All Forum Posts by: Robert M.

"To be honest, after re-reading your post, I'm not entirely sure exactly what you want to do. Are you trying to buy or build a multi-unit building, sell all the units but one, then live in the remaining one? With the expectation of being able to make enough off the other sales so you'd end up owning yours free and clear? Something else?"

I don't blame you to get confused. That's partially because I am a newbie in this field and there seem to be so many creative ways that investors make gains operating in this field.

At this point I am not interested in wholesaling and rentals which seem to be the more traditional methods of investing. As the topic of my post suggests it is mainly a personal project rather than an income generating venture.

That doesn't mean that I would not be interested in those options once I accomplished my initial goal.

"Are you trying to buy or build a multi-unit building, sell all the units but one, then live in the remaining one? With the expectation of being able to make enough off the other sales so you'd end up owning yours free and clear?"

Yes and no. That certainly would be a desirable option and with my preliminary research something that I may have better results with. Fix and flip would be another alternative in a multi unit scenario while keeping one for myself. I would not necessarily say free and clear the higher equity ratio the better.

Since I first posted this topic I put my tax dollars to use and stopped by the library. I picked up three books which seem to be a great way to start gaining some insider knowledge.

One of these is "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Real Estate Investing Basics" by David J. Decker. Of course I haven't had the chance to read it yet but by first glance it seems very promising.

Real Estate seems to be very much a people's business and that is something I am very good at. Now time to dig in and gain some badly needed knowledge.

Jon,

Thanks for your feedback.

Before I bring on a deal for review I need to acquire some fundamentals on real estate.

I believe I have a good track record of finding great value for what I am looking for but first I need to master the parameters which would apply to my search.

Any suggestions in terms of books or forums that are focused on building the fundamentals in real estate? I need to do a lot of self education before I can master the art of evaluation in the real estate field.

Bob

Hello everyone,

I just signed up and excited to be part of biggerpockets community. Hope to make great friends and contacts here.

At this stage my interest is less in investing and rather in my personal project that I hope to implement in spring or summer of 2010.

I am a complete newbie as far as real estate is concerned but have other attributes which I hope will compensate for it while I gain experience in this field.

As I have lived in many countries and always wanted to be flexible I was never really interested in acquiring a house of my own up till now. Well I am finally getting ready to take the plunge.

I will outline my goal and scenario shortly however there are some handicaps and personal attributes that you need to be aware of first.

Let's start with handicaps:

Though I have lived in Canada for a few years now I never wanted or needed to establish a credit history as I wasn't planning to setup long term roots. I have changed my mind now.

To be a good risk as far as Canadian financial institutes go a decent credit history is essential henceforth my plans for 2010 while I go through the process. This will also give me time to save for down payment.

I have a steady job and I am pretty responsible so establishing credit history shouldn't be too difficult. Also I have excellent track record with my bank as far as my account.

As I mentioned earlier another handicap is that as far real estate goes I really don't know much.

Personal attributes:

Once I take a real interest in a project I have a very good track record of reaching my goal. I am extremely well organized and have great communication skills.

Have no problem of dedicating necessary time to educate myself and establishing the right contacts to make the project a success.

Now as far as my project goes here is my preferred scenario:

I would like to acquire a residential property in about a year or so from now with as higher equity ratio as possible. This would likely involve a deal of multiplex or buying land and building multiple dwellings and deferring as much of the cost to the sale of the other units. I have no need of a fancy residence as long as it is comfortable and keep my expenses low.

I would like to accomplish this mainly by using smart techniques like lowering construction costs without sacrificing quality (by doing my homework as best as possible.) Creative financing options for myself and prospective buyers of the other units. Facilitating the project by getting commitment from future buyers (sort of like what developers do or long term leases in commercial buildings.) Maybe doing a JV?!

I hope you get the drift of what I am trying to achieve. I also would like to be in a position to have the flexibility of choosing my preferred residence. After all a home is a man's castle.

Just to give you an idea geographically I am talking about metro Montreal area in Quebec.

I certainly don't mind doing the necessary research and legwork to get the job done.

What do I need to do to get there?

Also I had brought up the financing options. Here in Canada the mortgage business is pretty much under 6 national bank monopolies. I would like to have access and knowledge of other financing resources as well to make an informed and right decision.

Your feedback would be highly appreciated. As I mentioned before I am new in this game so if there are other alternative options or solutions that I miss or should be aware of please feel free to share it with me.

Thanks,

Bob :idea: