Hey guys,

Richard i actually meant it will help us be able to get the same 80%lvr finance but with lower fees.
U say high fees are not necessary so may i ask who u would suggest we go through for 80% lvr loans for propertys valued at less than 50K ? Because i havent found any lenders other than 1 that will even offer these to us foreigners.(and they charge high fees)
From memory when I asked u ,u couldnt arrange these 80% lvrs for under 50K?
Has something changed with yr lenders?
Thanks
Luke

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

The banks will quite easily loan u the money.It is not hard to be in front one day then realising u cant keep up with the payments.Possibly the tenants moved out on a few of them for example and they were already maxed out on payments.

Its important to remember to take responsability when loaning money and have a strategy ready to put into action(early) for when something goes wrong,otherwise u can lose the lot.
That is dissapointing as they must have done something right and worked hard to be able to control 5 propertys in the first place.

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Good post Brisbane man!
The positives definately outway the negatives !
Ill try give some of both.
Um,negatives (we always seem to like going to the negative first hey ha ha,these are funny),
All within a period of a month, in one of the areas I have property .
(WNY)

one house.-My upstairs tenants boyfriend had a late night and apparently had some nest time in his car (thats sleep),out the front of the house,when he arrived home.Then shortly after , he was awoken with a bullet .Yes thats right the dude got shot.Far out,mate ,so of course we had to try and calm the tenant and encourage them how good a place it really is to live ,but gave them the option if they wanted to move on.They are still there now.
(Earlier in the year a little boy was shot in the same street the tenant tells me)

another house.-I got a call from the PM saying there had been a raid done on the house where the perps just smashed in the doors and found what they were lookin for (drugs i guess),then left.
And no sign of the tenant.2 hours later we find the house is cleared out.( except for a billiard table and heaps of rubbish)
Then the police squads came over and did there thing.

another house-.I find out that the girl is running a brothel in my house,from the tenant in the other side of the duplex. I just leave this one in the hands of the PM.

But these types of problems are just part of the whole package when buying in some places.You have to expect them otherwise you would be a nervous wreck.

The positives with this same area just to balance out yr fear are ,
One house (the brothel)I got around a 50% return cashflow on (for around 5.5months out of
and also did a rehab and had sold it within 8 months with a nice profit with no work on my part (just managing managers.which can definately steal yr emotional bouyancy if u get yr feelings involved)

So my strategy in this area (WNY) has changed with future purchases.Now if i expand in this particular area ( to counteract other issues ive had with repairs)I will make sure i get specific reports done on all items on the house(heating ,electrical,roof and plumbing)& then look only to buy propertys that either:
have new furnaces,roof,full electrical upgrade and new plumbing(copper is best) already in them and are still under market value(not investor market value) so that if i need to re sell ,there is little chance of losses..
Or:
I look for a property that has enough equity in it that after i put all new stuff(upgrades noted above) through it (to make it a reliable and trustable investment if i buy and hold it) & it is under local market value,so i can sell it at a profit if needed.
Of course this takes a lot more work than just buying something u see through somebody elses recomendation or pictures but is worthwhile if u have the time and have made some good contacts you can trust .(which is very difficult in WNY).But good contacts unfortunately only become good contacts after u have tried them and tested them over time.

Some of the Positives
I have bought some great propertys in another area through some great contacts from Westan and Alvin johnson.and went on a great tour with a whole group of us which helped grow my investing journey by a long shot in the US.This was awesome.
I have learned also that ,what strategy which is good and positive and right for the guy next to u ,may not be the best or even work for me.and vice versa.
I have learned that you have to check up that advice that u r given by people , measures up to yr standards.By that i mean that often people will try and help u out of the goodness of their heart but can be wrong in their advice.(thus making it worse than if they didnt tell u anything)
You need to test everything because everyone is still learning,even the best investors from here and in the states.

My Basic US Strategy in one area is to buy with equity built in ,in an area next to areas that have already boomed with good cashflow returns (and without finance if possible(on subject to mortgage)and hold for 5 yrs.(or untill mortgage has to be paid out(sometimes 1 to 3 yrs on s-to)

I am also starting to research condo conversions with a thought of possibly doing a small one in the future.

