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Dual City Investments

How These 5 Steps to Acquiring an Investment Real Estate Property are Vital

Assuming you have already identified the property that fits into your investment strategy and entered a purchase and sale agreement (PSA), here are the next steps in the process of acquiring that property: ​

Review Due Diligence Items 

At the beginning of your due diligence period, you want to immediately verify financials, all the term of the leases and any options, size of the units/spaces, conduct a physical inspection walkthrough of the property and surrounding area, and any other pertinent information that led you to initially pursue the investment and that may impact your overall investment strategy. Remember from our previous video, don’t ever assume the information provided by someone else is accurate. Verify it yourself. 

Identify Debt and Equity Sources

Unlike financing your personal residence where there are only a few variables to consider, every commercial real estate deal is different and there are endless options for structuring and sourcing debt and equity for your deal. Even if you are a cash buyer, it is important to strategize on how to maximize your equity across your investments. This is another reminder why it is vital to have the right team around you to figure out the best path forward on each opportunity, and in this case, you will want to have a good mortgage broker on your team. 

Sometimes a simple bank loan is your best bet, but oftentimes, it is not and it is important to know what options are available in the market. Additionally, there are variable terms in each loan option including term (fixed/balloon), rate, and amortization, just to name a few. Any other guarantors or sponsors should be ready to provide: three years of tax returns, personal financial statement with schedule of real estate owned (SREO), liquidity verification statements, and a short bio of why they should be comfortable potentially lending you several million dollars. 

Additional Due Diligence Items You’ll Need

We reviewed the provided due diligence items, but now we need the additional information to make an informed decision on acquiring the property and which third parties the lender will require. During this due diligence phase, you’ll need to go ahead and move forward with ordering title searches and get insurance quotes. These are two simple items you don’t want to find out if there are issues at the last minute. Some items to consider at this stage, some of which the lender will require or directly order, would be: Survey, Property Condition Assessment (PCA), Phase 1, and Appraisal. These items will carry relatively significant non-refundable costs, which is why we conduct those initial checks first. 

Decision Time

We have gathered and reviewed all the pertinent information of the deal. You probably found some issues and there were a few surprises. You are on version 21 of your spreadsheet analysis and now your due diligence days are coming to an end with your earnest money going nonrefundable. This is where you have to ask yourself: Do I still want to acquire this property? If you have diligently inspected the physical and financial aspects of the deal, brainstormed with your team on the investment strategy, and modeled out contingency plans that you are comfortable with then let’s close it! Remember, there is no perfect deal and you will always have some doubts, which is why it is important to qualify the perceived downside risk of things potentially going sideways.

 

Closing Process

Okay, so what is left to finalize the acquisition? Well, a lot honestly (and something will likely be overlooked no matter how many times you have done this before!) 

 

  • Get the attorneys and lenders all your updated and final required legal and personal information for everyone involved: operating agreements, resolutions, coordinate notaries, and overnight original documents, etc.
  • Be ready to transfer services and onboard all vendors and tenants 
  • Bind insurance, utility deposits/start dates, make sure management is ready to go
  • Sit down (because the “other costs” add up!) Review and approve settlement statement or make any changes necessary 
  • Send in the funds and sign the docs! 

Congrats, you are well on your way to begin the acquisition process of an investment real estate property.


Dual City Investments is a commercial real estate investment firm built on fidelity and integrity while focusing on providing private equity investment opportunities with investor security as our priority. Our firm’s mission has been to produce consistent investment returns through a systematic approach across investment real estate and specialty asset classes. We provide trustworthy and consistent real estate investment options and specialize in identifying opportunities that allow for long-term wealth building. 

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