Posted on Sep 11, 2022
PFC Ambulance Driver
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I'm looking for ways to increase my income rather than having to wait every two weeks for a paycheck which will then get destroyed in bills (have a relatively nice gas saver I'm paying for). I saw that real estate a good way to go via using the VA loan and I heard about some service members having 100+ houses over the span of their military career. Therefore, I was wondering if there were any mentors on here who have experience in such things. I'm a PFC and I'm in the Fort Hood area.

Thanks in advance.
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Responses: 10
SFC Retention Operations Nco
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If you use a VA loan, the house you buy has to be your primary residence. You can't use it to purchase a property as an investment. If you want to develop properties with the VA loan you have to move in, use it as your primary residence, then pay the loan off completely to free up your VA loan. Then do it again.
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COL Randall C.
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Edited >1 y ago
Unless you buy the house to occupy and turn it into an investment property after you leave, you can't use a VA loan for it - VA loans can only be used for your primary house.

However, you can always become "a military slumlord" ... this is the term given to military folks that get assigned to a new location, buy a house, live in it, hang onto it and rent it out after they leave and repeat the process at the new duty location. Unless you have the resources to do it right now, that's probably the easiest way for you to ease into getting investment properties.

I would take that "100+ houses of the span of a military career" with a industrial size bag of salt. Is it 'possible'? Sure ... it's possible that a meteor will crash into your house as well.
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PFC Ambulance Driver
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>1 y
I was going to wait till I became at least SGT to actually try investing so I wanted to lay my foundational knowledge beforehand, sir.
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COL Randall C.
COL Randall C.
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PFC (Join to see), I'm by no means a "real estate mogul", but I've had three investment properties over the years by being a 'military slumlord'.

I bought the first one when I was a 2LT over 30 years ago (still have it and rent it out), but I didn't get it with the idea of turning it into an investment property. I purchased it because it was better financially for me to buy than rent. As I was getting closer to PCSing, I worked the numbers and decided that I would give a shot to renting it out. Have had good luck over the years so I kept it and did it again with the next two houses.
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Cpl Vic Burk
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PFC (Join to see) I didn't know the VA did loan guarantees for anything but your primary residence. Maybe they have changed it since the early 1980's.
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PFC Ambulance Driver
PFC (Join to see)
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I don't really know. I'm just starting to learn about it after hearing about how some service members made a good bit of wealth from using the VA loan to invest in real estate. I know I'm not capable now but having the know-how of how to do it should help a good bit.
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SP5 Peter Keane
SP5 Peter Keane
>1 y
As stated over and over in this thread, you will NEVER use VA Loan guarantees to become a real estate investor.
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