Is It Better to Rent or Buy an Owner-Occupant Property for 5% Down When Otherwise Buying 25% Down Rentals?

Warning - Risks of Rental Property Expenses When Investing in Real Estate

Risk is all around us.

When we choose to invest in anything, we’re choosing to take on the additional risk characteristics of that investment.

For example, when we choose to invest in real estate, we choose to take on the risk characteristics of the specific real estate investing we opt to do minus the risk mitigation and elimination strategies we put in place.

One of the risks of investing in real estate is the risk of rental property expenses increasing.

James discusses those risks and how to mitigate or eliminate them in this mini-class.

Check out the video from this class here:

Warning - Risks of Rental Property Expenses When Investing in Real Estate - Video

In this class, James discusses:

• A George S Patton quote about fear, risks and making decisions.
• An introduction to Rent Resiliency™, Price Resiliency™, Vacancy Resiliency™, Property Insurance Resiliency™, Maintenance Resiliency™, HOA Resiliency™, Utilities Resiliency™, Capital Expenses Resiliency™, Property Management Resiliency™ and Property Taxes Resiliency™
• Eliminating some risk by using fixed rate financing options
• How increasing expenses don't mean 1:1 reduction in cash flow
• Options when Property Taxes get too high?
• Options when Insurance gets too high?
• Options when Principal and Interest change?
• Options when Interest Rates rise?
• Plus much more...

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

How to Analyze a New Construction Single-Family Home Property in Santa Monica

Your ability to analyze deals is arguably the most important skill as a real estate investor. It allows you to make smart investment decisions and helps you avoid making career-ending bad decisions, such as buying cash-flowing-sucking vampire properties.

In this class, James will help you utilize The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ (a free download) to analyze a new construction single-family home that you plan to buy as an investment.

Analyzing new construction is slightly different from analyzing resale properties, and James will cover these differences in this deal analysis class.

Check out the video from this class here:

How to Analyze a New Construction Single-Family Home Property - Video

Or, check out the deal analysis example for Santa Monica, California:

Deal Analysis for Santa Monica 5% Down Single-Family Home Nomad™ Property

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

The 3 Strategies to Pay Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI)

Whether they're putting 15% down and buying a non-owner-occupied property or utilizing an owner-occupied loan with 0%, 3%, 3.5%, or 5% down for Nomading™ or house hacking, some real estate investors will choose to put less than 20% down. With the decision to put less than 20% down comes the choice of how to pay for private mortgage insurance (PMI).

There are three options (plus some combinations of the three options): up-front lump sum, lender-paid, and monthly. And, as you might have guessed, there are pros and cons to each option.

In this mini-class, James will cover the three options and go over the pros and cons of each.

Check out the video from this class here:

The 3 Strategies to Pay Private Mortgage Insurance - Video

In this class, James discusses:

• What is Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) and why does it exist?
• Paying PMI with a single, upfront, lump-sum payment
• Voluntarily increasing your mortgage interest rate and having the lender pay for PMI
• Paying PMI monthly
• The pros and cons of utilizing each strategy
• Plus much more...

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

Investing in real estate is full of truthy-sounding falsehoods: it is always better to do X than Y. However, if you were crazy enough to sit down and do the math, you'd find the truth to be much more nuanced.

For example, should you take all your extra cash flow and savings and apply it to your mortgages each month to pay off rental properties faster? And if you do, is that a faster path to financial independence? Does it result in your having a higher overall net worth? A higher overall standard of living in retirement? Is it less risky to do that?

That's what we will discuss in this special comparison class.

I have analyzed over 300 US markets for someone utilizing the Nomad™ real estate investing strategy in two flavors. In one group, they do the traditional Nomad™ model and do not pay anything extra to pay off their mortgages early. In the other group, they do Nomad™ but they apply extra cash flow toward paying off their properties early.

Which group performs better in the metrics we outlined above? Is it universally better? Or is it market-dependent?

Find out in this mini-class.

Check out the video and interactive charts from this class here:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/model/nomad-or-pay-off-early-with-cash-flow/

Or, see Santa Monica specific, detailed analysis of a variety of strategies here:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/model/CA/Santa_Monica/

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

Deal Alchemy™ - Cash Flow to Debt Paydown

There are four primary returns from investing in rental properties: appreciation, cash flow, debt paydown, and the tax benefits of depreciation. Additionally, there is a secondary return in the form of the interest earned on the reserves required to make the investment in the first place.

Many real estate investors prefer the cash flow return over the others.

Often, we can manipulate the investment to shift returns between appreciation, cash flow, debt paydown, tax benefits, and reserves. We call this Deal Alchemy™.

There are many variations of Deal Alchemy™, but in this mini-class, James will guide you through the process of shifting your return from cash flow to debt paydown, resulting in a higher overall return.

Check out the video from this class here:

Deal Alchemy™ - Cash Flow to Debt Paydown - Video

In this class, James discusses:

• The definition of alchemy
• What is Deal Alchemy™
• How to manipulate returns and move them between quadrants
• An example of utilizing a 15-year mortgage instead of a 30-year mortgage to change the return to debt paydown
• Plus much more...

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

Warning - The Risk of Down Payment Size When Investing in Real Estate

Life is full of risks. When we choose to invest, we choose to take on additional risks.

