OfflineOne of the things discussed in the book is getting started on your first deal without using any of your own money. Recently I was trying to look into buying and investment property in Hawaii where I currently live. Every mortgage lender i talked to made it clear to me that the only way i could get 100% financing was by using my VA benefit...which i can't use for an investment property that is not going to be my primary residence. The consensus from multiple lenders is that you have to put at least 20% down for an investment property mortgage. Since I don't have that nest egg to use to get started, i'm trying to figure out another way. Am I just looking in the wrong place for financing?
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There different ways to get 100% financing
one is lease with option
two is ownerfinancing
also you could use a hard money lender
most of the time youre going to have to work with more than one source to complete 100% financing
also talk to small community banks and credit unions
VA won't finance multi-units or rentals, but if you can get 100% financing through anyone, you should still go for it. Use that mortgage to get yourself a primary residence, VA will have its own guidelines for any property it finances. It will have to be a single-family home for your personal use, and they will not finance one that needs a whole lot of work. But VA has properties they've had to take back, similar to REO's, that you pick up for a lower price, possibly enough to make some money on down the road. Find out how long you have to live in a VA-mortgaged house before you can sell it.
Millions of us in this country, probably more by now, work every week of the year with no vacation, pay our taxes faithfully, and never asked anyone for anything. We support our troops wherever Washington sends them, and vote for whatever politician we think lies to us the least. Yet, in what is easily the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression, because we have moderate income and destroyed credit, Uncle Sam won't give us the time of day, much less a mortgage. You have a great opportunity here -- use it!
You can make money with a VA loan, and there are people on this site who have. Simply seek them out, and you'll have a leg up over the majority of us "newbies." Once you get your first deal done, it will give you all the momentum you need to get your 2nd, 3rd house, etc., etc. Before you know it, you'll have financing down to a science, and you'll be well on your way to any goals you set in REI. Hope this helped, and best of luck!
Paul: "I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when my fear is gone I will turn and face fear's path, and only I will remain."
Duke Leto: "I'll miss the sea, but a person needs new experiences. They jar something deep inside, allowing him to grow. Without change something sleeps inside us, and seldom awakens. The sleeper must awaken." - "Dune."