New from Los Angeles

New Member Introductions

New from Los Angeles

Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes

Hello to the BP community!

I'm O'brian, 29 years old, and new to the real estate investing world. I'm living in Los Angeles where I work full-time as an aerospace engineer. I came across BiggerPockets through the podcast a few months ago and it opened a whole world of opportunities in my mind. The last couple months I've just been reading real estate books, listening to podcasts, and just educating myself in my spare time. I also just finished my graduate studies at USC, literally 3 days ago so now I've got no more excuses to not begin this real estate adventure.

I'm interested in the buy and hold model of SFH or multifamilies that cashflow because I'm committed to invest for the long haul. I'm realizing how challenging it is to find property in LA that makes economic sense so I'm interested in investing out of the county (up to 2 hour drive) or even out of state. To be quite honest, the out of state investing sort of scares me since I haven't even purchased property before, though compared to LA's market the numbers in Memphis or Dallas to name a few are very attractive.

In any case, I'm here on BiggerPockets looking to chat, meet, and network with like-minded individuals or experienced investors. My goal is to acquire my first property in 2014 before I turn 30! But first, I need to start taking action in 3..2..1...

Thanks and looking forward to meeting everyone!

O'brian Rossi

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J. MartinPro Member

Rental Property Investor · Oakland, CA · Member since 2011 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes

12y

Welcome O'brian, from Norther California.

It's definitely hard to find anywhere near the ratios talked about on BP on the left coast. But there are some out there in less "prime' areas. I haven't gone out of state yet, but many do.. I'm a 'fix and hold' investor too because I don't want to have to do flips my whole life.. lol Here's some tips for the site..

You'll find lots of good info in the "Learn" link across the top navigation bar, and in the link at the top of this introduction forum. You can tag people by putting @ in front of their name, then clicking their name when it pops up at the bottom of the message box. You can click on the "vote" button if you like someone's post or is helpful. And you can earn "awards" for various "achievements" - just look at your profile. Hope that helps with the site! Good luck on your investments!

See this reply in the discussion

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Zechariah Evans
Waukesha, WI · Member since 2013 · 87 posts · 6 votes
12y
Welcome !
0 Reply
Jonathan Jimenez
Huntington Park, CA · Member since 2013 · 45 posts · 4 votes
12y
Welcome to BP @O'brian R.

It's good to have another newbie from the LA area. Much success to you!

Jonathan
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
Thanks Zechariah and Jonathan.

@Jonathan: we won't be newbies for long.
0 Reply
J. MartinPro Member
Rental Property Investor · Oakland, CA · Member since 2011 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
12y
Welcome O'brian, from Norther California.

It's definitely hard to find anywhere near the ratios talked about on BP on the left coast. But there are some out there in less "prime' areas. I haven't gone out of state yet, but many do.. I'm a 'fix and hold' investor too because I don't want to have to do flips my whole life.. lol Here's some tips for the site..

You'll find lots of good info in the "Learn" link across the top navigation bar, and in the link at the top of this introduction forum. You can tag people by putting @ in front of their name, then clicking their name when it pops up at the bottom of the message box. You can click on the "vote" button if you like someone's post or is helpful. And you can earn "awards" for various "achievements" - just look at your profile. Hope that helps with the site! Good luck on your investments!
2 Reply
Curt DavisBusiness Member
Flipper/Rehabber · Memphis, TN · Member since 2008 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
12y
If you are interested in Memphis I can answer any questions and let you know how our company works with out of state investors who use our turnkey program.
Curt Davis - KAIZEN Realty538 Reviews
Website View Page
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
Thanks for the helpful tips @J. Martin. Agree with your strategy and plus I'm looking for a way to invest part-time so fix/flip is definitely out of the question.
0 Reply
Vicky Covarrubias
Real Estate Investor Downey , CA · Member since 2013 · 118 posts · 8 votes
12y
Welcome to BP O'brian Rossi , good to have another LA area investor ! Best if luck in 2014!
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
@Curt Davis - Thanks and while I've still got a lot to learn, I'm definitely interested in the Memphis market. I'd like to hear more about your turn key properties and whether any BP investors have purchased through your company and are cashflowing.

@Vicky Covarrubias - Thanks for the warm welcome. Good luck in the new year as well!

0 Reply
Zaid R.
Investor · Northridge, CA · Member since 2012 · 249 posts · 73 votes
12y
Welcome to BP!

They are a lot of great people from SoCal (& other areas) who are regulars here.

Keep in mind that although the prices are higher here than in other areas, there are still areas here where the median prices are low enough for beginner investors and the return rates are more favorable (like riverside, san bernandino, palm desert...etc)

Good luck to you
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
@Zaid R. - I'm definitely interested in the the Riverside and San Bernardino market since those are within driving distance.

Though some of my concerns would be in the economic outook in those areas and whether job/population growth is expected. I still need to do the research, but if anyone knows any good resources/sites for me to check out, I'd love to hear them.

Also wondering whether I can effectively manage the property while living a couple hours away. Since I work full-time, I'd most likely only be able to visit on the weekends. The other alternative is to hire a property manager, an additional expense, but could be worth it. Anyone have experience managing property several hours away?
0 Reply
Brandon TurnerPro Member
Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
12y
Hey @O'brian R. Thanks for jumping in and introducing yourself! If you haven't yet- be sure to setup some "Keyword Alerts."

See you around the site!
Podcast Guest on Show #92
0 Reply
Ali Boone
Real Estate Coach · Venice Beach, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
12y
Alll I'm saying is: I live in LA too (Venice Beach), my degree is in aerospace engineering and I just left that world only a year ago (worked for Lockheed), and one of my favorite bars is O'Brien's (granted, spelled different). I'm pretty sure we are meant to know each other. Lol.

I hear you on LA. I only buy out-of-state because of the lack of returns and too many headaches in CA. Dallas is a huge market right now, very popular. There are plenty others as well. I'm not a Memphis fan, but it all comes down to what kind of properties you want and what your goals are.
0 Reply
Joe Fairless
Investor · Cincinnati, OH · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
12y
Welcome @o'brian rossi - your story and strategy sounds just like mine. I live in NYC but invest in other places that cash flow better and easier to acquire. The first thing I'd do is educate yourself on the strategy you want to pursue - single family is different from multi-family and then be strategic with your market. That can make or break your biz.
0 Reply
Elizabeth Colegrove
Hanford, CA · Member since 2013 · 5k+ posts · 1k+ votes
12y
@O'brian R.

Welcome!!! I live and invest in California Valley. It's about 3 hours away from LA. We own out here and out of state. We are buy and hold investors and I manage all of our real estate ourselves.

This is a great site. I have learned a ton.
0 Reply
Jeff Greenberg
Real Estate Consultant · Camarillo, CA · Member since 2010 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
12y
Welcome from another Southern Californian.

You found a great site for information. Check out the podcasts, they also have a wealth of information.
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
@Brandon Turner - I was just thinking about adding those keywords, thanks for the tip. Quck question...sometimes when I write a post with the @ symbol tagged to another member's name, it doesn't seem to keep the link when posting. Is this a glitch or something?

@Ali Boone That's an amazing coincidence! I've met a lot of engineers hoping to leave their day job one day so it's refreshing to hear that you've actually done that and are working for yourself on your own time. I imagine it must have been a lot of work investing on the side while holding a full-time job, but well worth it in the end. I'd love to hear more about it sometime.

My goal in a sentence would be...to passively earn enough cashflow from my rental property that would match the salary from my job.

@Joe Fairless Between SFH and multifamilies, I'm not committed to either, but open to whichever numbers make sense. Multifamilies (2-4 units) sound appealing since a vacancy in one unit doesn't quite hurt one's monthly cashflow as it would a SFH. Also, since my long term plan is to one day live off these properties' cashflow I'll need to acquire upwards of 25 units, so having units closely connected together would make managing them easier right?

There are likely other factors to consider that I'm missing, but would you recommend picking a strategy first (SFH or multi) or just invest where the deals happen to be? I'm still in the education phase so I'm all ears.
0 Reply
Ramon Jenkins
Real Estate Agent · Milwaukee County, WI · Member since 2009 · 3k+ posts · 525 votes
12y
Welcome aboard
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
@Elizabeth Colegrove I've heard of the difficulties of managing from a few hours away, but how have you been able to manage from out-of-state? When I think of out of state investing, I automatically assumed that I'd need the additional expense of having a property manager.

@Jeff Greenberg Thanks for the welcome! Been listening to the podcasts over the last couple months and they've been great.
0 Reply
Marlene D.
Santa Monica, CA · Member since 2013 · 20 posts · 3 votes
12y
@O'brian Rossi

Hi and Welcome aboard. I'm new too, and I have similar goals. Some of us are planning a meetup in January on the westside. Check @Ali Boone for details. Hope to see you there!
0 Reply
Jeff Greenberg
Real Estate Consultant · Camarillo, CA · Member since 2010 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
12y
@Ali Boone count me in if you are going to get together with some BP people from LA.
0 Reply
Ali Boone
Real Estate Coach · Venice Beach, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
12y
@Jeff Greenberg

@Marlene D.

and O'brian

Looking forward to meeting all of you! Yay! If you haven't already, make sure to respond on the post about the meetup so we can keep track of how many attendees to plan for. The post is at-

http://www.biggerpockets.com/forums/517/topics/110489

See you guys soon,

Ali
0 Reply
Christopher Cafferty
Homeowner · Signal Hill, CA · Member since 2013 · 12 posts · 2 votes
12y
@ O'Brian Welcome. I am in a similar situation here. The meetup Ali is proposing should be great. I've scoured Southern California properties to the point I don't even look anymore. So in love with the numbers in some Texas towns, though I may invest in the great northwest (write offs) as I do plenty of personal traveling. Currently looking to sell the properties I have here that do have a small amount of cash flow. Having owned investment property I would suggest not buying anything you are not 100 percent sure on. You will learn tons through BP. This I can vouch for! welcome!!!
0 Reply
O'brian R.
OP
Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2013 · 147 posts · 50 votes
12y
Thanks @Ali Boone for organizing the event! I'm excited to meet you all :)

@Christopher Cafferty

I hear you on the SoCal market and it's nice to know other investors are facing similar challenges. While some folks say that the deals are out there (even here in SoCal), I'm having trouble finding them. Maybe I'm not looking hard enough, but in any case, like you I find the numbers in Texas to be attractive. That and being a new investor any mistakes made early on will be less costly than purchasing locally here in CA.

Regarding your properties that are cash flowing, why are you looking to get rid of them?
0 Reply
Christopher Cafferty
Homeowner · Signal Hill, CA · Member since 2013 · 12 posts · 2 votes
12y
@Obrian Rossi To answer your questions HOAs. I will never buy, even if proven cash flows a property belonging to any HOA. There is no control as an investor and corruption galore. In the last 5 years I have paid a $5000 plus in special assessments in getting the exterior of our rental condo painted. Horrible work where a bunch of day laborers came over and painted over stucco. No color coat, over the stucco. The work was done by a contractor who was friends with certain individuals at our management company. Cash flow breaks even on one place and we get around $400 on the other. The math is not there for buildings falling apart on land I do not own (Though they will sell fast here by the Coast, unbelievably). So I would rather put into property with no management company and not only burn money but also let my money go into things I have almost no say in and given to people that don't have the same ethics as ourselves. I am not saying all HOA's are bad. I am in two. But I am saying that 99.9% of them are bad based on my experience. We currently also have another special assessment for the townhouse we own to do siding for $7,000. The catch is they only want to do the backside of the row houses, when all should be replaced. Catch number two they are also contractors that our friends with our other management company. I have seen the contract and it the dumbest bid I have ever seen with a giant grey area of extra fees and labor. I want to sell both my places over the next year and reinvest elsewhere sans HOA and sans a management company I did not hire. And both HOAs have rumors of that person twenty years ago who cleaned out the reserve. They system built from the start broken to work for investing. I wish I had BP back then because I'd probably already be investing out of state. If I ever get a chance to talk to you in person I'll give you the bigger story of the HOA for our places.Horrific. Here is to 2014 and hoping to be able to pick the brains of some fellow newbies soon at a meetup, learn more and put my money in an investment or two I can manage myself.
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Matt R.
Sherman Oaks, CA · Member since 2013 · 3k+ posts · 2k+ votes
12y
sweet, in la, ca too. See you at Ali's meet hopefully.
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