I am also keen to build my FICO score in the next 6 months so i can get easy finance without HUGE fees and v high LVRs.

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Hey guys!
Yer definately Ozie , well put ,regarding the rushing in without extensive due diligence! I agree .
Thanks

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Do you have an idea of an area you are thinkin you would like to live (Brisbane you said?) apart from where yr rental property is?
As sometimes if its going to be yr family home for a fair while their will probably be some emotion involved.So it maybe wise to rent in the area first that u like to get a feel for it if you really want to live thier.(it sounds like yr doing ths?)As you may be able to make another purchase if you like the area, instead of moving into yr IP.
Have a good look at the equity you have in yr propertys and how much you can afford.

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Ozi you have raised some great points for discussion and some definite concerns to look into.
However firstly, everybody needs a place to live .(even in the winter)
Also life is not always risk free.
But i believe if u don’t take a few (calculated) risks in life ,u get to the end of yr life and say”far out i really wish i stepped out of the box and went for it more in life”,and yes sure u will make some mistakes along the way but think how y’ll feel if u do succeed!!
This is the way i would really love to live!

As far as US investing is concerned its really not as scarey as it seems.
There are many people around (including this forum) who are willing to help u along on yr journey too.Of course ultimately a person has to make their own decisions and risks eventually but I believe taking opportunitys in life (eg,like investing in other countrys or just new strategies in yr home country) helps to build yr confidence and ultimately make you a bigger person.Then when the next hurdle comes into yr life down the track you are ready to tackle it & go through it with boldness.

definately no disrespect meant,
Luke

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Hey dare to dream,
15 to 25% gross returns are possible depending on the quality of yr long distant management over there.(as u cant just drop in to sort out problems of course)
It depends on the areas u buy in too.Many of the areas u can get huge returns in carry higher risk and higher maintenance(management etc)
(eg i have a property that is currently returning about 40% gross but is a very very high risk area)
The other issue is the ability to keep the tenant in the house.Alot of the higher return areas (generally speaking) come with high maintenance tenants in them too. And dealing with these sorts of problems over a period of time can become a real hassle.

The banks will let u borrow up to around 80% on most areas and houses in the states (including the higher maintenance areas.)(even under 50K but these lenders can be very sloooooow)
But,the fees for a foreign national to borrow over 70% over there can be HuGE! so u would need to be buying under market value to make it worth while.
And if u r buying on a 70% lvr u also want to buy under market value too,as otherwise the cash on cash return may make it so it takes a while before u r getting a decent return for the outlay and effort.(of course that is very general and depends on yr strategy)
The interest rates run at anything from 6% up to 8.5% generally unless u r going for a short term hard money lend which can be up to 18%+.

Yr other question regarding what return u would get on a 20%gross?
If yr talking about west new york generally speaking (if u bought an above average property) with maintenace,rates,taxes,letting fees (when tenants move out and u need to find more),etc,etc ,
u could see around 8 to 10% net return,and if managed exceptionally well up to 12.5%.max

I have propertys in wny and texas but would definately recommend
that texas has a really bright future.The place is booming!
I personally think buying for instant equity gain (on sale)is best (in my strategy)and then buy in an area where u can plan for capitol gain as well,rather than buying solely on cashflow returns from a property at market value.(as it takes a few years of positive cashflow ,not to mention the loooking after the property,before u can make up the (say15 to 20K)equity u could have made when u purchased the property)
The states is a place where their are so many opportunities to buy under market value that u really dont need to buy at market value. (due to all the overextending and (Pre)/ forclosures)

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Hey Guys,
Being young myself , I am all for encouraging other young investors!
If someone wants to arrange a group meeting I would be happy to share some experiences .

Luke

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

Thanks for that info Ben!

Richard thanks,yes i agree with you on the time frame with indymac (it is
wrong!up to 4 months)
but until now i didnt know of any other that would lend to us foreign nationals,
for propertys purchased at$50K and under ,
then loan 80% on that figure .

Thanks
luke

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!

These guys do 80% loans to foreign nationals,but not sure if they work direct with the public.

IndyMac Bank, F.S.B., a federally chartered savings bank
of 155 North Lake Avenue
Pasadena,CA 91101

We’ve got 70 yrs on planet earth,Lets make the most of every day!