All Forum Posts by: Stuart Gardner

Greeting BP,

Today I come to you with a question and a problem: Is the Greater Boston Area Too Hot for a First Time Investor?!?

I ask this because my wife and I live in the Greater Boston area and are looking to purchase our first investment property. However, the number just don't seem to work. 

As a young couple, our plan is to House Hack while using an FHA Loan on a 2 to 3 unit property. We have been told that to get an FHA to work, it's better to go with a 2 unit, which are between $600,000 and $800,000 on average. Yet, even with us acting as a tenant and paying rent, the Cap Rate is around 2% and we still have extra overhead to pay.

Thus, is the Greater Boston Area just not a good place to start? Are there any other investors in the area that have had better luck and have some advice for us.

Hey @Rich Hupper ,

Thank you for the reply. As a team, we decided to move our location to Phoenix since we were able to find a larger array of properties down there. However, I may take you up on your offer at a later stage.

Best,

Stuart

Hey All,

This is a bit of a strange question, but I'm currently taking a REI Class and part of my assignments is to put together a deal package on an investment property. The first task is to find a few property memorandum's on potential investments. (Active apartments in the Greater Boston Area between $2 and $4 million).

However, my team and I are not having very good luck with being able to get some. 

So if anyone has any Memorandum's for properties that meet those requirements or know of a good way to get a Memorandum, we would greatly appreciate the help. 

Thanks,

Stuart

Hey @Kevin Scanlon I would love to be able to join and Tuesdays work well, however location is key. If you're able to keep it within the Harvard/Central Square area, I would be in.

Hey @Kevin Scanlon just saw your event, sadly a day late. Are you planning on doing other events in the Cambridge area?

Hey BP Community,

Lately, I've been reading up on Owner Financing, and I have a few questions I'm hoping the community will be able to help me out with.

Just as a side note, the property is owned by an out of state owner and is free and clear.

Questions:

1. When purchasing the property, how does title ownership work? Is it set up like a traditional deal, just with the seller as the 'Bank', or are there other steps that need to be taken?
2. Is a down payment typical, or does that really just depend on the deal?
3. If I was to then purchase a second property using traditional financing, would the OF deal affect my ability to get an FHA loan?

I appreciate any insight in the process and if there are any good resources out there that help you, I would love to know about them. 

Best, 

Stuart

Hey @Chris T.,

Thank you for the advice.

Hey BP Community,

I currently rent a unit in a 4 unit apartment. The tenant above me is being evicted, and the other 2 have been there for years. The landlord is an elderly couple, who have multiple units around the area, however i think property management and being a landlord may have become to much for them. (The roof started to leak after a bad winter and it took them several months with repeated letters and pictures before they did anything.) However, other than needing a good face lift the property seems pretty solid. 

My question is, does anyone have any advice on approaching/purchasing property from their landlord? 

Thanks

Hey @Kathleen R., 

I don't have any Property Management Software recommendations, but I do dabble in software development on the side. (Hobby not a profession) 

If no one can give you an answer on a good piece of software, I may be up for a challenge, but no promises. 

I will keep an eye on this thread and if nothing turns up. We can chat more and I can see if I can put together a Property Management Application for the BP Community. 

Best Stuart

Hey everyone. Thank you for the advice. I will keep an eye out for those that you have suggested.