All Forum Posts by: Mindy Jensen

Kelvin, with rates having been so low for so long, it can feel like right now we're too high. But we're not. 7% is the average interest rate, historically speaking. (Of course, prices have skyrocketed since the last time rates were 7%...)

The problem with "...am questioning if I should buy now or continue to save in hopes that mortgage rates drop in a couple of months. ..." is that rates might not go down for YEARS - if at all.

Inflation keeps coming in hot. The unemployment numbers keep coming in hot. All factors that could indicate the economy is cooling down are NOT, in fact, indicating that the economy is cooling down.

Can you afford the property at the current rates you will lock in indefinitely or would the payment eventually crush you? 

If it would crush you, then no, don't buy. We don't have any idea when rates might come down, if at all. The Fed does NOT seem inclined to reduce them, and all the people saying they'll come down have absolutely no idea when that will actually happen.

If, however, you can afford to make the payment indefinitely, then now is a great time to buy because should rates come down, you'll be the only one refinancing that property, instead of being in a bidding war with others who were also waiting for rates to drop.

Hey Danielle.

I'm going to go in a different direction than some of the other commenters.

I am an agent, and depending on your state, getting licensed can be a BIG commitment, both time- and cost-wise.

I wouldn't recommend getting licensed unless you want to work as a real estate agent, helping people buy and sell properties. The licensure coursework doesn't teach you anything about real estate. 

I would also caution you to do a deeper dive into wholesaling. It's not the easy endeavor that the people on the videos make it seem like. 

Quote from @Jack Seiden:

Quote from @Henry Lazerow:

I have made several great connections on BP from contractors to many millions in closed deals from house hacker clients. I even met my business partner on here who started as one of my realtor clients and we are now on our 2nd project together. BP doesn't hide real names of users which adds validity to whats posted on here and I think this site does a good job of keeping guru spam out. But then comes Reddit haha I have never seen a group of bigger losers in my life. Most of their deal numbers posted make no sense and it seems many are completely lying under hidden usernames. I posted a few deal diaries on Reddit and got 3 client leads all were complete junk, one I swear I heard his mom yelling at him in the background during our call, another was talking about building a huge portfolio of rental properties when had $0 in savings. I was trying to be nice and just explain that you can't actually manage real estate if you have no money and no experience. Even if manage to find a crazy deal with instant equity to cover your down payment (unlikely) still need reserves to safely repair and manage it. 

I have basically a litany of complaints about the way biggerpockets has evolved in recent years and yet it is still by far the single best place to discuss real estate on the internet.

 Hey Jack. I'd love to hear more about this.

Looking to chat about Co-ops, and how to take title with one. Looking for information about assuming a loan after the death of a spouse.

Every Friday, Scott and I review the finances of a listener, to give suggestions about how they can better their financial situation.

If you are paycheck to paycheck and have no idea where your money goes, want to know if your rental portfolio is a great performing portfolio, or simply interested in having another set of eyes on your scenario, fill out the form at www.biggerpockets.com/financereview.

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The only place to post listings is in the Real Estate Listings Section. 

I need to reduce the price of my property for sale. A reduced list price means I'm paying less in Capital Gains Taxes. How would a "Credit at Closing to help with Buyer's Closing Costs" come into play?

Does this also reduce the amount of Capital Gains Tax, since it is less money I am receiving?

Hi @Luke Smith

This is the place to ask your questions. No need to have people DM you, you can just ask right here. That is what the forums are for. 

HELOCs have historically been difficult to get on rental properties, and the only lender I knew of who did write HELOCs on rentals is no longer doing that, as of April. 

You're asking about Vacation Homes and Second Homes, which tells me you're probably trying to utilize a Vacation Home Mortgage to purchase a property, that perhaps you would then rent out short term? If you have no plans to use this solely as your vacation home, you should not use that type of mortgage. Instead, use a traditional rental mortgage. 

You're probably not intending to be fraudulent, however as the Community Manager here, I feel compelled to inform you that lying on a mortgage application, stating that you intend to use the property in one way when you actually intend to use it in an altogether different way, is mortgage fraud which is a felony punishable by up to $1 million in fines and significant prison time.

We recently released an episode of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast with @Jon Lallande, where he gave mortgage tips and we touched on mortgage fraud near the end. Jon shared several different ways to help you qualify for a loan, different loan options, etc. Check out

https://www.biggerpockets.com/...