“I do recommend Bank of America if you are building your credit, by getting their get their secured credit card. After about 6 months you should be able to get an unsecured card and then close your account.”
We were told a similar thing.

If any Aussie has succeeded in getting an unsecured credit card in the US within the last couple of years, we…[Read more]

Hi Jay,We agree, DIY is exhausting and slow, the time lag negates some (or all) of the profits as compared to good tradies and labourers who may cost a bit more, (but way less than comparables in Aus!) and get the job done more efficiently.Plus, we need to use local workers to comply with our visa.Plus, to rehab without a registered contractor…[Read more]

I'm not your client yet, Jay!But thanks, will look at your hardware deals!

Hi Manna, thanks, website should be fixed now.Hi Jay,Yes, your comments are not far from reflective of the current market in Phoenix.Except the one in three profit from rehabs! Much better than that! That is where our own experience in property, combined with our local contacts with long-standing hands-on knowledge in the Phoenix market are a b…[Read more]

Hi Jay,A fair enough question.We are managing fix and flips, mostly through joint venturing with our clients.That way, we have a vested interest in their investing success.Can I point out, the end buyer is the public, generally a home buyer. We are NOT selling rehabbed houses at inflated prices to unsuspecting Aussie investors who think they ar…[Read more]

We have insured empty houses with American Modern, from Aus at the time.They were empty due to being rehabbed, and we paid a premium also.Have not been rejected by an insurance company, when trying to insure from Aus.Ruthpropertyinvestingusa.com

We have transferred money from Aus to USA via OZForex, straight into our Wells Fargo account.Took 2 days.I'm sure OzForex can do it in reverse.If you call OzForex, they'll tell you if they can't send money from USA back to Aus.Ruthpropertyinvestingusa.com

It's true, not many Americans know what an ITIN is, but in many cases we have been able to use our ITIN and that has worked. But not in borrowing from any bank.Mihovi, thanks for sharing. You seem to have hit about the same wall, apparently because you don't live in USA, even though you have had a credit history here in the past. But they are not…[Read more]

Interesting, sjs….

It is our current experience that, having a 16 month banking history including their ‘secured’ credit cards, even ‘our’ bank will not lend to us on our ITIN. We can’t even apply for a real credit card without a #SSN, which is not the initial info we were given.
We can’t borrow to buy a vehicle (purpose: to borrow to build…[Read more]

Thanks for the clarification of notary at point of law, lawsjs.
Complex!

True, you don’t need a #SSN to open a US bank account.
But post what we Aussies called the GFC, I don’t know if any Aussie investor has borrowed from a US bank without a #SSN.

So as a pre-GFC known borrower, you personally are still able to borrow in US (I presume) without…[Read more]

From our experiences of selling US property while living in Aus,

A US notary is easily located by going to the website notarypublic.com.au
You just put in your location, and the closest notaries to you will come up.
Most notaries in Aus are solicitors.

You do not need to go to a US Embassy.

But you will need to pay, $50-100 per document is…[Read more]

We have found the above info to be true,Namely that you do have to be in the States to set up a bank account. unless you have very big contacts there.I think it has to be a notary who will personally vouch for you, ie has met you in person and will I.D. you in Aus with your Aussie passport.You certainly need a real US address (not a post office…[Read more]

Hi Debra,We have E2 visas and are from Sydney, now in Phoenix AZ.The E2 visa requirement is not just about you investing at least $100,000 in USA.It is about having a company that will be viable and actually employs people (must be legal US residents other than you and your partner, if applicable. And also, about renting commercial space to run…[Read more]

A few quick facts to straighten your misconceptions,Neither house was a mobile home.Fix and flips takes a lot of specific expertise and most realtors don't have the skills to pick a fix and flip. Their training is in selling houses, not picking rehab deals. A realtor in general, of course wants to sell houses and Aussie investors should beware of…[Read more]

Well, lawsjs,I'm not sure whether to defend ourselves or not even bother.Anonymous people with a largely unknown track record, apart from what they have chosen to disclose online, are ok to throw mud at people they do not know.And people like us who have and are, putting a lot of time and effort into specialising in a new investing area in addi…[Read more]

Gosh, Gavin.We were sent the report by a concerned family member.Sorry to hear of your dramas.So many shonks out there.We are trying to give investors a US investing alternative with integrity, rather than charge a huge up front fee, and just sell something we marked up 40% plus, above its real value.How do those people sleep at night!!Ruth…[Read more]

No capital gains tax in USA.Re selling problems?We've sold 2 rehabbed houses in the past year, and done a IRS tax return after the first.If you have a house in an area people want to live, in reasonable condition, it should sell at a reasonable price.But sometimes buying off the net, its hard to realise the area could be one no-one chooses to l…[Read more]

Hey Steve,We agree with lots of your comments.We have been in Phoenix for 11 days this time, and about 3 weeks (on 3 different trips) last year.To invest in USA as an Aussie without having a very good knowledge of the specific area you are investing in, is pretty risky.And investing in the hope of capital growth, which may pay off, is sp…[Read more]

Hey Von Krumm…You will notice a leaning in the last few posts, towards buying for capital growth."Not that there's anything wrong with that."But this post is about cashflow positive property!When buying for cashflow, you want to buy in an area that's not likely to go backwards eg one industry small town and they close the main factory. And you…[Read more]

If its CF+, great! After you've deducted all your holding costs, rates etc (see above article too.)If the value did go down (worst case scenario) but your rent return gave you the same CF+, then that's not a tragedy. You are still getting the same CF+ you were happy to buy it with. (Unless you needed to sell for other reasons.)The trick is, how…[Read more]