Real Estate Rookie (BiggerPockets)

Episode: Should You Buy Your First Property with a Partner or Solo? (Rookie Reply)
Date: October 10, 2025
Hosts: Ashley Kehr & Tony J. Robinson

Overview

In this "Rookie Reply" episode, Ashley and Tony field three real-world questions from new and growing real estate investors:

1. Should you buy your first property with a partner, or go solo?
2. What happens when one tenant wants to vacate and the other wishes to stay?
3. How should hosts handle listing changes after guests have already booked on platforms like Airbnb or VRBO?

Their answers blend practical insights with entertaining anecdotes and actionable advice—especially focused on supporting beginners making their first, second, or third deals.

1. Should You Buy Your First Property with a Partner or Solo?

(Listener Question from Jason, 00:40)

Background

• Jason pays $2,750 rent in LA, has $80,000 saved, makes $200K+, qualifies for a VA loan, and wants to buy a $1-1.5M fourplex.
• Planning to co-invest with a friend: Jason 75%, friend 25%. Both would live in units, rent the other two.
• Hesitant on going solo, as his friend is also his business partner in another venture.

Key Discussion Points

• Do You Even Need a Partner?
  Tony questions the need for partnership, considering Jason’s strong financial standing and loan eligibility.

  "I don't fully understand the value of bringing in a partner on this deal. You've got the VA loan." – Tony (01:58)

• VA Loan Restrictions
  Ashley explains VA loans generally require the co-borrower to be a spouse or life partner—not a friend—which could complicate Jason’s plan.

  "Tony, with the VA loan, I don't think you can partner with anyone… it has to be a spouse… not your friend." – Ashley (02:48)

  "Unless you and your friend want to get married just to buy this deal...in Vegas at BPCon." – Tony (03:16-03:24, joking tone)

• Alternative Approaches
  Ashley suggests both Jason and his friend could separately buy their own house-hack properties using their own VA loans, then later co-own them via an LLC after moving out.

  "What I would do is I would buy your property with the VA loan, have your friend buy your property with their VA loan, both of you house, hack it..." – Ashley (04:09)

• Running the Numbers
  Tony walks through the numbers confirming the buy-in is affordable and may even be advantageous solo, especially with the possibility of 0% down.

  "Does the deal make sense? I mean, yeah... you would come out ahead both from an equity, taxes cash out of pocket on a monthly basis by doing this property." – Tony (05:06)

• Legal and Structural Concerns Ashley cautions about the difference between co-owning in personal names versus forming an LLC, and underscores the importance of an attorney and liability protection (e.g., umbrella insurance).

  "Owning a company that's like an LLC together and having a partnership is very different than co owning things in your personal name." – Ashley (06:54)

• Creative Cashflow Strategies Tony suggests boosting revenue with room rentals within two-bedroom units, referencing a prior guest, James Kitt, who maximized his house hacks this way.

  "Could you rent that out to beef up the revenue...maybe you get that up to $3250 or $3500 by adding in the room rentals." – Tony (07:50)

2. Handling Divorcing Tenants: Only One Wants to Stay

(Listener Question from Kevin, 11:08)

Background

• Kevin is a small landlord. A divorcing couple (family of five) on a month-to-month agreement: husband wants wife off the lease and to renew for another 12 months solo. Wife did not sign the projected renewal, nor comment.
• Unsure if he needs wife’s consent to remove her and if husband should re-qualify for the lease.

Key Discussion Points

• Lease Modifications & Consent Ashley stresses the importance of written consent from the departing tenant, preferably via lease addendum or new lease.

  "You would need to do an addendum to the lease or do a new lease but you would have to... sign a new lease with just the husband or...an addendum where she asked to be removed..." – Ashley (11:41)

• State-Specific Law (California) Tony raises the question of California’s tenant-friendly laws regarding lease non-renewal, potentially limiting the landlord’s options.

  "Could this landlord simply do a non renewal... and then sign a new lease with the husband?" – Tony (12:43) "You can't ever send a non-renewal unless you're going to rehab the property or move in yourself or a family member. But I don't know that for sure." – Ashley (13:10)

• Re-qualification for Tenancy Ashley’s opinion: if husband has been a reliable tenant and the situation is amicable, re-qualification may not be necessary unless seeking added security. She suggests updating proof of income and inquiring about potential new support obligations post-divorce.

