I'm excited to share that finally I am in contract for my first rental property! Duplex in Cleveland OH! Having the inspection tomorrow and probably won't see the place in person until after closing... eek! I am OOS investor in San Diego. Any tips for this newbie?!

Originally posted by @Leah Gonzalez :

I'm excited to share that finally I am in contract for my first rental property! Duplex in Cleveland OH! Having the inspection tomorrow and probably won't see the place in person until after closing... eek! I am OOS investor in San Diego. Any tips for this newbie?!

>probably won't see the place in person until after closing

I hope you have a very trusted team.  Maybe a family member or friend checking on things.  This sounds like this could easily turn into a horror story for a couple hundred dollars of cash flow per unit that historically has not kept up with inflation and property values that historically have not kept up with inflation.

>Any tips for this newbie?

I am a strong advocate of newby RE investors starting local.  So Tip #1 is start local.  Have you read David Green's book on long distance investing?  I hope you are as educated as you can be because even if you are well educated the process can have challenges.  If you are trusting a new/unknown team with minimal knowledge it could be a disaster.  Tip #2 is to be as educated as you can be.  Related to Tip #2, Tip #3 is make sure you build and maintain a quality team as that is necessary for OOS RE success.

Good luck

Leah Congrats and welcome to the CLE!  Let me know if you need any references for work / contractors after your inspection.  Thanks

@Leah Gonzalez congrats!! I'm also a newbie looking to invest in Ohio also. It would be nice if you could share your experience in Ohio... Congratulations again!!!

Congrats @Leah Gonzalez ! Could you share who you used as a lender?

@Leah Gonzalez I don't have a team in place to invest in Ohio yet

How did you find your team to trust? if you don't mind sharing. It would very helpful for a newbie like me. Thank you!!

@Leah Gonzalez

Cleveland is the place to be! Congrats!

@Leah Gonzalez

Congrats! I’d recommend getting 3 opinions on anything you do...I.e interview 3 property managers, 3 contractors, etc

@Leah Gonzalez Congratulations! You will learn a ton. Keep us posted on how it goes. 

@Leah Gonzalez

Congrats fellow San Diegan! Im currently under contract as well! Exciting times

Originally posted by @Martha Rodriguez :

@Leah Gonzalez I don't have a team in place to invest in Ohio yet

How did you find your team to trust? if you don't mind sharing. It would very helpful for a newbie like me. Thank you!!

I recommend you read this article on OOS investing. It explains the importance of creating your core four. You will need to get a local, rockstar Realtor, contractor, lender, and property manager.

https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/core-four-real-estate-team

I invest locally in Columbus, Ohio

@Remington Lyman thank you! I will look into it.

I would just continue to make good connections in your OOS market. Congrats on getting started! @Leah Gonzalez

Originally posted by @Leah Gonzalez :

I'm excited to share that finally I am in contract for my first rental property! Duplex in Cleveland OH! Having the inspection tomorrow and probably won't see the place in person until after closing... eek! I am OOS investor in San Diego. Any tips for this newbie?!

Could you specify the numbers and math? 

Thank you everyone! I'll dive into the details when we close as we are still negotiating after the inspection.

Originally posted by @Jesse DeLeon :

Congrats @Leah Gonzalez! Could you share who you used as a lender?

I am using a lender that is local in SD and I have used professionally before. His name is Joel Berman with Synergy One Lending. 

Thank you for responding! Good luck the rest of the way! 

@Leah Gonzalez Yahoo!! Congratulations!! Must feel great...and it’s only the beginning!

@Leah Gonzalez

Congrats! What drew you to Cleveland? I almost bought there- and I might have a contractor contact still. Prop taxes are super high and most of city has laws in place to upkeep exterior (grass, paint, railings etc) or you get fined- but lots of good deals. Also I think city requires inspection for rentals. Don’t get taken by some property manager companies who promise to do everything and they will buy. They charge all your cashflow into $0 for you.

@Leah Gonzalez congrats!! Awesome that you made your first move!!!