Refocused investor from New Jersey on my way to Central Florida!!!

Refocused investor from New Jersey on my way to Central Florida!!!

Investor · Altamonte Springs, FL · Member since 2008 · 8 posts · 4 votes

Hello everyone. My name is James from New Brunswick, NJ but my wife and I will be moving to Central Florida in the fall. As of right now I am a local truck driver but my wife is going to team up with me going long distances after our move. We also have two adult children who may or may not be coming to Florida with us but that"s a whole other story.

I have some experience in real estate investing but unfortunately the houses flipped me more than I flipped them. I just didn't find BP soon enough to stop my stupidity. I started off buying and selling a couple lots from a tax sale in Pa which went well. But then I decided to buy multi-family's in a market I knew next to nothing about and got my hat handed to me. Long story short. I ended up scrambling back to a 9 to 5 in order to survive and have been recovering ever since.

The good news is "I'm back"! Refocused and ready to rock. With help from the BP Nation of course. We are moving to and going to focus our efforts in central Florida. Our focus will be on wholesaling and purchasing multi-family units to hold. Any assistance you guys and gals can offer us in learning about the areas around Orlando and east to Brevard County will be greatly appreciated. Just the same, if there is anyone who needs insight about Central Jersey or the Poconos, I will be more than happy to assist in any way I can.

I thank you all for just being here on BP and sharing your knowledge so freely. I am especially thankful for Josh, Brandon and all the contributors to the podcasts. I started listening to them last week and they have helped me get my confidence back. Sorry for the long intro. I normally don't say much but once I get going it's like a flood gate opens up.

Anyway. See you around BP and Go Rutgers!

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Shawn McenteerBusiness Member
Realtor · Boonton Township, NJ · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
12y

@James Johnson welcome to BP. Looking forward to hearing about your journey from NJ to FL. I recommend a great place to get reconnected with your REI ways would be through the articles, pod cast, and active use of the forums on Bigger Pockets. There is a well run BP meet up held in Summit each month as well.

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  • Shawn McenteerBusiness Member
    Realtor · Boonton Township, NJ · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    12y

    @James Johnson welcome to BP. Looking forward to hearing about your journey from NJ to FL. I recommend a great place to get reconnected with your REI ways would be through the articles, pod cast, and active use of the forums on Bigger Pockets. There is a well run BP meet up held in Summit each month as well.

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  • Middletown, NJ · Member since 2011 · 108 posts · 22 votes
    12y

    I'm a Rutgers alumni. Loved it there. Tough place to invest with the prices and the taxes but a fun place to live. Where in Florida are you relocating to?

  • Orlando, FL · Member since 2014 · 152 posts · 54 votes
    12y

    Hello James! Im just getting started myself, looking to wholesale, flip, buy and hold.

    I live in East Orlando and am a UCF grad. Ive lived in Orlando for all but two years of my life. Once you move down, I suggest joining the local real estate club, CFRI, which is awesome! If youre interested, send me a message and we could talk about the areas to invest and the ones to stay away from.

    Good luck!

  • Darren SagerPro Member
    Investor · Tampa, FL · Member since 2013 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    12y

    Welcome to BP @James Johnson ! Thanks for taking the time to introduce yourself. I think a great way to begin using BP is to read the Bigger Pockets Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing as Josh and Brandon did a great job with it.And now that you're here we'd love to see you be an active member of the BP community so be sure to set up Keywords Alerts for your local area such as "Orlando" or "Altamonte Springs" if you're looking to find potential opportunities for investing, education in a subject, or other members in your area. Use the Find Members area to network with other members who are local to you or are in an area you're wanting to invest in. Podcasts come out weekly and are great way to learn on the move. I find there's always a gold nuggets of information in each one and I go back to listen to a number of them multiple times.

    If you appreciate a post that a fellow member put up responding to you be sure to say "Thank You!" by casting a vote for it.If you think a response you read is good or answers another member's question well cast a vote for it.It's our own version of liking something on Facebook provided you're familiar with that. Simply click the box in the upper right corner of the post!

    If you want to get a member's direct attention in a post you're writing first type an @ and then a ?, (example: @?) and then wait..................... (sometimes longer than you might expect), for their name to appear below where you're writing, then be sure to click on it. IF it doesn't have their name highlighted in a blue background (like yours is above) it didn't work properly and you should try again. This will send them an email or an alert notifying them that you've mentioned them. Those alerts can also be seen if you mouse over the "Inbox" on the upper right menu bar and scroll down.

    And lastly I highly recommend becoming a Plus or Pro member of the site and take advantage of all that BP has to offer you. It's like getting the keys to the kingdom. It will be one of the best investments you'll make when it comes your real estate investing.

    Again welcome to Bigger Pockets!

  • Real Estate Agent · Melbourne, FL · Member since 2013 · 115 posts · 26 votes
    12y

    @James Johnson I think you will love central Florida. We moved from Connecticut (my wife from Upstate NY) and stayed about 14 years in Brevard (Atlantic Coast, Central Florida). We left a year and a half ago, and already are planning on moving back.

    My parents and I have a few combined rentals in Brevard...be conservative on the insurance cost estimates there :)

  • Real Estate Coach · Chicagoland · Member since 2013 · 502 posts · 101 votes
    12y

    Hey James welcome! There is some solid advice on here already but feel free to reach out to me if you ever have any questions!

  • Brandon TurnerPro Member
    Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    12y

    Hey @James Johnson welcome to the site! It's great to have you here. Feel free to ask any questions in the forums. Seeya around!

  • Investor · Altamonte Springs, FL · Member since 2008 · 8 posts · 4 votes
    12y

    Thank you all for the warm welcome. Sorry it took so long to reply.
    @Shawn Mcenteer

    @Shawn Mcenteer I'll definitely keep everyone posted about my venture into Florida. Summit is not too far from me so I will look into making it to one of those meetups.

    @Mike D. We don't know exactly where we are going to live yet but we are going down there in July to scout the area. We'll be looking on the coast between Titusville and Palm Bay. Also we are going to scout the towns that are at least 20min away from Disney and the other attractions.

    @Patrick Jacques Thanks for the invite Patrick. I will definitely take you up on that offer. I really need to learn more about the area than Universal Studios.

    @Darren Sager Thank you for the much needed advice about getting started. I recently listened to your interview on the podcast and it was great. Thanks for the great info and tips.

    @Christopher Schmidt I really think we're going to love it there as well. However, I was just looking for insurance info yesterday. If you get a chance, maybe you can give me a little more personal insight?

    @Brandon Turner The podcasts are a godsend. I'm almost caught up to date on them now. I'm on episode 62. Tell Josh I said knock, knock!

  • Brandon TurnerPro Member
    Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    12y

    Haha @James Johnson will do :) 

  • Solo 401k Expert · Anaheim Hills, CA · Member since 2012 · 18k+ posts · 6k+ votes
    12y

    Welcome to the BP family @James Johnson you came to the right place to learn all about real estate investing!

    Wishing you all the best!

  • Levi BennettPro Member
    Real Estate Broker · Charlotte, NC · Member since 2014 · 285 posts · 248 votes
    12y

    Hey man, good luck, and I'm also new, and also moving to central Florida soon to get into some real estate. Looking forward to tracking your progress!!

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