All Forum Posts by: Steven Taylor

I pay for the water/trash in a duplex that I own, but that is only because it was initially set up as one main, and work to separate the two units. For the two single family homes that I own, the tenants pay for all utilities, etc.

I want to be able to leave my job at 30 years old, just turned 26, and own 30 units producing at least 90k in cash flow. I'm currently at 3 houses (4 units) and in the process of purchasing a quadplex. At that point, I believe I'll be able to leave my job, and still produce enough income to continue to invest on more properties, live comfortably, and be able to take time off and vacation.

I'm fortunate that my current job puts me in the medium six figure range, but I work a lot of hours and spend a lot of time away from home. So, ultimately my goal is to be able to slow down, retire to some beach, and enjoy life and family. 

@Account Closed It does have a fence completely surrounding it, the code inspector went by recently, and didn't have anything to say in regards to the pool.

I was thinking of just writing the maintenance on the pool into the lease for the main SFH, and that way they take care of everything. My concern is that if I allow the smaller SFH tenants to also use the pool, there needs to be a balance between the maintenance cost.

I am about to close on two SFHs in adjacent lots. There is a pool in between the two houses, that could be utilized by the residents of both SFHs. The pool actually cross the LOT line for one of the properties and runs onto the second homes property line, but I am having this adjusted to be soley on the larger of the two SFHs properties.

One house is 1800 SQ FT, and will rent out for $1000-1200, while the second home is much smaller at 700 SQ FT, and would rent out for $450-550 (the current tenants actually pay $600, but they are definitely paying above market price, they were somewhat duped by the previous owner).

I have two questions.

1. Should I allow tenants of both homes to utilize the pool, in the hopes of getting a little more rent from both properties, as well as spreading out the cost of maintenance on the Salt Water pool.

2. The second question is, is it possible to have one insurance policy to cover both properties, or does it need to be two separate policies, and would the pool liability need to be for both, or just the larger SFH where the pool is?

Also, this is in South Georgia.

Hello All,

I've been a member of these forms for a little while now, but I've just decided to kick off my Real Estate investing career. 

I joined the Air Force at 18, spent six years enlisted, and was fortunate to acquire an amazing set of skills that allowed me to exit the military at 24 and begin making in the six figure income. Through a series of amazing investment and frugal saving, I have been able to build a pretty stable financial situation for myself. After doing quite a bit of research, and finally deciding to jump in the real estate game, I have pulled the trigger and purchased two separate Duplex's in my home town area of Southern Georgia (I currently work and reside in North Carolina). 

Property one was purchased for $80,000, currently has tenant in both units for $1,300 total a month, and property two cost $106,000 with one current tenant renting for $700 (below market value for this unit). My brother, who will act as my property manager, handyman, and generally handle all of the in person activities associated with the properties will be staying in the second unit of property two with a reduced rent in place of all he is bringing to the table for me. Both properties are currently in the closing process. 

The next step for me is to get a grip on proper property management, and making sure I start my Property Management Career on the best possible foundation.

Thank you, everyone, for all of the great advice. You've all definitely given me some great advice and things to think about. 

It seems like the best decision for me is to just hold onto my money for now, instead of hastily jumping into an investment so close to a life changing event.

For those of you who mentioned buying a duplex or triplex, this is something I have pondered over extensively, and was considering doing when I originally intended to leave the military and go back to school, but with the job offers I have received, I have decided to hold off on going back to a brick and mortar school for a little longer. Additionally, I have had trouble actually locating any duplex's or triplex's in my area, I'm not sure if this is because everyone chooses to either get a SFH or an apartment or maybe I am just not looking in the right areas.

I definitely intend to keep doing research and expanding my knowledge, so that when I do inevitabley get into the real estate game, I can do it from the best possible position.

Hello BiggerPockets,

I'm new to the whole real estate business, and I've been trying to figure out how to get my feet wet. I am in the military, and am currently single and deployed, which has allowed me to save up a large amount of cash. I will be returning to the states in a couple of months, at which points I will have roughly 8 months left in the military. I've been thinking that it may be a good idea to purchase a home in the Hampton Roads, Va area to live in for six to eight months when I get back to the states, and then rent it out after I leave the military in the area.

If I were to purchase a home, I would use the VA loan, and then throw twenty thousand dollars into an account to cover any expenses that may come up with this home while renting it out, such as vacancies or something needing to be repaired. This would leave me with north of fifty thousand dollars to cover my own personal expenses as I transition back into the civilian world.

Currently, I have several job opportunities as soon as I leave the military that pay in the six-figure range while I am not guaranteed to land any of the jobs I would say that there is a 90%+ chance I will get one job in particular. I'm not sure if I should err on the side of caution and simply save the money until I am secure in my new job before I start to invest in real estate, or if this is really one of the best times for me to get involved.

Does anyone have any advice for me?

Also, I hope I posted this in the correct form. 

Thank you for your reply, this propery does seem like an obvious yes, but I want to be sure that I am not only looking at the positives, but the negatives as well. The $65k is a little on the low end of what similiar property has sold for in this area, the home sold for $85k near the height of the crash in 08.

At this currenty point in time, and for the foreseeable future, I would have no issue if the home were to remain vacatan, or if their were sudden large repairs that needed to be done. Due to being to deployed, and having no bills, I expect to have near $60k in cash saved up within the next year(not including the purchase of this home). So I will be able to set aside a large justincase fund for the property.

I expect to rent for $750-850, and to pay the property manager 10%. The loan, including insurance and taxes should run me about $400-450. So on the conservate end, I should make $675 from rent (10% off due to property manager). Which should give me flexibility to save for money for any repairs that may arise. I would have no issue putting at least ten thousand down on the loan, and throwing another five to ten thousand into the account to use for things such as repairs, or vacancies.

At the moment, the only repairs would be the most minor cosmetic repairs, everything seems to be in great working order, and sending in an inspector before the final purchase would definitely be a must do, just incase there are any serious issues with the property.

I have no idea if this is the correct section, so please let me know if there is somewhere better I should post.

Background: I am currently 23, military, and deployed the Afghanistan. I make roughly $4,400 per month, and have next to no bills for the next year(100$ or so per month). My credit score is roughly 760, and I have about twenty thousands dollars in savings. I really wanted to get involved with rental properties.

At the moment I have the opportunity to buy a 2 bed, 2 bath, and 1200 sq. ft. home for $65,000 in a nice cul de sac. That is located in a medium size town (60,000-70,000 pop.) that has a very decent military presence. Similar homes in the neighborhood are renting for about $900, and this home is in very decent condition(no major renovations are needed at the moment). The current owners have already receive a couple of offers from people that would like to rent, however they would prefer to sell the property due to starting a family and being ready to upgrade and build a new home.

If there are any more details I can provide, please ask. I sincerely need and am open to any and all advice that you guys can provide. I really think this would be a good purchase, but I would like to know the thoughts of others.