All Forum Posts by: Angel G.

Hi Randee! I too agree that many markets in the midwest have provided a lower barrier to entry given the higher prices inside of the metropolitan areas. As you're beginning to research the different markets out there that meet your criteria, look to see if you have any boots on ground in t those areas who can help you with the long distance investing! 

Hi @Marc DeLuca so there's two ways I'm seeing your situation:

1. The market that you're going to invest in will be determined by where your job takes you. This means that you're planning on self managing and wanting to be present with the property?

2. Regardless of where your job takes you, you find a market that you're interested in, build a team (realtor, lender, contractor, property manager) and invest out of state. 

If you're going with the first option then you can reach out to mortgage brokers that may be licensed in the states that you are looking at to begin asking them questions about rates and programs available. If out of state investing is the route you're going with then reach out to local lenders in the those markets and shop them as well. It's been in my experience with my last 3 purchases that the local banks / credit unions were very competitive with rates. It also helped with establishing a relationship for future acquisitions. 

@JT Britt I was actually listening to one of his youtube videos yesterday! I wanted to listen to some information on putting together a contract for an off market deal directly with the seller. His video came up and was actually quite informative on how to fill one out, but of course, at the end of the video he mentioned how this software flipster would help automate that etc.. etc..

As with most of these videos that try to sell you the "easy" way of doing things, I prefer to go the more challenging way of learning to do it myself. Nothing wrong at all with going "easy" and working smarter not harder. However, once I learn the process and can build up those "stacks and stacks of cash" lol I'll maybe look into it. 

Happy New Year @Asdrubal Ramos and welcome to BP! You're doing it right - here's what I learned while starting out:

1. Education is key - make this a daily habit and listen to podcasts, youtube videos, read through BP forums and REI books. You'll start to realize that terms, concepts and abbreviations become more natural to understand the more you learn.

2. You've started to establish your "Why" and that's reaching financial freedom for both you and your family. Make sure you take the drive that you have and laser focus that into a strategy. The reason I share that is because as you read through all the materials out there and listen to podcasts there are going to be so many ways to "achieve financial freedom." Flipping, wholesaling, Buy & Hold, Syndications, Commercial, Short Term Rentals, etc... It's easy to start chasing anything that shines in this industry. Focus, focus, focus. 

3. Choose a Strategy - at some point you're going to have to take that first step. Choose a strategy and execute. Don't worry, you can always pivot and do something different later on, but if you're going to take the first step, make sure you focus on the strategy that you're going to use.

4. Criteria - you've got your strategy down, let's say buy and hold. Now define what your criteria is. Here's a sample criteria:
- Home type: Multi-family 
- Max Purchase Price: 150k
- Utilities: Separate meters per unit (tenant pays all)
- Cashflow: $150 per door
- CoC Return: 15%
Again it's a sample criteria that I just made up but it will be your guide to help you determine if a deal meets your criteria that meets your goals! 

Best of luck!

@Amrit Saboo congratulations on the start of your portfolio! You've gotten past one of the hardest/biggest steps in this journey and that's the first one. I actually just listened to a podcast yesterday where someone was speaking about their experiences with Condos and as you mentioned, to proceed with caution. I personally am focused on multifamily properties (non-commercial for now 2-4 doors). There are many benefits to this niche just as there are with SFH as well - do what works best for you, your goals and your market.

@Josh Zeloyle along with what other's have shared and ensuring that you're finances are in order, I would recommend two things:

1. While shopping around reach out to local banks / credit unions in the area that you're investing in.

2. Be ready to provide documentation as requested to the lender. It's been my experience that the more seamless you make this process for the (i.e. fast response time, provide what's needed when asked) they tend to appreciate that and remember you as an easy client to work with. You can then Build  that relationship with them for future deals! 

You're on the right track @Cody McDonald! Throughout my journey I've noticed that a daily mix (of any of the following) podcasts, youtube videos, and books has helped me to better speak the language of real estate investing. I learned this lesson the hard way a long time ago when I first started out and reached out to a big investor in my then local area. I clearly remember the first conversation we had and he asked me about my goals and threw out all of these concepts/abbreviations that at the time were foreign to me. Moral of the story - keep educating yourself, learning the language, understand your strategy, criteria and goals. 

When you genuinely start to connect with other investors and share what your goals are it really helps to build that relationship. I remember a podcast where Brandon Turner said something along the lines of "you've got to do your pushups" and I truly believe it's the education you're committing yourself to. 

Best of luck!

@Alexander Canalini - remember that the prices that you're seeing on the MLS are asking price and not necessarily reflective of what the seller's bottom line number is. The fact that you're running numbers and getting those "reps" in will help is a great skill to develop. Ensure that you have a criteria in place for what determines a "great deal" for you. Run the numbers and adjust to what works for you. Don't ever be afraid to submit as an offer price - you may get a lot of no's but all you need is that one YES to start building momentum.

Hi @Scott Bell - I too am in the same situation but will be moving to Colorado Springs. @Carlos Paz actually beat me to it but I was going to fully recommend looking at eXp realty and more specifically Five Pillars out of Fayetteville. They have some very talented people one of which @Michael Glaspie I follow on social media as a military investor.

Hi @Mark Baker that's awesome and I'm truly excited for you on this energy you have to start something great in Real Estate! It's going to happen - you have your "why".

Although I don't reside in East TN and am not local to you - I wanted to offer you something that I learned when I was in the same starting point you're in now. Take the time to ensure you know what your focus will be (i.e. flipping, buy and hold, etc) and then take that to the next level and further refine what your criteria is (i.e. Single Family Home / Multifamily). 

You already have the drive to want to make something big happen - further refine that and you'll see that your conversations with other investors will go so much better when you know what you want to achieve.