From senior engineer to real estate investor: journey begins!

[Chris Vair]

Hi!

Just joined bigger pockets and I can't explain how excited I am!  I am a 35 yr old senior engineer for a fortune 500 here in the Seattle area.  I have realized that over the last 12+ years in corporate america that the stress, bureaucracy, and increasing hours are taking time away from my family, friends, hobbies, and myself.  the thought of 25-30 more years of unsatisfying, unfulfilling work just so that I can retire (hopefully) seems deplorable and quite frankly, is not how I want to live my life.

My goal is to find an outlet for investment.  I bought my first house at 26, sold it and bought a second at 31.  I have always enjoyed real estate (sometimes I even go to open houses just to look and evaluate the market).  I believe that with the help of this site, the knowledge from others, and my personal drive and motivation, that I can make the life changes that I want.

I envision a scenario where my wife and I can go on more vacations and enjoy our relationship with less stress and more fun through fulfilling work and financial freedom.

Thanks! 

[Greg Harriman]

Chris Vair you and I are almost in the same boat. I'd say I'm a few years ahead of you BUT I'm not any closer to where I want to be!

My problem is that while I've made a lot of money on real estate in the last 5-7 years, I've done a very poor job of measuring my successes and failures. 90% of my success has been pure luck. I own multiple SFRs, none of which would have been cash flow positive if I hadn't put 25% down up-front. The appreciation and rise in rents is the only reason I've made a dime on these investments. If the market had stayed flat and for some reason I had to sell, I would have actually lost money because of transaction costs.

It's time I open my eyes and use the "BRRRN" method - BACK AWAY, REALIZE my mistakes, RE-ANALYZE my situation, RESTRUCTURE my portfolio, and NOT REPEAT! (Brandon Turner isn't the only one who can come up with catchy acronyms!)

I know my current investments are not in line with my goals yet I do nothing about it. I continue to get rent checks. I continue to stare blankly at my net worth on mint.com but not think what steps I can take to build a steady stream of income into perpetuity. I know if I don't act soon, that number will decrease 10-25% the next time we see a correction AND if rents go down I'll end up with negative cash flow from my rentals, essentially leading to a unstoppable downward spiral.

All this and I'm a CPA and CFO. I successfully control millions of dollars on a daily basis and yet a handful of SFRs could be my downfall.

Heck, I've gotten away with this ho-hum attitude for 5 years now and it's increased my net worth 5 fold. I realize, now, that I'm going insane (in a good way). I know that soon, if I continue to do the same thing over and over I'm going to get different results. Maybe it's time I did something different.

I live just a few towns over from you so if you ever want to meet up and chat, let me know. Best of luck to you and your future!