Hello! from Livingston County, MI (Howell, Brighton, Ann Arbor, Detroit area

Hello! from Livingston County, MI (Howell, Brighton, Ann Arbor, Detroit area

Spartanburg, SC · Member since 2013 · 6 posts · 0 votes

Joined a few weeks back but have been too busy to post an introduction. Now with my busy work schedule and the end of a pre-planned and much needed vacation out of the way, it's down to business.

I'm Eric and I live in Michigan on the outskirts of the Detroit area in Livingston County. I'm currently employed in the automotive industry. I work from sun rise to sun down and rarely have a day off. I'm enamored by the vast amount of opportunities inside the real estate investment arena and am looking to change my career for the better.

I've been mostly concentrating on understanding the different "main" areas of investment (residential/small commercial, renting/flipping/wholesaling) and trying to figure out where's best for me and my family to start and then ultimately where do we want to end up. So far, I think a combination of wholesaling and then taking the money and putting it towards rentals in either mobile homes or residential homes (if I can get them cheap enough) would be the best area to start.

Thanks ahead of time for any area specific or general specific knowledge that you may have for a fellow investor start up. I'm not one who likes to get bitten right out of the starting gate so any and all help is appreciated.

I look forward to talking with some new people and taking my life to the next level.

Thank You,

Eric

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  • Investor · Santa Barbara, CA · Member since 2013 · 658 posts · 315 votes
    13y

    Detroit has some of the cheapest single family residences around. Most people on bigger pockets, including myself, are scared of Detroit and want nothing to do with it. However, if I lived there and new which areas were nice I would be all over it. If you have some savings I would get right to scooping up a property that is rediculously underpriced just because it carries the "Detroit" label.

  • Investor · Howell, MI · Member since 2011 · 202 posts · 52 votes
    13y

    Hi Eric,

    Welcome to BP! I've been mostly buy and hold lately but have flipped some in Livingston County. You are in my backyard so if there is anything I can help with please let me know.

    Best of luck!

  • Specialist · Grand Rapids and Kalamazoo, MI · Member since 2013 · 392 posts · 116 votes
    13y

    Welcome! You're definitely in the right place to learn. It's great to have you here!

  • Real Estate Broker · Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco/Nayarit · Member since 2013 · 75 posts · 5 votes
    13y

    Welcome Eric,

    What an awesome place to start real estate investing!

    To your success, Penny

  • Residential Real Estate Broker · Grand Blanc, MI · Member since 2008 · 885 posts · 316 votes
    13y

    Welcome from Grand Blanc!

  • Investor · Macomb, MI · Member since 2013 · 654 posts · 115 votes
    13y

    Welcom @Eric Redfield . I'm on the East Side in Macomb County. I'm also in the auto industry as a robot programmer. I've been working on my portfolio for two years now.

    Drop a line anytime and I will try and help where I can.

  • Brandon TurnerPro Member
    Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    13y

    Hey @Eric Redfield! Thanks for introducing yourself! You've definitely come to the right place to learn more about investing. Be sure to read through The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing to help you get started.

    Oh - and here are my favorite articles on Wholesaling:

    Finally -be sure to setup some keyword alerts - especially for "Michigan" so you can jump into local conversations.

    Seeya around the site!

  • Real Estate Agent/Investor · Clarkston, MI · Member since 2013 · 156 posts · 34 votes
    13y

    Hey Eric,

    Welcome to the site. There is a wealth of knowledge here and people at your disposal that have done exactly what you are looking to do.

    I would read as much as possible, connect with people on this site, and hit local REIA meetings when time permits.

    Have fun!

  • Spartanburg, SC · Member since 2013 · 6 posts · 0 votes
    13y

    Thanks to everyone for the warm welcomes.

    Brant, I haven't even considered Detroit as an investment resource. I know residential is extremely cheap there but it has been my opinion that property taxes are a deal breaker there. Getting reassessments from the city are impossible unless you have connections or your last name is Conyers. /s In all seriousness, while Detroit is incredibly cheap I wouldn't know what to do with something like that at this point. I'm sure there is money to be made there it's just out of my imagination at this point.

    Thanks Geof for the local advice. Maybe we could get coffee in the future since were practically neighbors. :)

    Thanks Aaron, we'll have to connect as well one day for a cup of joe. Aaron, being in the same business you know how demanding this business can be but it can be very lucrative as well, especially when it comes to capital for investments.

    Thanks again to everyone for your replies. Hope to network with some of you in the future.

  • Investor · Macomb, MI · Member since 2013 · 654 posts · 115 votes
    13y

    @Eric Redfield , yes very hard.

    When refering to someone be sure to put an @ symbol before the name. This will highighlight itself if done correctly and then notify that person that they have been mentioned in a forum post.

    Take a look at my success story and it explains a bit of my struggles. I dont have the link right but can forward it later.

  • Investor · West Bloomfield, MI · Member since 2009 · 358 posts · 306 votes
    13y

    Welcome, Eric! There's a sizable number of investors from Metro Detroit on here and a fair number of us have met in real life. Hope to see you around!

  • Landlord · Flat Rock, MI · Member since 2011 · 179 posts · 26 votes
    13y

    Welcome Eric! As everybody so far has said, this is a great place to learn, so dive right in. PM me if I can help.

  • Spartanburg, SC · Member since 2013 · 6 posts · 0 votes
    13y

    Back from a hellish night shift the past few weeks.

    Thank you @Tom A. for all your advice. Hopefully we cross paths in our journeys.

    @Aaron Yates thanks for this advice. You would think I would know this since I'm an active FaceBook user. lol.

    So I found a mobile home for pretty cheap in a nice area and the wife and I were looking at buying it. It's an early 90's mobile home that is in very nice condition. Price is $13,000 and lot rent is $450. Does anybody have any advice against the mobile home market? Seems like a great place to start my investment career. but I figured I'd ask around here. Thoughts?

  • Real Estate Investor · Sarasota, FL · Member since 2013 · 52 posts · 33 votes
    13y

    $13,000 is a great price and mobiles are a great way to start investing, especially when you compare that to a much more expensive single family.
    I have single families and mobiles and I would just say to you, look around. In Florida there are 55+ parks and all age parks. You want in an all age park, you want to be sure that the park allows you to have rentals (some don't), also see what is included ie- water, garbage, lawncare etc....
    Also, your profit will be greater if you go into the working mans park. They will have one bedrooms for $1500, 2 bedrooms for $4500 and 3 bedrooms for $7500 or so. Now these are Florida prices but you can see what I am getting at. You can buy more mobiles in these parks and increase your profit.

  • Involved In Real Estate · Rochester Hills, MI · Member since 2010 · 812 posts · 178 votes
    13y

    Welcome to the site! First suggestion is to read the mobile home blogs on this site if you're going to go that route.

    Second is to find a local Livingston county reia. I don't know of one off hand but i'm sure with a little help of google you'll locate one.

    Like @Tom A. said, a number of us have met at local reia's or over lunch / dinner. I suggest you reach out to people local to you and do the same.

    Good luck and if you ever need anything don't be afraid to ask and tag us metro detroit people!

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