Real Estate Agent · Odenton, MD · Member since 2019 · 10 posts · 8 votes
My husband and I are new to REI. We are in the Baltimore, MD area. This is something I have had a passion to do for a long time and we are finally in the space in our lives to do it!
We have done extensive research, studying, networking and are interested in rehab/sell and buy and hold properties. To be honest we’re not sure which one to start with. They both have their pros and cons and either way at sometime or another we will have both a flip and buy and hold properties it’s just where should our 1st investment be?!
We would love to hear from experienced or not so experienced investors on things that we should or should not do. We are open to all suggestions and stories.
We would also like to connect with local wholesalers and investors in the Baltimore, MD area. We look forward to hearing from you and connecting!
The best place to start is an individual and personal decision. It’s all about what you feel most comfortable with, your level of experience, knowledge about real estate and your resources.
Wholesaling is a great way to start if you’ve never done a deal, flipping can generate bigger returns and chunks of money but you really need to know what you’re doing and have great contractors you can rely on. if you are interested in long-term buy-and-hold I would start with apartment buildings and go bigger faster as apposed to single family. Again that’s just me. You’ll find plenty of people that like single-family homes for rentals. That just takes a long time to create any kind of serious cash flow. I would also recommend finding a good mentor to shorten the learning curve and help you scale your business quickly. A good mentor will save you a ton of time and money.
The best place to start is an individual and personal decision. It’s all about what you feel most comfortable with, your level of experience, knowledge about real estate and your resources.
Wholesaling is a great way to start if you’ve never done a deal, flipping can generate bigger returns and chunks of money but you really need to know what you’re doing and have great contractors you can rely on. if you are interested in long-term buy-and-hold I would start with apartment buildings and go bigger faster as apposed to single family. Again that’s just me. You’ll find plenty of people that like single-family homes for rentals. That just takes a long time to create any kind of serious cash flow. I would also recommend finding a good mentor to shorten the learning curve and help you scale your business quickly. A good mentor will save you a ton of time and money.
Go to the Baltimore Investors Network Facebook page, a lot of good info there, also use licensed general contractors and tradespeople for everything. Don't ever take the cheapest bid, if you need suggestions on the construction side, dm me.
Dear Bernard, hope all is well. Saw your recent post in BP, very active role indeed, thank you.
Please provide me, if you would, some guidelines as to how to go about doing a rehab on a auction baltimore property (Gwen Oak) I just closed on last week. Thanks you kindly in advance.
@Lauren Billups just pick one and run with it! Or both! Don’t get into analysis paralysis.. you will take your lumps regardless so be prepared and ready for it. But this is valuable experience that is hard to pick up via the web.. just my two cents :)
My husband and I are new to REI. We are in the Baltimore, MD area. This is something I have had a passion to do for a long time and we are finally in the space in our lives to do it!
We have done extensive research, studying, networking and are interested in rehab/sell and buy and hold properties. To be honest we’re not sure which one to start with. They both have their pros and cons and either way at sometime or another we will have both a flip and buy and hold properties it’s just where should our 1st investment be?!
We would love to hear from experienced or not so experienced investors on things that we should or should not do. We are open to all suggestions and stories.
We would also like to connect with local wholesalers and investors in the Baltimore, MD area. We look forward to hearing from you and connecting!
Lauren A. Billups, MBA
@Lauren Thomas I would suggest thinking about what your goals are. Are you looking for passive or active income? Or Both? Are you looking to build capital to buy rentals or do you have enough capital to create a rental portfolio? It all depends. But I would suggest putting down on paper what your goals are and working backward. The answer will become clear to you. Hope that helps!
Being new myself I can tell you my logic. I started with flipping because I need the extra money to move forward and it won't tie your money up. Also, I need the experience In this area so that I can understand the costs and logistics of rehabbing. You could BRRRR a rental but that'll take time to get each property up, rented, seasoned, refinanced, and then find another.
@Lauren Billups Hi Lauren, I've also recently taken the plunge into REI. In making my decision on which direction best suited my interests I choose to move forward with flips first. My logic was that I wanted to generate enough capital and education through doing flips to sustain my Brrrr plans. Another major factor in my decision to start with flips was the tremendous depth and insight I obtained from @j scott and his book "The Book on Flipping Houses". It is easily one of the most helpful resources I've used to define my steps for flips.
Whatever you choose, best of luck and don’t hesitate to reach out if you have questions. This community is great in helping new investors.
