hi @Kristina Inglis

@Kristina Inglis@Upen Patel is a local mortgage lender and has been a great resource for me and others on BP. He will definitely have some ideas for you if you go the conventional route. 

Your other options are hard money lenders - I do buy and hold, so don't have any recommendations, but there are plenty of people who rehab here on BP who should be able to point you in the right direction. @Jason Cohen may have some ideas. Your local REIA is also a good place to start - ask around and you will get some names.

Hi @Reece O. Sorry for taking awhile to respond. To answer your questions - the house was advertised on the MLS as a regular sale, so the seller was already willing to pay the listing agent's commission and a buyer's agent commission. The listing agent still got her three percent of the purchase price (I assume out of my down payment), and I passed on my side of the commission to make the numbers work better for both the seller and for me. I preferred a lower purchase price and not having to pay any income tax on a commission instead of receiving the buyer's agent commission on a full list price offer. As for websites, the property was widely advertised on public websites including Redfin, Zillow, Realtor.com, etc. Very easy to find. Good luck with seller financing. It worked out very well for me - hope it does for you too!

I work for Uncle Sam full time and invest on the side. Recently got my license to buy and sell my own properties. Might eventually work the real estate license angle a bit more, but I've got my hands full at the moment with the government gig, managing my own rentals, and finding more properties to purchase. How about you?

Welcome to BP @Tim Kane There isn't much available on the market at the moment. You might want to contact commercial brokers or write directly to the owners of properties you are interested in. The one thing currently on the MLS that might fit what you are looking for is this property: https://www.redfin.com/VA/Arlington/3519-19th-St-S...

I've been inside, and it's possible you might be able to get 4 units out of the existing structure. Definite potential for a triplex, but would need walls and some reconfiguring to make it work. Listing agent told me the owners tried to sell last year too but didn't get any offers, so there might be some wiggle room on price. Good luck!

Thank you @Arjan Amiri Believe it or not, I actually found this house on the MLS on a public site that anyone can see. In the listing remarks for the public, the listing agent had written "seller finance available." Since the house was exactly the type of house I had been looking for my growing family, I attended the one and only public open house the agent held when it hit the market, and then called her immediately afterward, since the house fit all my criteria and then some.

At the time, I was in the process of waiting for my VA real estate license to get processed so disclosed that I was an agent. Negotiations took about 5 days. When we finally came to an agreement, listing agent wrote up the contract with me as an unrepresented buyer since my license was still pending.

In the end, I think the seller financing was a strong selling point - I did the math and showed the seller how much more he would make in interest if he financed the deal over 5 years (around $80k!!) Plus I also explained the tax benefits of spreading out the sale, as well as the fact that he would continue to get a fixed monthly payment without all the headaches of being a landlord or paying increasing property taxes. That made my offer a lot more interesting than others' using conventional financing. 

In the end, I was able to negotiate a significant chunk of the buyer's agent commission off list price, so he ended up with a better net price and I also ended up getting a $10k discount off the list price, which was already extremely competitive. And all this in a hot hot hot market! Knowledge is power. If you know your numbers and focus on why your deal is better for the seller AND the agent, you can get it done. 

I also say agent, because I followed up with the listing agent daily so she knew I was a serious buyer who could close. I also emphasized that I could close the sale faster than others with conventional financing. After all, since we are not using a bank, we don't need to wait for underwriting to give the ok after 30 days or wondering whether or not the property will appraise. If all goes well, we should go to settlement in less than 2 weeks. 

As for choosing the attorney, since I did not find any fellow investors who had any recommendations, I just did a web search, specifically looked for a local attorney specializing in real estate transactions and called around. I think you can get a good sense of people by talking to them, and the attorney I chose was very helpful in that initial phone call - giving me solid advice for free on how I should proceed. He did not try to sell me on why he should do the transaction. So far, he has been great.