All Forum Posts by: Ali Boone

Well the good news and the bad news is--there's so many options! It's great news because you can really make it what you want, but it's bad news because it can be insanely overwhelming and hard to get your bearings. This article is older, but maybe it will give you some things to think about when trying to decide on a strategy?
https://www.biggerpockets.com/...

I can't link to it in here but keep an eye on the Marketplace...hoping to post it tonight...as I published a book last summer that I more or less tailored to folks in exactly your position to help them figure out what strategy might offer the best success for them--things to consider, deeper dives into what each strategy really involves, etc. It's called NOT Your How-to Guide to Real Estate Investing: Life Lessons on Hacking Your Mind Before You Hack Your Wallet.

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Originally posted by @Chen Su:

@Ali Boone Thank you for asking to clarify my question! I really meant to say states/cities with"strong/stronger renter protection". It is definitely not landlord friendly or maybe to the extend of dangerous sometimes. It is one of my biggest worries as a new landlord, so I wanted to be prepared and know how to be successfully despite of being in a such environment. In fact, I was so worried that I almost didn't take the step to purchase an investment.

I am very new to real state investment, I would love to hear what you and other experience investors think! Rapid equity gain, good rental market, convenience and familiarity are the some reasons, I guess, why local investors do not stay away from such areas. I really appreciate what others have mentioned earlier! I need to join some local landlord associations and spend time understanding different rental laws among cities.

I am think it would be healthier to have a more balanced real estate investment pro folio. So, my plan for the next 5 year is to research areas outside of western Washington to find properties that may not have as much equity gain, but better cash flow, and more landlord friendly or at least not biased to just one side. I would love more suggestions on where to look!

Thank you!

How far outside of WA are you willing to look? Outside of that question, I'm still not totally following what it is you're looking for, other than to just buy good rental properties. What are your goals? What kind of properties are you looking for, what kinds of things are you wanting to learn, etc.?

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I'm a little late to the thread, so might be saying things others have already said, but I would recommend before you talk to agents or brokers that you first learn more about real estate investing and the strategy you're trying to pursue. If you don't learn about those strategies and learn what makes for a successful investment or unsuccessful, know what things you're looking for, etc... you'll have no idea if what the people are telling you is legit or misleading (whether intentional or not, doesn't matter). You've got to get some knowledge under your belt or you'll always be at someone else's mercy and essentially not have any control over your own investing.

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How do you know the rehab costs to make a judgment on their pricing? If a property is 100+ years old, it probably needs an extremely extensive rehab, which could cost a ton. If you spend your time worrying about a turnkey provider's profit (which honestly is never as high as people think it is, at least not with the turnkey companies I know), you're focusing on the wrong thing. You should focus on the quality of the investment of the property itself. What's the market value of the property, compared to what they're selling it for? What's the cash flow on it? What is the cap rate/CoC return on it? If those are all good, that's what matters.

When you say the new construction properties are priced too high... what's too high? And do you mean too high for your budget or too high for what you think they should be selling for?

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Did you mean to say states with stronger renter protections? That's dangerous for landlords... I assume you meant to say stronger landlord protections.

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Originally posted by @Julie Sisnroy:

@Brandon Sturgill I agree completely.

Not a true TK in a sense, as long as someone knows that going in. They represent the sellers who put their "turnkey" property on their site. The term turnkey means different things to different people, but when I think turnkey, it is a different perspective than what I believe RS represents. I also would prefer to have someone in "my court" to provide the ground truth to me as a buyer. I wrote a comment about my experience with them on another post, so I won't belabor the point.

Rootstock.com for first time rental?

Take it as anecdotal though, and do more research. Some have had success with it, so it depends on the property I expect or who you work with.

