All Forum Posts by: Scott Esmail

I would like to 10 x but I can not find the opportunity for the deals that I feel are good enough deals to buy or maybe my skills are not good enough yet to get me to the next level. I agree with the buddhist theory that one can never be satisfied. Here I am almost 10 years later still buying homes to rent when I surpassed what I said would make me happy a long time ago. Just got a deal today i'm pretty sure of and waiting for the signed contract. It was a decent deal and I wanted something to do since were slow right now anyways. My wife says I buy houses because I am bored and it keeps me busy, I think she's right like usual.

The market was a lot different when he was buying. It was a lot cheaper and more to choose from. I have been buying since 2011 and still today. I bought a home this month I paid $148 k which was a good deal for todays prices. I bought the same model home the next few blocks over in 2015 for 25 k. So there is a big difference in prices at least here in Orlando  I have done a lot of re fi's/brrr too but it's much easier to be done when your properties are very cheap and under valued and then double or triple in value over time. Not sure how he did it as I have not listen to his stuff. Its hard to cash out re fi right away in this market at least I find it to be, but my purchase from this year I think I would be able to brrr in a year or 2. I stopped listening to the podcast because its hard to compete with guys that are one of the most popular in the biz. A lot of them make much more money talking about real estate then actually in the trenches.  I like the good old podcast with josh where they got to the nitty and gritty of how guys were doing things.

I take all them down if I buy a home before I rent out, they may be cheap to buy but then you have to pay a handyman to go fix or replace when breaks so that is an extra cost that can add up.  If you don't supply one less thing that breaks and causes a work order. We also remove garbage disposals those break a lot too and no extra rent is gotten for that too. 

Also it can depend what you think a deal is, I have heard guys lock up a property for $1000 profit. If your going to do deals with that thin margin you may be able to get a deal quicker then let's say you held out for deals that only make $10,000 profit. Also I know guys who got a deal on there 3rd call and others took much longer. The more calls you make then the better chances but it also has a bit of luck sometimes too.

Get to know the area well that you want to invest in. Save money and work as much as possible while in College, if you dont have credit then get a credit card and use it and always repay. When you have 3.5 percent down buy the cheapest house you can find in the area you like to live in. Live there while again saving for a downpayment and repeat the process. Also on your first property if you bought right and possibly some time has gone by it the price may be higher in a couple years and you can get a home line of credit or re fi to help you with the downpayment on the next property. Only buy good deals this will help you when its time to get the heloc or re fi.

It's hard to collect rents in these lower priced homes nothing personal against any of the type of people whom live in that area. I have bought homes in C minus areas for cheap and I do not own anymore but one that I am trying to sell. You get all sorts of problems, one big issue I always get is when you are trying to rehab people break in and steal/vandalize or when sitting vacant people break in and use as a hang out. Also its hard to find a qualified tenant the can pay the rent and onetime. I do agree with some others  that it's better to take the money you want to use to pay in cash and get a better product and use that as the downpayment. If you go the cash route then buy only one first and see how it goes. Don't be dumb like me and buy a bunch without testing and then realize its a nightmare. There are some very experienced people on this site and most are saying it not going to work the way you think it will and I respectfully agree. However good luck and I hope you do well

Yeah, rehabs when your not around are much harder, there hard enough when you are local. I been using facetime and google dual with the contractors and have the slowly walk each room. It helps more then pics and a phone call from a contractor, but not as good as being there. If these rehabs are for a flip since the market has been so hot most buyers are looking past minor things I have found. 

If you do sell, for sure do a 1031 exchange with that much equity gain and since you say your going to buy anyways once you sell. If you have not already see how fast and if there is any good deals in the market you want to invest in first and how easy it is to get a deal under contract. I find it hard to find good deals in this market to 1031 into but of course can be done. I have done lots if 1031's in the last couple years usually just to get rid of a problem property I used @dave foster for the 1031's company he is on this site and recommend. In regards to cash flow I think you could do better with that amount of equity. But if you reside close to your rental in Phoenix and not out of state, me personally I like to have my rentals close to where I live and would take less ROI to be close. You could raise the rent to market and get a cash out re fi and invest with that instead of selling as another option.

Work jobs in between your school schedule save all that money. When you 18 or older try to get a FHA mortgage with 3.5 percent down. Live in that house while you save for your next home. Buy another home and rent out the one you lived in. In the meantime you can become a expert on what houses costs and areas that work in for you by looking at Zillow daily on what's for sale and when your ready.It's much easier if you can buy in the area you live in. Then you will know exactly what to buy and what a smokin deal will be when the time comes. Listen to bigger pockets podcast starting from the first episode and after in that order, the ones now talk a lot less about real estate and the nitty gritty of how to get a deal like the ones did when Josh was the host.

I like "property owner" over housing provider so the words can also refer to other things like storage unit,apts, commercial spaces etc.