All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

Hi Lydia. For this particular property, I believe there would be greater room on negotiating the price.

Hi everyone, 

I am viewing a condo tomorrow that is for sale by owner. If I like it, it would be the first time making an offer without a realtor. I have copies of offers submitted by my realtor on my behalf.

Where can I locate a form for submitting an offer (BC, Canada), what should I be sure to include in the offer, what conditions do I need to include. 

Thanks in advance

Tristan

I am looking to start making offers on my first property and I need some advice. My realtor has provided me a list of sold apartments meeting my criteria. After assessing a list of on market properties against the comps list, I have assigned a value that I would be willing to spend on each property on the list.  As I will be offering 70-80% of the asking, I plan to make lots of offers sight unseen, expecting to get lots of rejections. If there is a counter or an acceptance, I would then like to view the property and move forward on a deal. Due to the volume I wish to offer on, it is not feasible to go view every property.

Am I able to structure simultaneous offers on multiple properties in a way that my realtor will be willing to execute, and will also allow me to inspect prior to a deal being done. Any advice on this is much appreciated.

Thanks, 

Tristan

@Darryl Louie,

Welcome to the forums. I'm also in Vancouver bc. Just got approved for my first mortgage and currently on the hunt for a property here. Would love to hear more about how you faired in TO. Will send you a pm in a few days. Always down to meet new investors

@Roy N.

Still looking for advice on my original two questions if you have any insight. 

a) Finding off market deals in the condo/apartment/townhouse space

b) Equipping yourself to deal with negotiating off market deals 

Getting a handle on both the above items would be hugely beneficial. I have reached out to a realtor, so I am keeping my eyes open on anything that comes up, I just want to broaden the cast of my net

@Roy N.

Thanks for the response as always. A few things to add:

- When you compare the two sceanarios a) remain renting for 1 or 3 years while leveraging that money out of province, versus; b)moving into a place, paying down the principal, potential appreciaton/ forced equity, not paying rent, the numbers come out in the significantly in the favour of removing ourselves from the rental pool. Due to the first time home buyers incentives we can purchase with low money down, and still have maybe $60k to invest in a second property out of province. 

- Being a recent resident, I struggled but ultimately attained pre-approval for a primary residence mortgage. I would have to wait potentially+12 months of credit history to get pre-approval for an investment property. Purchasing a primary residence would improve my ability to access credit for property no.2

- Being a renter in such a market, there is a constant upheaval. Our current rent is low, but the house is listed for sale on the market. We have had or previous rental sold from under us without much recourse. If we were forced to move and pay closer to market rents, the situation would be even more favorable of purchasing a place.

I think the situation is unique, and I agree that 10-15% margains are low. When we are talking about a flip, we do not have a time constraint on re-selling, as ultimately removing ourselves from the rental market is paramount. Given the constraints I am looking for advice on working with the situation we have, and trying to make the best purchase possible. Trying to find an off market deal will over us the best opportunity to add value to our purchase.

Any and all advice is appreciated.

Hi Everyone, 

So I have completed my first step on purchasing my first property, and have been pre qualified for a traditional low money down mortgage here in Vancouver Canada. My budget currently is $400k, which in Vancouver purchases a condo/apartment/townhouse. Our strategy is to get away from renting, start in the process of live-in flips, while funnelling extra capital into out of provence buy and holds. 

I have two main questions;

- In Vancouver our budget only allows for the purchase of condos/apartments/townhouses. Speaking to people who have a very good understanding of this market (sub $400k flips in Vancouver) anything on the MLS in the current climate, at very best has 5-10% room in it for a flip ( Demand exceeds supply at this price point). This essentially is the same as buying a place in hopes of appreciation. Unlike houses, a driving for $$$'s strategy is inherently more difficult as; a.) public records in Canada are limited, and b.) the nature of these properties is that its hard to spot outward signs of distress. Craigslist is an obvious answer, but what other insights/strategies do BP members have for finding deals in the condo/apartment/townhouse space.

- When approaching off market deals, there is certainly savings to be had for the seller by the buyer not being represented by an agent. What are the pitfalls for an unexperienced buyer purchasing off market. What should I be asking, how should I be negotiating. I am currently trying to find access to the MLS (offering to pay a monthly fee for use), but without the MLS, calculating ARV is going to be difficult. How do people get around this. Any insight in this realm would be helpful.

Thanks, and have a great day.

Tristan

I just took this first step and I am currently in the approval process. I first met with a broker who looked at my files and gave me an assessment without submitting an application. 

In Canada there are 4 levels of credit lending; A, A alt, B alt, and private lending, with A yielding the most favourable terms. If you are A rated broker fees are paid by the lender, but if lower rates the fees will be paid by the borrower (1/2% amortised with the loan).Your local bank will not charge broker fees even if you are less than A rated.

Start with a good broker and have them assess your file without submitting (if borderline get a second broker opinion). If it's unanimous that you are A rated, the brokers will most likely be able to get you the best rate as they have access to many different lenders and products. However if it's unanimous that you are less than A rated, your local bank will typically be able to give you more favourable rates and save you on the broker fees.

I would avoid having the brokers/bank make an application until you have gone through this process, as multiple credit apps/rejection will affect your credit rating.

I ended up with TD as I am a recent resident and have a short credit history. The broker advised that within a year with 2 good lines of credit I could anticipate rising to A rating.

Hope this helps and if you have any other questions, please shout.

Tristan

@Elliott Russell,

Welcome to the forums bud. I haven't come across a meet-up on the island yet. I myself am based in Vancouver but spend a lot of time in Nanaimo as the gf's family live there. We are heading over to Victoria next Saturday for an REI expo. If you're around, hmu

hah.. No, another province. Like I said I'm not a native, so I screw up terminology daily