Real Estate Investing

[brockhals]

Is anyone into this? Whether in rentals, flips (rehabbing) or private lending? I'm getting ready to get into this very heavily. Carrie and I took a weekend course thru Fortune Builders and signed up to be part of their program. It's something we've thought about doing for over seven years now and are finally jumping in. I can't wait to get started

 

[McMark]

We have two rentals. One in daytona beach shores that will be our retirement home at some point, and the other near us in PA. If you can do the maintenance yourself, it's worth it.

 

[BoaterGuy]

I have a rental in PA (Single Family). Taxes suck for it and my rent just covers the mortgage, but like i said you still have to pay taxes on the income.

Maintenance isnt so bad so far, but I have yet to have a major failure (crossing fingers). There is a lot of risk, especially if you dont have a good relationship with your tenant(s). They may not tell you about important things that need attention before they become major problems.

If you use a management company expect to pay 18% for full management. Renting is not for the faint hearted and you usually need more than one to turn a profit.

Also recessions and layoffs can leave you double screwed if you lose your job at the same time your tenant(s) do/does.

Upside is building equity and potential for retirement income/and or home. I would stay close to home, especially for your first one. Location is key just like buying to live in it.

What do you plan on doing? What is your income expectations? What is your timeframe for keeping the properties? Do you have adequate insurance? (Umbrella, Renters Homeowners policy, Flood damage, etc...)

At the very least I recommend a $2 million umbrella policy. This will require you to up all of your other insurance limits as well, so keep that in mind. Your homeowners policy will also probably double in price.

 

[Shuck Water]

My wife and I do flips and rentals. It helps that she's an agent and I would highly suggest that one of you get a real estate license. The hardest part is finding good deals in this market. We actually just sold off our portfolio (3 houses and a condo) because folks are bidding stupid money for real estate in Dallas right now.

Frankly speaking, you don't need to be a part of any "program". Get access to your local MLS and then start reaching out to all the local wholesalers in the area and get on their distribution lists. If you want to do flips you need to build your network of trades as I have learned that speed to market on a flip is much more important that some savings doing the work yourself.

If you want to be a landlord, stick to your guns. Everyone has a sob story and some times you have to be the bad guy and evict someone. Also, be advised that stuff inevitably seems to break at 11:00PM and that while you may be handy, a home warranty can be your best friend.

 

[MIDLIFECRISIS]

Me and my wife have a 11 unit apartment complex. Some times it can be time comsuming,but luck would have it that I have the knowledge and the tools to do just about anything that needs to be done.

 

[ToddW850]

My wife is a realtor here around Destin/South Walton/30-A and all that. She works with people that flip houses.

If anyone is needing a realtor up here in the Florida Panhandle, let me know and I can have the best realtor in the area contact you.

 

[brockhals]

I signed up with Fortune Builders after their long weekend (Friday - Sunday, 10 hours each day!). We learned so much that we elected to join their Mastery program to continue our education and utilize their systems and proven tools (like a Franchise but not). It really sounds like a great program they offer. I can't wait to dive in, I've already identified two rental opportunities with decent cash flow that I can get for a decent price, but I'm not ready to tie up my cash just yet...even though they'd have a 15-20% ROI annually...before write offs.

Is anyone interested in short term (year or less) private lending? If so, I'd love to talk to you about our structure, investment opportunities, etc. This is a business I plan to hit very hard and retire (i.e. live off the passive income) in 10 years, but will likely continue to work the business, cause it's hard for me to give up on making money...I'll likely just hire out some workers to run the day to day stuff...actually will start to do that next year