New to Real Estate · Around the world (and Denmark) · Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 0 votes
Hello dear BP community!
I am a young Danish man new to real estate investing. I have been reading a ton of books, taken an excellent course on real estate investing at UNC Chapel Hill and been following the BP Podcast for some time.
I expect to make my first investment in 2020 as I have managed to save up a bit of cash here while taking my masters degree in Business Analytics here in Barcelona, Spain.
My plan has been to start investing after July 2020 as I expected to return to Denmark and thus be on ground making it easier to invest. However, I have signed with a management consultancy and asked to go to Singapore (and maybe also Dubai) for a great start to my career and low taxes (unlike in Denmark as you may know).
Despite being very happy with the upcoming job, I am a bit frustrated because I think working abroad will be a hurdle to my RE investment career in the sense that I will have both limited time (crazy work hours) and be geographically far away from the market I know best and have a great network within (Denmark).
I think what I really need is to hear from someone who manages to invest in RE while living abroad or far away from the targeted market. Am I doomed or can it be done?
Real Estate Broker · Forney, TX · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 399 votes
6y
Welcome to BiggerPockets! Truly nice to meet you. Good luck going forward! 😁 Hopefully someone with more knowledge on this dilemma will answer. But I hope the best for you.
Real Estate Broker · Forney, TX · Member since 2019 · 1k+ posts · 399 votes
6y
Welcome to BiggerPockets! Truly nice to meet you. Good luck going forward! 😁 Hopefully someone with more knowledge on this dilemma will answer. But I hope the best for you.
Rental Property Investor · Barcelona, Spain · Member since 2018 · 38 posts · 22 votes
6y
Hi Lars,
Welcome to BP! I've been a consultant myself and can tell you the hours are crazy and that you'll probably be living on an airplane! But the experience you get in a very short time is well beyond what you'd get in any MBA, so it is totally worth it. Well done!
On the overseas RE investing, yes, it can be done, but either you know very well the market you are investing in or you must have someone on the ground you can really trust.
I personally would not be comfortable investing overseas as I do really like to have my portfolio under control, but I do have foreign customers (particularly German, Swiss and French) that do not even live in Spain but have a sizebale portfolio of properties each that I manage for them.
You should expect to spend a decent amount of time at the beginning (sourcing the opportunities and property managers, setting up your taxes and other red tape), but once this is done, the rest should be mor or less on auto-pilot.
New to Real Estate · Around the world (and Denmark) · Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 0 votes
6y
Hello Javier. Thank you for your response. I bet you have some great thoughts on this issue. I actually study at ESADE so if you have time, I will be happy to meet some time this week or the coming week.
I am looking into the region of Denmark in which I grew up which is also where my family is located today. I think my dad will be able to assist with some on ground inspection and then I have a good friend who is a certified carpenter with plenty of free time so I am thinking it will be ideal to partner with him as caretaker while I do the marketing and dealmaking on my own.
Rental Property Investor · Barcelona, Spain · Member since 2018 · 38 posts · 22 votes
6y
Hi Lars,
With a newborn at home and a business to run, my schedule is pretty much full al the time! I'd be great to mmet you at ESADE, however, a quick coffee nearby my office would be easier. Otherwise, feel free to ask on a private message!
Investor · CA · Member since 2019 · 56 posts · 25 votes
6y
@Lars Horsbol You just took one of the most difficult steps in real estate investment; the first step. Reaching out to seasoned investors in BiggerPockets. Feel free to message me with any questions.
New to Real Estate · Around the world (and Denmark) · Member since 2019 · 6 posts · 0 votes
6y
As a former resident of Hong Kong I would be very careful to enter that market Luke. Personal opinion based on what I see happening politically moving forward but we can sure have an exciting chat about Asia!