All Forum Posts by: Todd Clifton

Investment Info:

Single-family residence fix & flip investment.

Purchase price: $90,000
Cash invested: $31,000
Sale price: $168,000

Found a 1917 single family house that needed some updates.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

In my past deals were buy and hold deals. But with interest rates being higher, I decided to pivot and try my first fix and flip.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

Found it on the MLS. Originally it was listed at $110K. We lost the initial bid of $110K cash to others who had made higher offers. Those other offers were FHA loans which did not qualify because all the upgrades that needed to be done. So, we did eventually win the bid. Then we ran our inspections and found multiple things that we asked the seller if they would come off the price.

How did you finance this deal?

I worked with a private investor who provided all the capital for purchase and renovation.

How did you add value to the deal?

The house was listed as a 3 bed, 2 bathroom house. Actually it only had 1 bedroom because two of the rooms did not have closets. So, one of the biggest things we did was enclose one room and add two new closets. This turned it into a true 3BD/2B for appraisal purposes. And of course we did normal things like new flooring, lights, electrical, kitchen and bathroom upgrades.

What was the outcome?

My investor pocketed great money and I made over $31,000 on the deal.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

I did most of the work myself beyond my granite, carpet and electrical guy. In hindsight I will probably have other contractors do more of the other work as well.

Did you work with any real estate professionals (agents, lenders, etc.) that you'd recommend to others?

As an agent, I was able to benefit from both sides of the transaction as well.

 Just realized I was logged in with a different account. Just reach out if you want to talk. 

Hi Tina...and welcome!  To begin to answer your question, it all depends on multiple things.  For example: Your goals?  What kind of property?  Do you want to be more "hands on" or passive? Is cash flow or appreciation more important...or both? Etc...?  Knowing these questions...and others...would be a starting point to help direct you better.  

Hi Edwin!  The Berry Hill area is a fairly attractive area right now.  I believe there are a few reasons for this.  One is that the education in Berry Hills schools seems to be very good. I have friends that have chosen to send their kids all the way across town from South Tulsa to attend the high school. The second seems to be the affordability of homes in the area where you may want a little more land.  And lastly, the city/state is currently building an extension of a loop around Tulsa that will provide another way around the West side of Tulsa that allows you to not have to go through downtown.

As far as rental income goes I believe there is some viability there. I almost bought a rental property in that area this past spring so I know there is potential.  Tenants would probably be working class or middle class depending what neighborhood you choose.  There are big variations even in close proximity neighborhoods. Hope this helps.

Here in Tulsa the market seems great. We rented one unit before the pandemic and it filled quickly.  In the midst of all the craziness I purchased and rehabbed a single-family property and put it on the market the first of June.  Had 20+ people showing interest and rented it out in a week.  

Keep in mind we did upgrades that brought a lot of value to the property (ie. new open concept, kitchen and bathroom, windows, floors and paint, landscape).  Because of this, it is one of the nicer properties in this B neighborhood. But it is has allowed a higher rent than homes in that area.

As an important note, screening your tenants is very important (you probably knew that...). My newest tenant is in the medical field so that brings a lot of security for long-term tenancy.  

My best advice is...go after it.  Don't let fear, uncertainty or whatever big giant is outside your door trying to bully you from your dreams and goals!  

Investment Info:

Single-family residence buy & hold investment in Tulsa.

Purchase price: $46,000
Cash invested: $31,000

This property was my first. It was a 50/50 deal with a friend of mine. The former owners had done a reverse mortgage (ie HECM) on it so it was a deal with the bank and Fannie Mae/HUD. We were blessed to beat out all other offers with the perfect timing. We totally rehabbed the property doing the most of the work ourselves. Currently we are opting to keep the money in the deal and run about a 10% Cash on Cash ROI.

What made you interested in investing in this type of deal?

A single family property seemed to be the best way to begin investing. Personally I have never wanted to live in an apartment because I valued a yard and extra space with a garage. Also, so many people have pets now, so I knew single family homes offered a better option for people.

How did you find this deal and how did you negotiate it?

I had been on the lookout for several months for distressed properties. I got on a list or two of several realtors who would send me possible homes. But I also checked and used several property sites like Trulia and Realtor.com regularly to search for deals. And of course I wanted to see if I could find deals before they went on the MLS, so I wasn't afraid to knock on some doors.

This deal I found off a site. And because we acted fast we got it at the lowest asking price.

How did you finance this deal?

I found a long-time friend that I trusted who also had a love and a little prior experience in real estate. He had the MONEY and EXPERIENCE for the deal but I only had TIME and LABOR I could invest. So, we decided to team up.

How did you add value to the deal?

We rehabbed most of the house. New kitchen, bathrooms, interior and exterior paint, electrical, roof, restored hard wood floors and took out a wall for a more open concept in the kitchen/living room.

What was the outcome?

Currently we rent it out and are opting to keep the money in the deal and run about a 10% Cash on Cash ROI. We are unsure of the exact property value because we have not financed it and therefore have not ordered an appraisal, but we estimate the ARV is somewhere around $120K.

Lessons learned? Challenges?

The remodel seemed to drag on more than we had hoped. We both put a lot of sweat equity into it. But, I think we definitely learned how we could be more efficient on the rehab next time around.

Through this whole process, I began working on my real estate license because I saw the value of having a license and continuing to build an investment portfolio while helping others. Now that I have my real estate license, I am constantly learning and helping others everyday.