All Forum Posts by: Sean Hudgins

The On the Market Podcast just had Vacasa's top 5 STR markets, and Navarre was number 5. I am not in the Pensacola market myself, but Navarre is only about 45 min from Pensacola, and if you are living there for only a year, the commute may be manageable. Then maybe you could turn it into an STR after you leave or find a place that you could rent out an ADU or something similar while you live there to offset your expenses.

I just wanted to provide an alternative option that hasn't been mentioned yet. The Advice above is also good, and definitely find out how much VA eligibility you have left as a second VA loan may be better than the FHA option.

Good Luck!

Welcome to the community and the real estate game! You have the right idea; get that next one, and if a small multi is doable in your area, that is 100% the way to go. Check your eligibility; you will likely be able to finance two properties under each of your eligibility before you run out (obviously, depending on the price point). Also, keep your pulse on mortgage rates, and when they come down, I would refinance out of as many of the VA loans as possible depending on your equity, thus freeing up your eligibility again.

You called yourself "analysis paralysis rookies," so based on what I said above, you have min 3 years of primary residence hopping before you are going to face many challenges. So I suggest you get moving, and I promise by the time you get to that point, you will have a totally different outlook on the process and the knowledge and skills to confront that eligibility obstacle.

Pro tip: Find a VA Assumption deal and get into one of those sweet low-interest-rate mortgages. This may take some creativity, and you may also need to tap that equity to pay the equity difference on the assumption.

Get started and lean on the community when you hit obstacles. Everyone here is great at helping solve problems; someone in this community has probably dealt with whatever issue you may be dealing with.

As others here have already said, CONGRATS! You all are doing great and have a fantastic mindset. 

I love that you are in Jacksonville because you have a large military concentration there with the Navy base. If the end goal is financial freedom ASAP, trading in the depreciating asset for a cash-flowing appreciating one is a great idea. 

I would love to throw out an idea on how you do that. You have a place to live now in the camper; find a great agent in the area who is familiar with the VA Assumption process. You are in an excellent position to try and find an assumption deal since you have the eligibility to trade. The only thing that will slow down the process is only having 30k in savings. Be patient and try to find a deal where the seller has very little equity or look into a HELOC on one of the other properties or a lender willing to do a second position mortgage on a va assumption. However you approach it, take the time to find that assumption deal and get one of those low rates.

While you are in that search process, if you can find a big home that could support some rent by the room, it sounds like you already have a roommate lined up. You are also close to the beach, so have you considered STR or house hacking an STR home? You may want to keep the camper, buy a home near the beach, and stay in the camper on the weekends when you have Airbnb guests.

@Ryan Thomson has a good point as well. Don't worry so much about what your friends and family are telling you about being over-leveraged. You have a dual income and cash-flowing assets; now is the time to leverage and take a little risk. From someone who went from dual O-3 pay no kids to self-employed and a stay-at-home mom of 2, I wish I had taken more risk when we had the dual income.

I have noticed a lot of agents in my area (Hampton Roads, Virginia) have been using the VA Assumption as more of a marketing move. Our market is still active enough that often, the assumption is one of a couple of offers, and they always want to go with the traditional offers.

I also posted in several places about what the assumption could be worth monetarily. The best answer I got was that, at the moment, most buyers might be willing to cover the extra carry cost of an extended closing period but are likely not willing to go much further above market value to get the house. 

I am excited to see how things play out, and I agree that the assumable option at some of the low rates could be a fantastic opportunity for buyers and sellers. I have a couple of clients actively seeking out these deals, but we are a little further from listing agents actually making the extra effort to pursue the assumption loans.

I have seen one seller willing to put a second position seller finance for most of the difference between the assumption and purchase price, but unfortunately, that seller ended up deciding to rent out for a while versus sell. I would love to see other case studies of people in the community who have been on either side of one of these deals.

 Congrats @Paul K. Can you break down some of the details of the deal? would love to see how it plays out!

One of the best first steps you can take is to go and pick up another property as a primary and rent out that first one. Talk with a lender and the VA about how much eligibility you have left after the first house, and that will give you an idea of how much you can buy with 0 down (the funding fee is higher).

I would be careful when considering an RV; you want to buy more non-depreciating assets, and an RV will likely depreciate more than it will make you. 

If you can find a new primary residence that you can house hack, that would be my next step if I were you. If house hacking is out, find a fixer-upper to put some sweat equity into.

Feel free to reach out. I'm always happy to help!

 With 700 on the market, there are probably more than three that are assumable loans; they are just not being advertised as such. If, in your search, you come across a home you want to live in, but it is not advertised as assumable, you may need to make some calls and help educate the listing agent on the assumption process if it is an assumable loan type. You may have to be the one doing the leg work.

As said previously, even if the loan is assumable, most sellers who are priced right for the market and are getting offers within four weeks of being on the market will not be willing to go through a couple of extra steps for an assumption. If you are willing to pay extra that might get it done or if the home has been on the market for some time (which probably means it's overpriced anyway). If you have access to a dialer like RED-X, you can target cold-calling people who have little equity in the properties or bought in the last couple of years.

@Tony Bryant Jr. congrats on starting down the path. The first step is to get that BAH working for you instead of someone else. If you start looking at properties, look at them with the eye for will this house pay for itself when you move to the next duty station. 

House hacking is tough with a larger family unless there is an abundance of small multifamily homes in your area. 

If you are handy and can put some sweat equity into the home you buy, that can be just as powerful as house hacking. Look for a house that needs some simple updates. 

-Kitchen Cabinets (can you keep them, paint them, and change hardware)

-Bathrooms ( can you replace a vanity or paint it and put a new countertop on it?)

-Flooring (can you replace the ugly carpet with LVP or a new carpet before you leave)

-layout (learn to look for walls that are likely not load-bearing and see if you can change the layout). Just be careful. This type of renovation requires permits and lots of extra steps and isn't always feasible.

I stumbled into my first investment because I bought a great starter home that just so happened to be a great rental. But you can bet every primary home I have purchased after I have planned from day one for that house to be a rental.

I suggest checking out this thread for some good strategies on rent-by-the-room or house hacking in a single-family rental.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/834/topics/1146934-rent...

Welcome to the community! I know everyone here is excited to hear about your journey. I'm sure people would love to hear about the nuances of investing in Puerto Rico.

I wish you all the best!