All Forum Posts by: Shane Burlingame

Quote from @Brian J Allen:

@Shane Burlingame, it is so hard right now to flip in central mass,  my clients had 5 in the last 2 years, 1 we barely made $5k, and we have 2 going right now that are over budget and prices have dropped so they may just hold them.  Basically you need to be ready to go cash all the time to get a deal.  I have a couple coming up.  Let me know if you are interested and i can get you an address or 2

I am always interested in knowing about potential deals.

I generally look at some real dogs, so I always assume that everything will need restoration including the septic and well. If that is true of your clients, I am wondering if many people in this area are overpaying for flip properties and the market is catching up to them. The numbers I run don't always support what I see people paying and it led me to this post, questioning my process.

I also assume the average investor may not know of all the building code updates that go on in MA, and that is causing contractors to charge extra for their services; which they are not accounting for. 

Quote from @Corby Goade:

How many flips have you done in that market?

In general, I'd say adjust your numbers. If you don't have a ton of experience, you aren't going to have the relationships or resources to get those more "obvious" deals. Those typically happen behind closed doors between people who are connected in the community. 

You can win at real estate by hitting lots of singles and doubles, but if you wait for a home run every time, you'll probaby never get going. Forget those rules of thumb or the numbers that the gurus tell you that you should hit. 

Heck, if you do a couple flips and break even for your first deals, you'll have had the opportunity to learn, create relationships with lenders, realtors and contractors and you'll be surprised at the opportunities that start coming your way when people know, like and trust you. 

Plenty of experienced flippers do deals that are break even just to keep their crews working- action is what matters in this business. Jump in and get your hands dirty, the momentum will work in your favor. 

Best of luck!

 Thank you for the reply. I have the tendency to overthink and not act. I have only flipped a mobile home which was a huge success for me. I want to get more reps and experience, so I hear you on just stepping into the arena. 

Hello, I've been analyzing a good amount of properties in Worcester County to flip. I use the BP calculators to determine my purchase price, ARV, profit and rehab. I subcategorize each repair item for accuracy. I am a licensed GC, so I feel strongly about the validity of my numbers.

It seems to me that each time I run my analysis, the maximum allowable offer is often about half of the list price. Are other investors finding the same thing with their numbers? Do I adjust my expectations or wait patiently? 

Quote from @Matthew Crivelli:

@Shane Burlingame - I would be happy to talk with you on how rehab loans work. I'm from MA and currently live in RI, we help self-employed individuals purchase flips all the time! 

 Hi Matt, I will be reaching out shortly. Thank you for the response.

I am looking for recommendations for hard or private money lending. I am a licensed GC whose biggest barrier to entry is having working capital. I've done a couple of flips and have experience. I am a little leery of hard money only because it isn't something I'm familiar with.

I cannot go the conventional route because my self-employment is for less than a year. I'm personally not comfortable asking friends and family for private money, so hard money feels like a good alternative; if the numbers make sense. I'm looking to make a connection with someone and learn what a hard money lender is looking for.

Hello, my family has a 5 acre lot that they are attempting to sell. I don't have the money on hand to buy the land outright, but I am considering offering the idea of seller financing. This is a huge benefit to us both because they build houses for a living, and I would offer them the work first. They also get paid for the land in the end. 

I am wondering if the land that is financed can be used as equity towards securing a new construction loan? 

Lets talk flips. I want to discuss flipping in Central MA because I can't find anyone talking about it! I'm a licensed GC looking to get their hands dirty on a rehab - not just a paint job. My plan is to fix and flip a single family home this year. It would not be my first - I live in one now. I'm looking for some support in this endeavor, and welcome anyone to join me. Even if it is just to talk, we can all use some support - myself included (I think my fiance is sick of hearing me talk about it). 

Seriously, please reach out; it will be nice to hear from local flippers. You never know what the next contact may lead to.

Quote from @J Scott:

Here's a good place to start:

https://store.biggerpockets.co...

 If you are green, J's book on Rehabbing Properties is a good start. I've read the book and it is good for people just starting out. To reiterate your point about dragging contractors around; I am one and can tell you it can be an annoyance when people look for estimates for free because it takes a lot of time and energy to develop a good one. If you go that route, it helps to provide something to the contractor first. For me personally, handing me good leads would be an excellent start.

Hi Mindi, it will take work on your part, but if you are asking this question I believe the best thing for you to do would be to contact businesses in the area that do this kind of work and ask them to provide an estimate to do this work. It will cost you time and potentially money, but the information you get will be valuable going forward for this and other projects going forward. If anyone provides a number to you on here, I would be cautious using that advice. Wish you luck!

Is it worth spending money to furnish a flip, or is their a better return on investment for just fixing up the cosmetics of the home?

I am already planning on renovating the kitchen, bathroom; I am just wondering if it is worth going through the process to design the interior as well. It is a small 600 sq ft 1 bed 1 bath mobile home.