New to real estate from Seattle, Washington

[Alex Chin]

Hello Bigger Pockets.

My name is Alex Chin. I stumbled onto BP while listening to random Youtube Videos on the basics and tips of rental real estate investing.

I am interested in long-long-term buy and hold rental properties. My grandfather owned a small apartment building and I am interested in following in his footsteps and creating something of my own here in the Pacific Northwest, although I intend to start small with 2-4 bed single-family houses and condos.

Currently, I am using theMLSonline to look at various properties in the Greater Seattle Area and simulating whether they could cash-flow based on the 50% rule and some guesses at costs to update and repair. 

I intend to begin visiting various banks and credit unions in the area to look into traditional lending numbers and begin to line-up financing. I would greatly appreciate any tips on other financing sources/methods for the Seattle area, I have excellent credit, if that helps.

I would also appreciate any recommendations folks care to make for contractors, rental property tax specialists, and legal advice. I have been blessed with some solid family connections in these areas, but I am open to expanding and enhancing my network. Appreciated as well, is any advice or tips you have for a beginner, what are some small things that you wish you had known before you began your career as a landlord? (example: setting up rent collection other than picking up a check in-person, I am considering electronic methods or getting myself a P.O. box.)

Finally, thank you for having me here, and I hope that we can do business together soon, let's all create ourselves some Bigger Pockets!

[Troy Fisher]

@Alex Chin Welcome to BP!  Looks like you are putting some thought into your business which is great.  A word of caution though, because of the prices in the area (seattle and eastside) it's going to be tough to follow the 50% rule strictly, and you may need to look at some of the other indicators to find a deal that fits your risk profile and criteria.  We've got a new community of offline members cropping up around here and working together to learn and get better at investing.