  "I would not make him go through all the hoops...maybe asking for an updated proof of income could ease your mind that he can still afford it." – Ashley (14:12–15:02)

• Risk Assessment Ashley suggests balancing the risk versus hassle—especially since every new tenant brings uncertainty.

  "If you got another tenant in place in a year, they could be getting a divorce too. So, I mean, there's all different types of things that could happen." – Ashley (15:35)

• Legal Advice Both recommend consulting a local landlord-tenant attorney to ensure compliance and protection under California law.

  "Talk to an attorney that really understands California tenant landlord laws..." – Tony (16:04)

3. When Airbnb/VRBO Hosts Change Amenities After Booking

(Listener/Investor Feedback from Jules, 20:26)

Background

• Jules is an investor who booked a VRBO with two parking spaces for an event five months in advance. Before arrival, the listing changed: now there’s only one dedicated spot, the second is “shared” and not guaranteed.
• VRBO would not honor the original listing due to lack of screenshot proof.

Key Discussion Points

• Guest Perspective: How to Avoid Being “Duped” Ashley never considered guests would need to document listings at booking, calling it eye-opening.

  "I specifically picked this list question because I was like, wow, I never thought of that on the guest side or the host side." – Ashley (22:57)

• Host Perspective: Handling Amenity Mistakes Tony shares a story where his team accidentally listed a property with a hot tub (via amenities box), but the hot tub hadn’t been delivered yet.

  "The very first guest gets there, very first guest, and they're like, hey, place looks fantastic. Where's the hot tub?" – Tony (23:27)

• Accountability, Transparency, and Resolution Tony emphasizes taking responsibility as a host: proactively notifying incoming guests and offering refunds or cancellation if key amenities change.

  "We went to that guest and said, hey, you're right, our bad... We'll refund a percentage of your stay because this is a major amenity that you booked, and it wasn't there. We take full responsibility." – Tony (23:47) "We then reached out to the other guests that were incoming and said...you can either cancel your listing...or you can stay, and we'll give you a small partial refund." – Tony (24:13)

• Contrast with Example Given Tony criticizes the VRBO host in Jules’ scenario for not offering anything to the guest and explains that platforms like Airbnb are stricter about penalizing hosts for such issues.

  "It sounds like what this host did was...notified of this mistake...and didn't offer anything to the guest in exchange...Do I agree with him? Not at all." – Tony (24:29)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On VA Loan Partnerships:
  "Unless you and your friend want to get married just to buy this deal...in Vegas at BPCon." – Tony (03:16, joking; Ashley laughs)

• On House-Hack Strategy Brainstorming:
  "Could you rent that out to beef up the revenue...maybe you get that up to $3250 or $3500 by adding in the room rentals." – Tony (07:50)

• On Real-Life Host Mistakes:
  "Very first guest gets there...and they're like, hey, place looks fantastic. Where's the hot tub?" – Tony (23:27)

• On Responsibility as a Host:
  "We went to that guest and said, hey, you're right, our bad. We messed up. We'll refund a percentage of your stay because this is a major amenity that you booked, and it wasn't there." – Tony (23:47)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:40 – Jason’s partnership/solo buying question + context
• 02:48 – Limits of VA loan for non-spouse co-ownership
• 04:09 – Alternative suggestion: each co-buyer uses their own VA loan
• 07:50 – Creative house-hack strategies to maximize cash flow
• 11:08 – Landlord question regarding divorcing tenants and lease logistics
• 12:43 – California law as a complicating factor for tenant removal
• 14:12 – Ashley on whether to re-qualify solo tenant
• 16:04 – Importance of consulting a real estate attorney
• 20:26 – Jules’ feedback on hosts changing amenities post-booking
• 23:01 – Tony’s story about hot tub mishap and host accountability
• 24:29 – Critique of poor host response in guest feedback scenario

Summary Takeaways

• Solo vs. Partner:
  Many new investors can buy solo if they have current resources or access to attractive financing such as VA loans. Carefully evaluate if a partnership is necessary or if it adds unnecessary complexity, especially in owner-occupied scenarios.

• Tenant Transitions:
  Lease changes due to household breakups require careful documentation and local legal expertise—clarity and communication with both tenants are essential before modifying agreements.

• Hosting Responsibilities:
  Hosts must be proactive and transparent when amenities or major listing details change post-booking, offering compensation or cancellation as appropriate to avoid disappointing guests (and platform penalties).