Should I wait?

General Real Estate Investing
1

Hey guys. I’ve been getting a lot of info in the short time I’ve been here. Here’s my situation.

FICO- 687-700
Household Income $75000
No rental experience.
Some remodeling experience.
Assets (401k,savings, bonds) $46000
Money to invest $3000.

I’d like to invest in rental properties. There are some in my area that need rehab for about $65,000 with a ARV of about $125,000. Some range from $95,000 - $150,000 with little or no work needed… They vary from 2 - 4 unit buildings. There may be a potential rehab SFH across the street from me. I don’t have any #'s on that yet. But a sweet old lady lived there and now she’s in assisted living. Her family has been taking care of the house. When I se them again I want to let them know I’m interested if they ever want to sell.
So here’s my question. Should I just try to get into a rental property the quickest way possible with HML? Or should I wait until I raise more money via savings, flipping etc… and raise my FICO. Since I own my own home with a wife & 2 kids, my debt to income is around 30%. A part of me wants to just get started ASAP however I can. I’d feel better if I had about $20,000 to $30,000 to use for investing but that could take up to a year of aggressive saving. I apologize for the long post. Any help would be appreciated. Thanx.

                              Mike
2

If you can use part of that $46,000 for reserves, then I think you would be good to go with rentals (once you understand the business). Just be sure you understand the numbers and the proper method of dealing with tenants BEFORE you buy anything.

Good Luck,

Mike

3

When you say reserves, Do you mean just in case i need it, or use it for down payment. I feel I know how to work the number well enough. My concern is not having enough for the down payment. I also ned to set aside some reserves for my personal expenses. I plan to stay at my job until I have enough positive cashfloe to cover my monthly expenses.

4

I meant being able to use some of the $46,000 in case of emergency while you’re building your business.

Mike

5

Actually I can use about $10,000 of the $46,000 to use for emergency. I could get a loan on my 401k in additon to that but I don’t want to do that.