BiggerPockets

Hi my name is Kellen, I am a professional overseas basketball player. During the offseason, I do not work because I have to train and plus the money is good enough to live off of. The first part of my plan was to invest money into the stock market. Next I would like to purchase some rental properties, to set some kind of income that never changes or is put on hold because I'm not in season. Also to use as a retirement plan. But the problem is I invested too much into the stock market. And as you all know, right now is not a good time to sell stocks, especially in my case where most of my portfolio is in the negative. I'm trying to figure other ways I could get into the market. Also, are there any speculations on how much cash I would need to start? If any of you have suggestions of ways I could go about doing this, please comment. Thanks alot!!

Well I am thinking about buying foreclosures because it would be cheaper and turn them into rentals. Thanks for the reply!!

Hi Kellen
Your plan to invest in rental properties is a great way to build passive cash flow. In your home area, you'll want to check to see if rental rates are high enough to make the numbers work with the purchase prices/values of the properties. In other words, the old 1% rule says the rent for a unit (house, apt, condo) needs to be 1% of the value of the unit.

If house prices in your area are around $150K, you'll need to be able to rent the prop at about $1500/mo to break even or have a small cash flow. If you consider duplex, triplex, fourplex units or apt bldgs, you'll find the cost per unit is lower than on single-family houses. So that ratio is important to consider.

You have several options for financing properties you buy, including having the sellers finance the purchase for you or help to finance it, so you wouldn't have to sell any stock to do that. You'll want to take a look at the existing financing on deals you're considering and see what would work for the property, the seller and for you.

Because of the credit crunch, even more sellers who need to get a property sold are open to helping with the financing, since they're aware loans are a little more difficult to get at this moment.

Hope this helps,
Chris

Hello everybody! I would love to make a smart move and invest in "great deal" Real Estate. Flip it or rent it with positive cash flow. I have a condo now. I don't have cash to put down and my credit is not good. Where do i look for potential "true" deals and finance options without a realtor?

If house prices in your area are around $150K, you'll need to be able to rent the prop at about $1500/mo to break even or have a small cash flow. If you consider duplex, triplex, fourplex units or apt bldgs,

That is BLATANTLY WRONG! If you pay $1,500 per month for a property that generates gross rents of $1,500 per month, you WILL LOSE MONEY! In reality, (as a screening tool) you need monthly gross rents to be more like 2% of the acquisition cost (purchase price + rehab cost) if you want to have a positive cash flow.

I would strongly suggest that you read the myriad of posts on the 2% rule, 50% rule, and cash flow and PLEASE don't give bad advice to newbies. Do you have ANY experience with rentals?

Mike

If you intend to invest in real estate, real estate training can be beneficial. Your firm must develop successful habits quickly. You must choose your approach to learning, and your trainer carefully, however. The first thing you need to consider is the cost/benefit ratio of the relationship. Is similar help or information available some other way, perhaps at lower cost? Most of the information you'd need to learn in order to succeed in real estate is available for free if you have the time and energy to do your research. If you are willing to sign up a mentor you have to make sure you're going to get your money's worth.
Proper training can help you put together a business plan and give you specific ideas as to what you need to do in order for your venture to be a success. A good consultant will keep your nose to the grindstone and put your feet to the fire. A good consultant or mentor can keep you moving forward, and help you through rough times and answer questions. A good real estate consultant can also provide support, motivation, knowledge, and help you keep your focus.
You could approach learning about real estate investing in a number of different ways. You could, for example, buy books or do research on the Internet. You could also take a study-at-home course. You could attend an accredited real estate training option. Yet another option is to hire a coach or mentor to teach you the ropes. A coach or mentor can be the best source of real estate training---if you get the right coach or mentor. The key to choosing a mentor is figuring out what questions to ask, and being able to assess their personality, knowledge and professionalism.
Real estate training is a well-structured series of lessons revolving around an approach to real estate investing that is intended to help the real estate professional think more clearly, gain better perspective and focus more effectively on their goals. Coaching provides the tools to enhance the process of building a successful business and offer s a way to approach accountability for your actions as a professional.
Classes can be conducted over the phone or online as well as the traditional way, in person. Professional real estate coaches are trained to listen and observe, and tailor their approach to your individual needs. They help you elicit solutions and strategies and give you feedback, provide a perspective so that you can take the initiative and make the moves that will get you the results you desire.
Trainers should offer tried and true business methods, not proprietary or unique solutions. Unique, "proprietary" or secret methods are more than likely to be nothing more than marketing hype intended to separate you from your money and nothing more. Most of the methods for finding, acquiring, renting, selling or optioning property have been around for a considerable time. It's quite possible for someone to have a slightly different take on these methods, but highly unlikely that they have invented a truly proprietary method-at least one that actually works.