All Forum Posts by: Jay Orlauski

Wow.. I keep hearing about this "Furnished  Rentals" talk .. it's starting to make me wish I had attended that one -  I'm going to have to followup with the presenter and see if he has anything published - anyone care to elaborate on the some of the ideas that you found most useful? 

That house on Roberts is selling at a good discount to what the local comps are and currently has at least 10 offers on it right now. Its an all cash purchase - They have already requested highest and best on this one.  It has some electrical issues that need to be dealt with as well the carpet / flooring will need replacing - also appears to have some roughed up counters in the kitchen -  hence the extremely low price - could be trying to get a biding war going on too - but as it is it is selling for $127/ sq ft compared to local comps which are at about $141 / sq ft. 

Average rents in the area are roughly 1100 - 1200 / mo 

With vacancy rate, management, and repair budget it cashflows to the tune of about $103 / month - of course if you can keep it filled, and manage it yourself there is more meat ion the bone.  But I always run calcs with management, vacancy, and repair budget just to make sure there is wiggle room. I'm sure you could easily manage this yourself until you get more units. 

I haven't been able to get inside it as it currently has people in it who do not want to show until they have an accepted offer.  Great eye though! this is exactly the kind of property my investor clients are looking for. I have an offer in on it right now. 

Hi John - Welcome to Bigger Pockets - you are in the right place to learn about real estate - there are many very well versed investors here who's experience you can benefit from. I am also in Fresno and have been investing in the area for about 16 years now - specializing in multifamily units. I'd be more than happy to help answer any questions for you anytime. As Jason said - there are a few good REIA groups here in the area that would help you grow your network and learn about the local market - so when you are ready to pull the trigger you have a better idea of the market and maybe even some investment partners to help you get there quicker.

Have a great day !

I missed the furnished rentals talk cause I was attending 'out of state' discussions since we are looking to invest out of state soon.  I really enjoyed the discussion from Jeffrey Tayler about increasing cashflow for rentals - he had some really good ideas that make a lot of sense. 

To anyone else who attended - what was your favorite session?

The morning started off with investors from all over the US slowly meandering their way into the massive masonic Scottish Rites Temple sitting off the shores of beautiful Lake Merritt in downtown Oakland. The idea of networking at 7 a.m. on a Saturday wasn't exactly at the top of my to-do list but the chance to meet with so many other experienced investors was well worth the 4 a.m. trip to the Bay Area. I got there early so that I didn't miss out on anything and actually made it there early enough to help the other volunteers set up a table with name tags and itineraries. Before long, investors were piling into the grand ballroom and the quiet whispers of the morning became a slow and steady roar, as investors from all over the US introduced themselves to each other, exchanged business cards and shared their stories of where they're from and why they're here. I even met investors from as far away as Alaska. Before long it was time to start and J Martin kicked off the two-day Summit with some encouraging words and a taste of what we were going to experience over the next two days.

When I first got invited to the event I was excited, as I had never been to a real estate summit before. Though I had been to many meetup and REIA groups, I've never been to such a large event with so many investors under one roof. Not only was it a great opportunity to meet with so many other like-minded people, but an excellent chance to hear some really useful information from the keynote speakers who are obviously very experienced and quite successful in their field of endeavor.

The way it was set up, discussions were held in two separate rooms, the Grand ballroom and the room next to the ballroom - so you could choose what topic you wanted to listen to. Sometimes it was difficult to choose which topic I wanted to hear as there were so many great subjects to choose from. Ultimately , I leaned more towards the multifamily and notes discussions, however there were many more great topics to choose from such as syndication, increasing cash flow, and even big profits with tiny houses.

The speakers chosen for this event were inspiring, dynamic and really know their stuff. They knew how to capture the audience's attention and came armed with plenty of slides, examples, and actionable knowledge. Some speakers had only information to share while other's had products to sell - but all of them had really interesting and useful information and the products they were selling seemed well worth it for what you were getting. After every three or four speakers they would hold a discussion panel with those same speakers and give the audience an opportunity to ask questions that would be answered by everybody on the panel. This was a great chance to get different perspectives on the same topic from industry leaders.