If we invest in stocks, we choose to take on certain risks. When we choose to invest in bonds, we take on different risks. When we choose to invest in real estate, we choose to take on additional and different risks.

One of the risks associated with real estate investing is the risk of down payment size.

If you put a large amount down—or even choose to pay cash and put 100% down—you have certain risks. If you choose to put a small amount down—or even nothing down—you have other risks. These risks change with the amount you put down.

In this mini-class, James will look at the risks associated with the amount you put down when investing in real estate.

Check out the video from this class here:

Warning - The Risk of Down Payment Size When Investing in Real Estate - Video

In this class, James discusses:

• A George S Patton quote about fear, risks and making decisions.
• The Risk Matrix and The Risk Matrix for property appreciation (and property declines)
• An introduction to Rent Resiliency™ and Price Resiliency™
• Case-Shiller Home Price Index - Home Price Appreciation Over Previous 12 Months
• A Case-Shiller chart showing mortgage interest rates, population, real building costs and home prices over the last 133 years
• Year-Over-Year Home Price Appreciation over the last 133 years and the frequency of price declines (and price increases)
• What are you risking?
• Plus much more...

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

How to Analyze a 5% Down Single-Family Nomad™ Property in Santa Monica

Using the latest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™, we will walk through how to analyze a single-family home Nomad™ property with a 5% down payment.

Learn how to analyze deals correctly and avoid buying cash flow vampires. Only buy the best deals that make sense in this special mini-class, which is part of our deal analysis series.

Check out the video from this class here:

How to Analyze a 5% Down Single-Family Nomad™ Property - Video

Or, check out the deal analysis example for Santa Monica, California:

Deal Analysis for Santa Monica 5% Down Single-Family Home Nomad™ Property

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

What Affects Your PMI Rate

Lenders prefer that you put at least 20% down, but if you push hard enough, many will allow you to put less than 20% down if you're willing to purchase insurance to protect them in case you default. This insurance is called Private Mortgage Insurance.

The cost of this insurance depends on several factors. Some are primary factors and have a significant impact on the cost of the insurance policy. Other factors are secondary and affect the premium, but only to a smaller extent.

In this mini-class, James will go over the things that affect your private mortgage insurance rate if you decide to put less than 20% down when buying properties.

Check out the video from this class here:

What Affects Your PMI Rate - Video

In this class, James discusses:

• What is Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) and why does it exist?
• Factors that affect your PMI rate
• Loan-To-Value of the property (often just the first lien)
• Coverage amount for the lender
• Your credit score
• Amortization term of the loan itself - shorter terms have lower PMI
• Fixed and variable payment amounts
• Time you’ve been paying the rate
• Lender (separate pricing sheet for Credit Unions)
• Hard minimums for PMI rates
• Cash-out refinance
• Second home
• Employee relocation loans
• Manufactured Homes
• Investment Property
• 3-4 units
• Lender-Paid Monthly Premium
• Declining Renewals
• Annual Premium
• Refundable Monthly Premium
• High Debt-To-Income Ratio (> 45% DTI)
• More than 1 borrower on the loan (reduces PMI rate)
• Plus much more...

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

You're a real estate investor looking to acquire properties by saving up and putting 25% down. Should you buy an owner-occupied property first? What if that's more expensive than renting? Should you still do it? What if it means you'll be saving less for acquiring rentals by buying an owner-occupied property first?

In this comparison class, we will put buying 25% down rentals in a head-to-head competition... We will analyze 304 real estate markets and see if you can achieve financial independence faster by buying an owner-occupied property first. We'll also look at your net worth and see if buying an owner-occupied property or renting leads to a higher overall net worth.

Check out the video and interactive charts from this class here:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/model/25-rent-oo/

Or, see Santa Monica specific, detailed analysis of a variety of strategies here:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/model/CA/Santa_Monica/

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.

Deal Alchemy™ - Lease-Options

Different real estate investors desire, prefer, and prioritize different returns. For example, many real estate investors have a strong preference for the cash flow part of their return.

With Deal Alchemy™, we can manipulate returns and move them from one area to another. Or, we can move them from one or more areas to one or more other areas.

For example, using Deal Alchemy™, we can sometimes manipulate the appreciation return in exchange for better cash flow.

In this mini-class, James will talk about how to use Deal Alchemy™ with a lease-option deal to manipulate returns from appreciation to cash flow, plus much more.

Check out the video from this class here:

Deal Alchemy™ - Lease-Options - Video

In this class, James discusses:

• The definition of alchemy
• What is Deal Alchemy™
• How to manipulate returns and move them between quadrants
• An example of utilizing a lease-option to move returns to improved cash flow
• A discussion on how to apply an option-fee
• Plus much more...

Free Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet: Download a copy of the newest version of The World's Greatest Real Estate Deal Analysis Spreadsheet™ by going to:

https://RealEstateFinancialPlanner.com/spreadsheet

Improve Cash Flow: Book a consultation to improve cash flow using our proprietary 88 cash flow improving strategies.

Real Estate Agent & Lender Collaborators: Interested in collaborating with us on the Santa Monica real estate investor podcast? Book a free consultation to discuss.