Can you Make The Jump To Owning An Apartment Building?

If you are like most people, the amount of capital you have available is limited and so is your experience in the real estate market. Therefore, you should most likely start off with something like a duplex or a fourplex apartment block. Just something where you can get that valuable hands on experience that we all need.

One valid method of building a real estate portfolio is to buy a
property, pay it off and live off the income. If you have another income that permits you to make investments in real estate every now and then, this strategy may be the one for you.

Another way may be to purchase an apartment building of whatever
size you are comfortable with that requires fixing up. Do not get me wrong. You do not want something that is about to fall down and in need of major repairs. Just something that as a handyman you can spend time improving. Any mug can pick up a paint brush, mow the lawns, trim the trees, maybe do a little landscaping and generally clean a place up a bit.

If you can do this and make the place look a little bit more
presentable then you can increase the rents. You may not be the
most popular man on the block but it will add value to the property in a reasonably short time. When you are ready and comfortable with taking the next step, you can either sell the property or refinance it. You can then use the accumulated equity from the exercise and leverage yourself to the next purchase of a larger property. 
 
This last strategy is a more aggressive and faster way of making the transition from a single-family to multifamily property ownership.

Like any business, if you want to be successful in the real estate game, it is important that you establish clearly defined objectives. This process will take some effort but the time taken here will help you to keep on track and contribute to your success.

What considerations have we when defining our objectives in this
transition to owning an apartment complex?
1. What type of property do you want? What is your price range? Are you going to use other peoples money to finance the purchase and how long do you want to keep it?
2. What improvements are you going to make? How much are you going to invest in these improvements and how much are you going to increase the rent? Will you receive a positive return on the investment?
3. What is the exit strategy? Are you going to be a short term or long term investor in this exercise? Is the current economy conducive to your plans? What are the interest rates doing? Are you going to sell up or refinance and utilize the accumulated equity to to invest in additional apartment buildings? Are you going to have to pay capital gains tax?

It is possible to make the transition from owning a single family unit to owning an apartment complex. The most important thing is to have a business plan. The plan will keep you focused and on track to achieving the success you strive for.