During the course of the day it was obvious that the speakers had much more to share with us, but given the limited time frame to talk, they could only provide so much. With so much great info to share, some of the speakers went over their allotted time and others were forced to start late and had to scale back their talk , but they still managed to provide us with lots of information. The great thing was that they all made themselves available to talk with people after their discussions and took the time to answer questions individually and exchanged business cards - this way you can always reach out to them and get more information.

In between the speaker's there were short breaks and opportunities for the rest of the investors to mingle with each other and do some networking - in many cases this is were some of the real magic happens, as connections are formed and as we all know sometimes all it takes is one great connection to change everything. In this case there were many great connections to be made.

It wasn't all business, however. At the end of the first day session we had happy hour and everybody had a chance to mingle and drink and just enjoy a relaxing environment. Enjoying a Royal Crown on the deck overlooking the beautiful Lake Merritt and laughing with new friends was a great way to top off such a wonderful day.

The next day was filled with just as much useful information and once again it was difficult trying to decide which topics I actually wanted to listen to - but I had met some of the keynote speakers earlier and was eager to hear what they had to say and in some cases that's how I decided. None the less, I was able to take away something from every discussion. Day two was also capped off with happy hour and was a great chance to take a collective sigh of relief and to digest and discuss all of the great information we just spent two days taking in.

I didn't attend the first summit two years ago, so I don't know what it was like - but if it was anything like this one, then I can understand why so many people were raving about it and gave it such great reviews. This is an event that I would like to see happen again next year and hope it becomes an annual event. J Martin - and all the volunteers that help put this together and organize it so well - thank you so much! 

@Tyler Ramsey  - welcome to the group - glad to have you. Sounds like you have the makings of a successful real estate investor - now that you've turned your sights onto real estate, I'm sure you will do well.  

any particulr type of investing you looking to do? buy and hold - long term income - fix and flips - notes? 

whatever you choose,  there are many members here to lean on and learn from. I'm sure you'll do well. 

@Jeannie Kenes - I am in central California -looking to make it northern cali some day - it is so beautiful up there - i travel there every chance I get

Michael - lets get together for some coffee while you're in town - would love to continue our conversation from the meetup. 

@JIll - that was going to be my suggestion - get yourself to a local REAI group and start talking to people. I organize an REAI group here in Fresno and just last week I did a discussion on this very topic - one the #1 reason people don't network more is because of anxiety about meeting new people. Just like with everything else - the key is PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE - in other words do exactly what you did - go to an REAI meetup and just put yourself out there. Then go again. The more meetups you attend - the more confident you become. Also - like you said - being around positive people makes a difference and most people who attend these meetups are very friendly , very approachable , and usually always willing to hep you out when they can. 

When you show up - look for someone not speaking with anyone - then go introduce yourself. Give them a firm handshake and look them in the eye - tell them your first and last name and then ask them theirs. Keep things light  - ask about them -ask them what drives their passion for real estate - you will alot about others ans soon the conversation will naturally turn towards yourself and your involvement in real estate. 

Try to focus more on getting to know people and building rapport - over time, you will become more familiar with the group members and other local investors in your area and before you know it - you will have wide network , lots of friends in the industry , and have no problem walking up to new people to introduce yourself. 

best of luck to you - 

Jason is a great inspiration to many members of our meetup group including me and always has some great information and tips to share with us - thanks for sharing your experiences today on the AIRBNB topic - your input was invaluable. 

Hello Tzvi, 

congrats on taking the first steps to success by starting your yellow letter campaign. Many people get so caught up in the details that they never get around to actually doing it. You are going to get a lot education with the 'trial by fire' method and should be salty vet after several hundred calls. 

I would suggest in addition to some of the other advice here, watching some of the call scripts on you tube - not only do they have some great verbiage - but you can also see the tone and style that they use when calling people - you can even watch wholesalers do live calls and see how they handle rejections and how they lead up to the negotiations. I have picked up some really good tips about what questions to ask and how to approach potential sellers. After that - practice practice practice!! -  please keep us updated on your progress. Best of luck to you.