All Forum Posts by: Tim Swierczek

 Hi James, 

I see you are in Minneapolis. I'd be happy to meet up and answer your questions. In addition, the Twin Cities has an active real estate investor community.  I work most with investors and house hackers so I can help connect you with some people that can be on your team. I'd recommend you connect with @Adam Tafel. 

 I think there is too much focus on knowledge and not enough focus on doing. While you will hear every story of an 18-year-old that jumps into real estate and is successful from day one, you won't hear of the thousands who are not successful.

It's not hard or complicated to get started. You must be financially stable to have a good chance at success.  This means you need to focus on an income stream and lifestyle that is stable and allows you more income than expenses.  Once you have this base you should house hack immediately.  In the meantime, you can learn through reading and podcasts. Feel free to reach out if you would like to chat.

@Meghan McCollum I'd reach out to @Matt Jennison and @Keith Linne. They both have extensive experience in Duluth.

Hi @Meghan McCollum welcome to investing in MN.  DM if you want to chat.

 Hey Cameron,

Another concern you should have is the seasoning period. Seasoning is how long you must own the property before a lender allows you to take cash out on a refinance using the appraised value instead of the original purchase price. That is relevant to your plan. Conventional loans recently changed the seasoning period for cash-out refinances from 6 months to 1 year. This means you will need to refinance using a non-agency loan (not conventional, FHA, VA, USDA). Most commercial lenders want 1 year, but there are rare cases where you can get a cash-out refinance in less than 1 year if you cash flow exceptionally well. I use Lilly Luna at Creative Lending for them, but she's not on BP. DM me for a connection.

@Collin Lee I have a lot of experience with this.  DM me if you would like to talk.

@Ryan Pearsn No self promotion allowed, but you asked for help so all I can say is I can help

 You present an interesting use case.  Lake Minnetonka is not your typical MN lake. It's not a vacation area like a northern lake, but it's far enough away from the cities that a weekend traveler might not seek it out during the Winter. I don't think we have nearly the details to give you great advice in this case, but a few thoughts worth considering.

Since Minnetonka is arguably the most sought-after metro lake and boasts some epic homes, you might want to consider executive rentals or renting to a professional athlete.  Those two markets have the cash and desire to pay to live in an exceptional location with furnishings but without the long-term commitment of ownership.  Your benefit would be to avoid the seasonality and work that goes with long-term rentals.

If executive rentals do not interest you, I would recommend partnering to start. The STR market has gotten competitive, and those properties that do not deliver unique experiences are starting to suffer. There are many stories in other sought-after markets such as Orlando of owners using the "build it and they will come" approach only to sell at a loss after a few years. Generally, STR travelers want price, location, or experience, and if you want a high price, you need one of the other two nailed and 2/2 to kill it. Good luck I hope you crush it!

@Ben Lagerlund , what are your plans for occupancy?  is this an owner-occupied purchase or an investment?