All Forum Posts by: Tony Robinson

 I'm a BIG BELIEVER in that approach. I feel like people overthink and overcomplicate the first deal... They build up all of this unnecessary pressure around getting everything perfect. But, when we frame that first deal as a learning experience, it releases a lot of that pressure and allows you to truly find value in the experience. 

 Yes! My team was critical to pulling this deal off. And in terms of building my team, I started with my bank relationship. And my bank referred me to my realtor and my GC. And I found my PM by doing some research on Google, and then interviewing a few of them. It took some time for all of the pieces to fall together, but it was worth the effort! 

And yes, all of my investments are currently in Shreveport, LA. 

 Thanks! Shreveport is a smaller market, but I wouldn't quite consider it rural. But it's definitely not the overpriced primary market like Nashville, Dallas, etc. But agreed, I definitely like this "middle market" approach and I'm hoping to expand this model into larger multifamily as well! 

 Thanks Norman! I'm a little confused about the first part of your question. My primary residence wasn't involved in this deal at all. My only point on the refinance was that I was only paying interest initially. My insurance and taxes still would've been due, but it wasn't automatically bundled with my mortgage payment. Once I refi'd, my payment now included PITI so the reduction in interest was offset by the inclusion of principal, taxes, and insurance.

I hope that answered your questions! 

Thanks! I showed the GC reference properties before starting, and during the process, we would touch bases and he would ask me what I wanted for certain items. So, it was a good mix of the GC deciding and me deciding. 

 Thank you! And I'm happy to share my story. Hope you were able to take away something positive. 

Thanks! Depending on the bureau you checked it was somewhere in the high 700s. 

 Absolutely! My hope is that, by sharing all the nitty-gritty details, I can demystify the first investment for people who haven't pulled the trigger yet. 

 Thanks Dustin! Lots of CA investors on this thread! I just shot you a PM. Looking forward to connecting! (once the world is back to normal, of course! )

Thanks Steve! Do you have a part of LA in mind? Shreveport isn't going to appreciate quickly, it's truly a tertiary market (maybe even less depending on who you ask), but it's a stable market. All of the banks of the PMs I spoke said that, when the market corrected in 08, Shreveport wasn't super impacted. But they weren't impacted, because they didn't experience the same skyrocket in appreciation that other parts of the country saw. 

So Shreveport won't go as high, but it also won't dip as low. 

That's part of the reason why I was open to a two year loan. At the end of this lease, I might bump the rents 2%. 

Hope that helps!