Love this! It's one of the first times I've seen someone (other than me) explain how they work differently than normal turnkey providers, and suggest the risks involved with it. I'm with you--I prefer actual turnkey providers. I also know, to your point, a lot of people who have felt misled by them because of their turnkeys claims, especially when they sell someone an as-is property instead of turnkey... but because someone approached them looking for turnkeys, they didn't know that nothing about an as-is property is even remotely similar to a turnkey model, so they didn't know that they should reject buying an as-is property from them.

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I agree with Eric W. (won't let me tag him for some reason). Your time is all that matters... just move past all those people as quickly as possible. No point in sticking around, it'll only cause stress and annoyance, and they aren't going to help you in your real estate journey anyway. Stick it to all those a-holes by flying through your journey successfully with middle fingers up. Who cares what they think or how they feel about women.

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I'm a little late to the thread, but thought I'd throw a couple things in. This may have already been said, but people don't typically use agents with turnkeys. The turnkey providers are usually agents themselves, and investors don't really use a buyer's agent. If you work with a turnkey marketing company, rather than directly through the provider, they will unofficially support you in all the things an agent would--contracts, going through the inspection, etc. While they don't legally represent you, they offer support through the whole buying process. I do this for people all the time (I've been buying turnkeys since 2011).

As far as actual properties, I don't know of any turnkey providers in NC, SC, or MN. What about those states is of particular interest for you? For inspections, not only do all of the other companies allow 3rd party inspections, it's recommended you get one and assumed that you will get one. If anyone didn't allow that (which I've never heard of), I'd definitely consider that to be a red flag. Company recommendations-wise, I run a turnkeys Facebook group and there's tons of discussions in there about all the different companies. I could give you my personal recommendations and thoughts on companies, but it's all covered in the group too... if you're on Facebook.

Hope that helps!

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Originally posted by @Mike Berina:

@Chris De Celle thanks for the advice. I do have access to invest in an oos syndication with 18% return over 6 months, so I might invest in that while I continue to learn and look out for a good deal.

@Steve Rozenberg I watched your Dream Investment Adventure series and found it very insightful and inspiring! It's an honor to get your advice, and yes, it definitely helps! My goals are very ambitious for the time frame so I'm wondering if they are unrealistic and I should push the time frame out a bit.

@Jeff Wallenius Thanks for the wisdom, Jeff. I definitely plan on doing a thorough team vetting before I even consider purchasing a property. I'm down to hear about your experience and what pitfalls to avoid.

@Ali Boone I would be open to either out-of-state or out of LA. If out of LA, probably somewhere still in SoCal or central coast within 2-3 hours driving distance. But if I can get a better deal out-of-state than I would in CA, I'd def be open to that. Where are you investing?

@Kevin Tsai Agreed! Def some gems of wisdom in the replies. Happy to connect!

@Jason Hsiao I am not too familiar with ADU laws. It sounds a bit intimidating. I'll have to do a bit more research on that. Thanks for the suggestion!

@Kevin Tsai

"Better deal" depends on what you're looking for and what your goal is. Out-of-state can offer cash flow, but maybe you want the appreciation play. You also can't really decide where you 'should' invest if you don't know a) what you're aiming for and b) what each location offers. If you want monthly cash flow, you can't stay in CA at all, for example. Pretty much all of SoCal is going to offer the same problem as LA, so just getting out of LA doesn't do much. Central CA, maybe, depends. Learn what you can get in various locations, and go from there.

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Originally posted by @Luke Rorech:

Great article @Ali Boone

Thanks!

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All Forum Posts by: Ali Boone

Ali Boone has started 26 posts and replied 6253 times.

Post: Newbie to real estate investing. Best way to get started?

Post: investing in states with strong renter protection?

Post: How you beat the fear of investing and just went for it

Post: Too late to jump into REI?

Post: investing in states with strong renter protection?

Post: Any experience using roofstock for first investment property?

Post: Sexism in REI getting under my skin

Post: Newbie question regarding out of state invest

Post: LA newbie - what market to invest in?

Post: Do I buy my house first or my investment properties?