Visit to Memphis

After the huge success of house #3, I decided to fly down to TN.  I actually flew into central MS first and we all 3 met to discuss things.  Also, during that time we met with our banker and took him to lunch.  We laid out our company and our strategy, and asked for what we wanted.  In doing our number crunching we wanted to make sure 10% down at 5.75% were doable going forward (barring no major change in the economy) or at least figure out what would be.  They said based on our history and our balance sheet and P&L's (which we brought with us), they were comfortable doing that.

So now we're in a position where we are all but guaranteed a loan with 10% down and 5.75% interest on future properties.  That's a good spot to be in.  It's taken 3 years to get here, but we're here.  I then trekked up to Memphis with my brother where we spent 3 days driving around and analyzing the area.  We further defined our farm area and where we did and did not want to be.  We drew a map of where we're interested in properties and divided it into sections so we can keep history on those sections and then in the future further weight them as to where we REALLY want to be as we start to buy property in those areas.  That was the most valuable thing we've done since we started this company.

I have to say I can definitely see myself doing this for the rest of my life.  Real estate is a real passion of mine and I can't wait until we can afford to do this full time.  It helps to love real estate and love even the tedious stuff that most people don't (like financials and taxes).  Even the most mundane tasks, you have to love doing or this might not be the path for you.