All Forum Posts by: Chris Vail

Welcome to BP @Crystal Francis 

I have been bridging the gap in my mind for the last few months on the 50% and 2% "Rules". The 2% rule I have thrown out the door, however I have been reverse engineering what I will be comfortable as a return on my first property and am using that as a frame work to narrow my search for properties. Basically if I know what cash on cash return I want to get at the end I can work backwards to see what kind of property I will need to undertake keeping certain known inputs in mind.

For instance:

In the above I am using a fixed cash on cash return percentage while using down payment as an input. Most of the numbers are driven off of generic percentages; 20% down payment, 20% of purchase price for rehab, 5% for closing costs, 6% for vacancy, and 50% for operating expenses. This lets me know ballpark what I would need to be able to get for rents as a starting point compared to a purchase price of an investment. Once I compare that to market rent for a given area I can quickly screen properties to see if what I am looking for will be even possible given what the math is telling me.

@Joshua Dorkin Already here and exploring, so far so good.

@Jessica Sorensen welcome to bigger pockets, there are lots of folks on here in the Sacramento area. @Al Williamson puts on a meetup once a quarter and there is one coming up some time this month so keep an eye out. And congrats on taking the first step by joining the conversation.

Thank you as well @J. Martin so looks like I will start hitting the streets and crunching numbers in a serious way looking for my first deal.

@Dennis Lanni I also appreciated the spirted questions, made me think about a few things and I am thankful for the conversation (I will not be looking for a job with iMAX, but thank you for the offer ;)).

@J. Martin posting here for tracking purposes :)

Its good to see some faces on here from the last meetup that @Al Williamson put together.

Looking forward to meeting the new faces as well.

@Sarah B. instead of calling you on memorial day weekend I will just plan on bending your ear for a bit at the meetup if thats okay with you.

I am like a few of the folks that have already posted on here (New to REI). I am looking for both long term holds and fix and flip opportunities in the Sac area as well as Butte County. Still trying to get my head wrapped around all of the different stages for REI and locating the first property to pull the trigger on. This would include a property that would end up cash flowing after pulling equity from fix up and repairs in order to finance the next property. I am looking long-term for the ability to move towards being a full time real estate investor so I will be able to provide for my family without a normal 9-5 job.

Thank you @Al Williamson and @J. Martin

Checking with the wife to see if she wants to come, once I hear from her I will get my ticket/s. Looking forward to it.

Thank you to those that replied I appreciate the feedback. Yes calling it a mentor might have been the wrong title. After our conversation today he is looking for someone that can help him systemize tasks and processes and I am looking for someone to help me get my feet wet in REI without throwing myself into the deep end of the pool with weights on my feet. I look at is a mentor type of relationship or perhaps it would be classified as a coaching relationship or partnership. I plan on helping where I can around systemizing processes for him and I will be seeking knowledge/experience about REI in my market from him. It should be a win win. I will try to respond back here as the relationship unfolds.

@Karen Margrave I have my Mechanical Engineering degree

Again thank you to those that responded.

I have a call later today with an investor who happens to be the head of one of our local REIA's. This will be our second meeting and our last conversation ended with the question of what could I bring to the table if he and I decide to continue conversations to see where things will lead in the way of real estate investing. So my question is this, as a newbie to REI what would someone already in the investing world look for or need from a newbie?

Through our prior conversations my back ground in engineering has come up and he has said that that interests him as he says his mind does not work in that way. Now for me I think of this as maybe I might be able to asses process that are in place, or not in place, and be able to see systematic inefficiencies and solve for them. Or maybe he needs help with spreadsheet work and formulae driven decision making templates. I have been thinking about what I can offer over the weekend and I keep asking myself the question, How can I know what he needs? I can offer all kinds of help but if it is help that is not needed it does not bring much value to the relationship.

So I guess my first question should really be...

"Thinking about your question of what can I bring to the relationship, I have realized I need to know what you are missing or what you need help with for your business in order to accurately be able to offer help where it would be most beneficial to you. I have lots to offer but if ultimately what I can offer needs to mesh with your needs in order for the relationship to be mutually beneficial."

Thoughts on the above from the experienced investors on the forums that have mentored or thought about mentoring would be much appreciated?

Thanks in advance,

Chris Vail

@Al Williamson Thanks for getting the MeetUp put together.

I would also like to thank @David Hutson for the time he spent after the meet up answering more of my questions.