@Yannik Cudjoe-Virgil@James Canoy@Jetur Conway Thank you guys for your input it means alot! I have both short term and long term goals. My short term goals is to have active income so that I can earn a passive income in the long term. I am interested in flips because of the return and I figured I could use that money to either purchase another flip and do the BRRR method or purchase a buy/hold. The issue with starting out with a flip is I have no experience. I know everyone who started off in REI was a newbie at one point but in my opinion I feel that flips are risky and you HAVE to have a team that you can trust, especially contractors. Even though this is a "scarier" process for me I think this will be my niche starting out. Another reason I was hesitating on flips was because it's so hands-on and I still have a full-time job. My short-term goal is not to quit my job and if I need to be hands-on every single day and actually at the location it may be a little harder for me.
Do you all have full-time jobs? How does that work with the flips?
I am attending a REI class based on flips this Saturday in Towson and I am hoping to gain a good amount of information from it but I will continue my education on flips so that when I'm ready to buy I know exactly what to look for.
@Yannik Cudjoe-Virgil@James Canoy@Jetur Conway Thank you guys for your input it means alot! I have both short term and long term goals. My short term goals is to have active income so that I can earn a passive income in the long term. I am interested in flips because of the return and I figured I could use that money to either purchase another flip and do the BRRR method or purchase a buy/hold. The issue with starting out with a flip is I have no experience. I know everyone who started off in REI was a newbie at one point but in my opinion I feel that flips are risky and you HAVE to have a team that you can trust, especially contractors. Even though this is a "scarier" process for me I think this will be my niche starting out. Another reason I was hesitating on flips was because it's so hands-on and I still have a full-time job. My short-term goal is not to quit my job and if I need to be hands-on every single day and actually at the location it may be a little harder for me.
Do you all have full-time jobs? How does that work with the flips?
I am attending a REI class based on flips this Saturday in Towson and I am hoping to gain a good amount of information from it but I will continue my education on flips so that when I'm ready to buy I know exactly what to look for.
I’m a full time physician. It’s like having another part time job. I’m in my first flip. My best suggestion is to find a mentor. Go to the real estate meetups in your city. Get a network going. They’ll all have recommendations. Even if you have to tag along on someone else’s flip you’ll learn something. Hell, you could even give up a percentage of the deal to a mentor for them to check math and logic. Then you’ll get their network too!!!
Also, read the books from BiggerPockets. Especially the books on estimating rehab costs and flipping houses.
It is imperative that you get started though. Even if all you do is break even. Hell, I almost fainted at the closing table because of my nerves. But it turns that mountain into a mole hill really quick.
@Lauren Thomas If you want to do flips, then I would suggest leveraging a mentor/partner that you TRUST to get into a deal! Worst thing to do is sit on the sidelines and run in the same place. Get educated and get active!
@Shaheen H. Great to hear that you got the property!
Interestingly, I did not once visit Baltimore to explore investing opportunities - but ultimately concluded that Baltimore is not well-matched to long-distance investing. (My personal decision for my personal goals. I know others think differently.)
@James Canoy youre fishing in the wrong pond....two words for you Dr; SUBSTANCE TREATMENT. And they dont have doctors running those,...more reformed drug addicts with training....BANK
1. This is the formula for flips: purchase price + carry costs+ rehab + selling costs = less than sales price. If this formula isnt true, you lost money.
You need to figure out what each variable in that equation is/will be....but how??? Answer: hard work in the form of research. How do you research?? Lets look at a variable: 1. Purchase price: this consists of what?? Agreed to price, financing costs, but what are financing costs? Title fees, loan fees, tranfer taxes, but what are those and what do they consist of???? See a pattern emerging???
The toughest part to fill in will be rehab costs, that involves knowing all about construction. Do you? I would spend a month straight if i knew zero studying how to construction videos, and i think a guy on here made a book about rehab costs, buy it. He gave lots of hard earned info away for a few bucks.
I would suggest you take on a partner initially, will help you not make a catastrophic mistake.
@James Canoy youre fishing in the wrong pond....two words for you Dr; SUBSTANCE TREATMENT. And they dont have doctors running those,...more reformed drug addicts with training....BANK
I'm a newbie too and from the 2 books from Biggerpockets I've read they say to pick a niche and a strategy and stick to it, don't just jump around or you'll never stick. Also your strategy (Single family, multi family, etc) might depend on the area you want to invest in.
I personally like the buy and hold because you get a nice check in the mail each month and it's good passive income. When you sell if the house appreciates than that is a nice added bonus.