All Forum Posts by: Samantha Goetz

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $129,000
Cash invested: $10,000

My husband and I purchased this house as our primary residence in 2017. We purchased it using my VA benefits, which allowed us to purchase it with no money down. We lived there until 2021 and then moved. Our property manager found a long-term renter who moved in shortly after we moved out. It's currently rented for $1200 a month.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

We purchased this house as our primary residence. At the time we purchased it, we weren't sure how long we'd live there. We purchased it knowing we would probably rent it out one day. My husband was still living and working in Montana when we purchased this property. He wanted a house within walking distance of a movie theater, a cross-fit gym and a grocery store. This house achieved all of those requirements so we purchased it.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

We found the deal through a realtor. We didn't do much negotiation, other than asking the seller to pay for closing costs.

How did you finance this deal?

30 yr mortgage using my VA benefits

How did you add value to the deal?

We took care of the property while living there and hired a contractor to make some repairs and updates after we moved out.

What was the outcome?

We found a great renter and we are using the cashflow from this property to pay off another property we own.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I struggled to find a good contractor. For this property, I relied on the rental property management company to make a recommendation. They recommended their contractor and it worked out very well. To put it in perspective...I own two neighboring houses that have the exact same floor plan and are the same size. On house #1, I used retail contractors and my bill was a little over $10k. On house #2, I used the contractor from the property management company who made more repairs/updates for $5k.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I worked with Tri Property Pros for property management (https://tripropertypros.com)

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment.

Purchase price: $129,000
Cash invested: $10,000

My husband and I purchased this house as our primary residence in 2017. We purchased it using my VA benefits, which allowed us to purchase it with no money down. We paid off the mortgage in 2020. We lived there until 2021 when we purchased a different house to become our primary residence. Once we moved out, we hired a contractor through our rental property manager who took care of some minor repairs, repainted the inside of the house and installed new flooring in the kitchen and bathrooms. We spent about $5k on the repairs. The property manager found a long-term renter who moved in shortly after we moved out. It's currently rented for $1200 a month. We pay the property manager a 9% fee each month. We are using the extra cash flow to pay off one of our other properties.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

We purchased this house as our primary residence. At the time we purchased it, we weren't sure how long we'd live there. We purchased it knowing we would probably rent it out one day. My husband was still living and working in Montana when we purchased this property. He wanted a house within walking distance of a movie theater, a cross-fit gym and a grocery store. This house achieved all of those requirements so we purchased it.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

We found the deal through a realtor. We didn't do much negotiation, other than asking the seller to pay for closing costs.

How did you finance this deal?

30 yr mortgage using my VA benefits

How did you add value to the deal?

We took care of the property while living there and hired a contractor to make some repairs and updates after we moved out.

What was the outcome?

We found a great renter and we are using the cashflow from this property to pay off another property we own.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I struggled to find a good contractor. For this property, I relied on the rental property management company to make a recommendation. They recommended their contractor and it worked out very well. To put it in perspective...I own two neighboring houses that have the exact same floor plan and are the same size. On house #1, I used retail contractors and my bill was a little over $10k. On house #2, I used the contractor from the property management company who made more repairs/updates for $5k.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

I worked with Tri Property Pros for property management (https://tripropertypros.com)

I'm buying properties in High Point, NC. 

@Bob Anthes You're welcome :-) 

@Mark Linder If you look at the map here https://www.highpointnc.gov/21..., most areas that are not in the Opportunity zone are nicer areas. I also recommend tracking rental prices in High Point on a map. The higher rents are in the nicer areas. Here is an example from last year. I tracked rentals and loaded them into a google map (free) to show trends. In this photo, the darker purple markers are higher rents (advertised). The lighter purple markers are cheaper rents (advertised). This will give you an idea of where the more desirable locations are. Also, use google street view to help you get a feel for the neighborhood. 

Hi @Mark Linder. I currently live in High Point and I would agree. The South Side is a D neighborhood. It's a high crime area. However, North High Point is an A/B neighborhood, which is where I live. The worst neighborhoods in High Point are considered an Opportunity Zone. I believe the NC government and the City of High Point are offering incentives to investors who are willing to invest in Opportunity Zones in High Point. Here is the NC State link: https://public.nccommerce.com/.... And here is the High Point link: https://www.highpointnc.gov/21.... If you look at the Opportunity Zone map of High Point, it will show you the neighborhoods in the worst conditions. 

Thanks, @Carlos Paz! 

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in High Point.

Purchase price: $130,000

3/2 in High Point NC. Built in 2005. HOA community. No majors repairs needed. House was last updated in 2005.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

I liked the area (Northern High Point, NC) and I was ready to purchase another rental property.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I was walking by one day and the owner started talking to me. He told me he lost his job due to COVID, his wife passed away, and he was moving to Pennsylvania which is where his family lives. He mentioned he was going to sell it so I offered to purchase it. He determined the price, which I knew was 20k-30k undervalue. I did not negotiate with him.

How did you finance this deal?

We put 30% of the purchase price down on a 7/1 ARM.

How did you add value to the deal?

We cleaned it and made some very minor repairs.

What was the outcome?

We plan on renting it out for $1250/month.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

If I could do it over, I would have used a hard money lendor to purchase the home and then refinanced it with a local bank once it was rented. I believe this would have allowed me to purchase the property with less money down.

@Bob Anthes I'll let you know how it goes. 

Hi @Bob Anthes. I live in High Point and I agree with you... I think it's making a comeback. It's right in between Winston Salem and Greensboro. Both cities continue to expand towards High Point. There is a high demand for SFH's in the area and the inventory is low. Also, NC continues to maintain growth.

I just purchased a rental property in High Point this week :-)  

Hi Mark, Did you get any recommendations? I'm looking for a portfolio lender in NC as well. I'm in the Triad area.