Struggling on the First REI

[Jerry Rode]

It's been fun to be on the boards and read about everyone's trials / tribulations and success stories.

I have been successful rounding up a decent chunk of money that would support a 80% LTV loan to buy a property to rent out. I figured that would be the hard part.

I have stayed faithful to the 50% rule for renting properties and have submitted many bids, mostly to REO and HUD homes. It's been the better part of 3 months now and I've gotten close on a REO home, but no luck.

I hear that the first property is the toughest one to successfully close. I'll keep at it, but patience is wearing thin somedays. :D

[Mark N.A]

Jerry -- most all of the low-hanging fruit has been harvested. If it was easy to succeed in this business all the guru-graduates would be filthy rich.

Nothing personal, but so what if you've got some dough? So does your competition. They also work loonnng hours, are incredibly persistent, are astute networkers, and are ahead of the curve in spotting developing trends and recognizing exploitable situations. That's why they're SUCCESSFUL.

That said, stay patient and stay safe. It's a lot easier to recover from a mistake if you own ten properties than if you make a mistake with your first property.

Good luck and keep us posted.