All Forum Posts by: Tony Le Claire

Hi Greg, New Mortgage Loan Officer here. The experiences and knowledge our fellow BP members are providing is extremely valuable toward your future success. I’ve been working at a big bank as an LO for a year now and love it. I️ love it so much that I’m willing and ready to take a calculated risk and switch to a local lender and make 100% commission with the goal of earning a better quality of life and income. One piece of advice I’d provide is to find a mentor who will spend time coaching you and helping you grow as an LO. For example, the other main reason I’m deciding to switch to a local lender now is because I’ve built a great relationship with a very experienced and successful LO. This LO has already helped me succeed at the bank and is ready to help me grow at the local level. Without this mentor ship, it would be tough to make the transition, as some local lenders won’t provide that level of service to new LO’s. As for a business plan, keep in mind this is speculative as I’m still new to the industry... I️ would suggest you decide what market you’d like to capture and organize exactly how you plan to capture that market. For example, in Arizona where I️ live, there is a growing number of homes being built in a certain area and many of the agents don’t have a local lender they refer too. Most just tell their clients to call their bank for a prequalification. Perhaps there’s an area in your state where there are no Loan Officers available or none who spend time with those communities. If that’s the case, capitalize on the opportunity and see where it takes you, then refine your plan along the way. Hope this helps and best of luck to you! -Tony

Hi Rudy, If the property will be an investment multi-unit Vs. a owner-occupied multi-unit, then your minimum down payment will be 25%. Additionally, you will need to show a specified amount of reserves funds on the loan application as well. When considering owner-occupied, you have an option to choose an FHA loan at 3.5% down payment, however FHA does require two separate mortgage insurance fees, which could make the deal less desirable. When considering the multi unit property as strictly an investment purchase where you will not occupy one of the units, the amount of reserves funds required to be verified will be in addition to the down payment. The reserves income could be equal to 6-12 months worth of expenses on the property, so keep that in mind as well. The reserves will be in addition to the down payment and closing costs. I hope this helps. Reach out if you have further questions. Thanks, Tony

Victor, Happy to hear you found the most cost effective option for what you’re looking to accomplish. Others have already thoroughly covered closing costs on a refinance. On a refinance, depending on the equity you have in the home, the refi “could” be no cost... As in no out of pocket. On the Loan Estimate and on your Closing Disclosures, it will be a different story. Best of luck to you on the new purchase! -Tony

Hi Lorenz, A limited cash out refinance into two 30 year terms might benefit you, however make sure to consider closing costs with this type of transaction. What is your loan to value (LTV) on each of the properties? What is your FICO (If you don’t know exactly, a rough estimate will suffice). You mentioned you’re at $0 monthly cash flow, is this after expenses such as capital expenses, vacancies, etc? When considering taking cash out in a refinance, the interest rate will almost certainly be higher than what you have now. Also, with more equity cashed out up to a max of 80% LTV, your loan amount will rise as well. Long story short, the amount of equity you cash out and the rate you end up getting will determine if the cash out refinance is even worth it. You may find that the increase in rate and loan amount may lead to you still earning $0 or close to it per residence. I hope this helps. If you have any further questions, I am available to assist. Thank you, Tony

Hi Nicolaas, Semper Fi right back at you dude, some of my best friends were Army guys. The bank I work for does not offer FHA loans, however my knowledge of it is you could have your dad co-borrow with you on an FHA loan even though he wouldn't occupy the property. As a CYA, contact an FHA specific lender to confirm this but I'm almost certain that is a possibility. Reference duplex, triplex, and fourplex properties I would say if you find one where the numbers actually make sense then go for it. You would not have a garage, but you also wouldn't have to technically live with your tenants, which is always a plus. If your market is anything like it is here in Phoenix, it's really tough to find a multi unit property that's not in the ghetto but also not crazy expensive. If it's better where you're at I would go for it, as many members on BP have mentioned multi unit investing is much easier to scale. What's your budget for purchase price, rehab, money expense, etc?

Hi Nicolaas, Great post and I like your ideas. I work as a Mortgage Loan Officer for a big bank, so hopefully I can help with your situation. First off from a fellow veteran (USMC) thank you for your service, glad to see you're taking advantage of some of the benefits Uncle Sam offers us. Reference your situation, a way you could work out financing as you mentioned is to do a conventional mortgage and have your father listed as a non-occupying co-applicant. Essentially you would occupy the home as your primary residence and your father's role would be to assist you in gaining financing through qualifying his income, assets, etc. The benefit to this is your loan would be for a primary home (Versus investment home, etc) which would allow you more favorable rates and less of a down payment requirement. Given that you are in college, have you considered a combination of a live in flip and a rental? For example, say (perfect world) you find a home after lots of searching on the MLS, you feel is undervalued. Let's say this home needs a little cosmetic work, which is why it's also not being sold for a premium. Let's also assume you get this home under contract with your dad and eventually close escrow. What if you then rounded up a couple of your fellow veteran/college buddies and invited them to live with you and in exchange with their help in renovating the place, you offer a good deal on a room rental? This would allow you to fix the place up and hopefully get some good equity out of it, as well as "house hack" by renting rooms to friends. AND bonus, these friends also are your no-charge handymen who help you build equity in the home. Just pay them in beer once in a while. Hope this helps. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask. -Tony

Welcome to BP! I too am a new investor in the Phoenix area. I purchased my first home, a SFD in Surprise, and am looking to multi unit and commercial property as my next venture. The tough thing I'm running into with the Multi family deals in the valley is to get a fourplex in a B or A neighborhood, you need to spend a significant amount of money. For example, my goal was to stay below 250k on a fourplex purchase and a lot of the availability was in Class D and lower Class C neighborhoods, such as south Phoenix and bad parts of downtown Phoenix and downtown Glendale. If your budget is higher than mine, you may have some luck in finding a fourplex in a decent neighborhood, so you don't have to worry about dealing with Section 8 renters, etc. If you want to connect and discuss things further, feel free to PM me anytime. Best of luck to you! Tony

Good evening fellow BP'ers, Here I am at 12:08 AM searching the depths and nether regions of Google and BP hoping to find some information on a question I've had for quite some time. I've tried searching various key words and phrases and can't seem to find what I'm looking for. I'm under contract for a SFD primary residence here in Phoenix, AZ. Found it on the MLS, had everything I wanted/needed in my first home purchase, etc. I'm considering renting out one of the rooms. My plan is to establish a lease agreement similar to how I would if I owned a multi unit property. I would screen the tenants, etc. Furthermore, I would make sure to report the rental income on my taxes for at least two years. The rental income would likely be $400-500 gross per month realistically for a furnished room. Fast forward a couple years, I'm now looking to move into a new primary residence and retain the this first property as a rental and would rent out the whole residence. When I go to apply for the new primary residence mortgage, would renting out the room for a couple years and reporting the earnings on my taxes qualify me as a "landlord"? Meaning, could I now consider the projected rental income for the whole property as a factor in my loan application? Or would I only be able to have the $400-500 that I was actually earning for the one room considered? Thank you for your time and consideration! -Tony

Hello, Could I receive the code as well? Thank you, Tony

Michael Williams Thank you, sir. When you say I have the best job for this, do you mean being a Loan Originator? Martez Killens Thank you! It definitely feels a little daunting getting into REI, but I'm sure once we get our first deal done we'll have a better grasp on things.