All Forum Posts by: Alan Sue

My own experience is probably the beginning of the above.

I purchased a property from them many months ago. They have still not finished renovating, and at this point is 4 months over their estimate of when it would be completed. They promised to pay the rent from this overflow, and 'have' paid it, but back to themselves in various fees. This past month they have not covered as well, and haven't responded to my inquires about that just yet. 

I am hoping that they will turn around and this will turn out to be a great experience, but at this point I would DEFINITELY say DO NOT use this company at this point. 

Hey @David Powell! Good to hear more of us from Japan! I've jumped on BP recently and made contact with some people that do it from here as well. There's a monthly real estate meet up in Roppongi, I haven't made it out yet, but I heard it's good to check out.  It's every 3rd Thursday at Brewdog. 

If you search around BP you'll find several others that invest from here to the US, and some that have given up on the US and are just investing in Japan now. I'm more on the investing in the US side, since it's easier for me to understand.

Like most things it really depends on who you know, if you can find a great team then you can go through a broker,PM and contractor. I've gone the route of using Turnkey companies for the most part, since I am not interested at the moment to really do research into each aspect, when I could just research a TK company.

@Brandon Brown check your requests! 

@Ryan Budil  I echo Brandon haha, find an area that you are interested in, look up a bunch of turnkey providers in that area, start conversations with them. From those relationships and once the trust is built, and well researched, I don't think you need to visit at all if you don't want to. It's the same as buying out of state, but just a little added fear since it's across an ocean. Ironically one of the hard parts for me was getting things notarized. It ended up being easier for me to just have a power of attorney notarized for my father to sign for me on a property, and going forward I may do that per property. But having people you trust in the US is also good to know about!

Hey Ian!

Welcome to BP, and welcome to Japan! I'm down in Yokohama, and connected with a couple other BP'ers in Japan as well. 

While it might seem intimidating to invest all the way across the world, it can be simple too!  Since you already know the direction you are going, just keep learning and researching! Since it is a year, and if you and your fiancé are up to it, maybe even think about dipping your toe in somehow! No need to go all in and spend all your money to build something up, but finding a little something that can give you experience now might be a good idea! 

Let me know if you ever want to meet up!

Thanks for all the advice! I really appreciate it! My sister found a place that meets what she was looking for, so hopefully it will work out well! 

Hey @Ryan Budil! Welcome to BP! It's very possible! 

It really depends on your goals, and which niche/way you want to go about things. like what Brandon and Daniel said. According to your goals, and what you are comfortable with it changes a lot I think. 

Living abroad does give us a different set of challenges to overcome, but they are not impossible at all. 

I think some of the most important things to know/figure out would be:

What is your short term & long term goals?

What areas are you comfortable with, have connections in, or have researched and liked?

How involved do you want to be?

What is your "ideal/perfect/dream" piece of real estate?

Welcome to BP Dylan!

I'm here in Japan as well, in Yokohama. 

There are many ways to get your hands on houses even while here. Since you are in the Military even finding a notary(there should be one on base you can use) is simple! 

I would definitely agree with everybody else, but figure out what your goals are as far as real estate is. Since you can use the VA loan(not right now but later on) that does open up more doors, but even without that there are many door open to you. That all depends on what your goals are though! Sit down with your wife, have that take about real estate, and really figure out where you would want to go with it all!

If you are ever in Yokohama or nearby Yokosuke(you might be here!) or Tokyo area let me know!

Welcome Albert!

Just starting out myself from Japan, I can tell you(as I'm sure you know) the time difference is always fun. A lot of early mornings and late nights in order to match the time zones well. 

I would say if you know how involved you want to be with your properties helps as well. I'm mostly looking at turnkey due to the fact that I really love my current job, but definitely want cashflow for now and for the future as well! 

I spent a couple months in Singapore a couple months ago, and loved it. Have an almost family member living there, as well as lots of friends! Great place!! Welcome to BP!

Just wanted to share my experience from purchasing property in the US from Japan.

You can use the US Embassy, or some US notaries that are in Japan, you will be paying about $50 per notary signature or stamp, making closing cost up to $500 sometimes. For my properties I used a power of attorney with my father for the properties I purchased, which saved me over $1400 in closing. If you are military, I know there are options with the notaries on base(I'm not), but even when I can get on base those services are only for military. I know Yokosuka Base has those services, but unsure on the other bases(I'm closest to that base and have several friends there), so it might be a good idea to check with whichever base you are going to. 

That being said, it's not impossible at all to purchase while in Japan, I would probably agree with everyone else that you could sell and use that for better cashflow depending how long you will be in Japan. 

I would definitely add that spousal support is important! While involvement is completely different story, if the person that believes in you the most isn't supportive, you are already fighting a battle that you should be fighting together on alone.  Especially in the beginning, it can be difficult, but having a good sit down conversation and explaining why you think this is a good idea, and even coming at it from the other direction by pointing out of the dangers and such, shows that this isn't some get rich quick scheme you heard about on the internet, but a well thought out plan you have. 

That being said, my wife is Japanese, and the culture of Japan is save save save. Investing, even in stocks/mutual funds/almost anything is very rare, and met with surprise when talked about. The plus for me in that sense, as we had a good amount of capital to work with, but getting over the its ok to do this hump took a little while. We are definitely at the beginning of our real estate journey, but after researching, and conversations with my wife she was on board with me going through with a first deal, and after seeing how that one goes open to more. 

You of course know your spouse the best, but try to think of it from their point of view and what their main concern is. One of my wife's big concerns was would this take me away from my current job and passion, and drive me to quitting and doing real estate full time in America(we currently live in Japan). My strategy going in all of this is definitely not that, but to simply buy&hold to increase our monthly cashflow, and while I know all of this because I've been reading and listening to as much as I can, it is more difficult to get on the same level, but that is our job to help communicate that, and explain as best we can I think!