All Forum Posts by: Wilson Churchill

Any rental income should be reported on Schedule E, not C. Maybe that was a typo, but I want to make sure that you aren't overpaying your taxes. ;-)

No problems. You just need to make sure that you can transfer any remaining balances onto other BT promotions, if you want to keep your interest payments low. So use the cash flow to pay down the cards. The more you pay them off, the more credit they will extend. The only other risk is that the HELOC interest rate might rise, but this is offset by the lack of closing costs when it is established.

I suppose it depends on what city you buy in. I won't buy a property in a high-crime area at any price. I actually focus on buying sub-20k homes. I guess you could say I am a "bottom feeder". At this price, I am usually buying the lowest priced homes in town. I have actually found that there is a lot of competition for homes in this price range, while higher-priced homes sit on the market for a while. In certain cities, you need to make an all cash offer on the home the first day of the listing to get it. The key is to look at multiple homes and cherry-pick the best ones of the same price range. Having said this, there aren't any deals I'm interested in at the moment (on the MLS)..

I use HELOCs and CCs to buy rentals and flips.

Tips:

1. Shop around for the best rate on the HELOC

2. Use balance transfer promotions with the credit cards, or use Home Depot and Lowe's credit cards to finance the rehab. Ask for credit line increases after they have been paid off and your scores bounce back, and apply for additional cards simultaneously to limit the impact on your credit.

When I used to work with buyer's agents, they would normally just give out the lock box numbers so that I could go look at the homes (if they were vacant). I always wanted to look at several inexpensive homes... It probably makes more sense for an investor to work with a buyers agent when they are prepared to buy several properties in a shorter period of time, otherwise. I would say that it's probably a good idea to have a "buyers list" of investors that you could market your listings to, at least.

The first one, and it's no contest. If they each have pay stubs from the city, go for it.. I wouldn't allow pets in any case.

I have a few HELOC's through NFCU. It's a shame they only allow 4 properties.

I wouldn't pay it, in my opinion. I have a number of rental units, and still have over 10k in student loans that I just make minimum payments on.

Ugh, the car debate. I just buy the cheapest used car that meets my needs. If I do finance a car, I use a 0% balance transfer check. Then I am not required to maintain full coverage (which is certainly an additional cost).

I believe I am meeting the ERE standard for savings, though I haven't calculated a rate. I just never spend money on things that are not necessities. I use the cheapest phone plan (11.73 with tax per month), minimum car insurance, and live with roommates in a house that was paid off before I borrowed to buy additional homes. Any money I save gets rolled into the next deal.

Do you have any expenses that you can pay this month, instead of delaying them until next year? Have you paid all of your property taxes? Are there any repairs that need to be made that could be deducted as repairs in the current year? Do you have any stocks that you could sell this month at a loss that were held for less than a year? Can you take advantage of any charitable deductions this month?