All Forum Posts by: George Maka

@Rick Hupalo I made my own, but I would suggest going with someone on Elance, Odesk or finding someone to make your website, unless you have experience making it already. It should cost 50-100 dollars for a simple site with a few pages. Make sure that your site is optimized for mobile as well.

If you do hire someone else to make it, start making notes of what you like from other sites and what you want to include into yours and just send that list over to the developer and have them make it.

George

@Chad Johnson If it were that easy, everyone would be doing it. Bandit signs is just one marketing channel. I would suggest to increase your channels to reach a larger number of people. Do direct market campaigns, online marketing, phone calls, and whatever else you think will reach motivated sellers. REI is a numbers game, so the more people that you reach, the higher your chance of success will be.

Also, you said that you've come across "trash houses". Take a look at these houses, figure out what the ARV is, what the repair cost will be and make an offer. If you buy it right, I'm sure there are flippers in your area that would be interested.

Stay consistent and keep pushing through.

George

@Kevin Tarver As long as the numbers make sense, then I would say to go a head a do it. Normally, a personal loan has a higher interest rate and the terms are usually short, which increases the monthly payments. Not sure what your investment strategy is with this loan, but if you can cash flow or profit from it, then yes, it would make sense.

George

@Louis Aller That idea works, and you can refinance your home and use it to purchase another property. However, I would not rely on the Zillow Estimate to value your home. If you buy a rental, be sure to do your due diligence and that the numbers work to pay your rental.

George 

@Tom Henderson 

A few of my favorites are;

Epic Pro Real Estate

The Real Estate Guys

House Flipping HQ

Just Start Real Estate

Mixergy - not real estate, but great podcast

Thanks,

George

@Taylor Reichert Welcome to the community!

You're already taking great action by joining this forum and being active. You'll find a wealth of information, and motivation by reading through these posts. Feel free to reach out with any questions you may have.

Thanks,

George

Welcome @Ginger A. !

You've made a great start by joining Bigger Pockets and being active on the forums. There's a wealth of knowledge through these boards, the blogs and be sure to check out the many real estate podcasts that are available. My recommendation is Bigger Pockets, Epic Pro Real Estate, and House Flipping HQ - there's many, many more, but these are a great start.

Not sure what your focus is on, but stay focused, stay consistent and best of luck.

Travel as far as you can see, and when you get there, you'll see a little further.

Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions.

George

@Chris M. I like to think most people are good and want to give back. We've all been beginners in something and know how hard it can be to get off the ground. Those who have had the success in their respective field, understand the value of giving back and ultimately get joy from it. 

Personally, I give back to teach myself as well. I figure, if I can teach someone else this concept, then I understand it. Brian Tracey has a great quote, "You can have whatever you want, if you just help enough people get what they want."

With that in mind, if you need anything, please feel free to reach out.

George

@Nicholas DeLouisa Jr Welcome to the community!

Real estate is a large arena and looking at it from a bird's eye view can be very overwhelming. I would suggest to learn one strategy from REI, master it and then expand. You mentioned that you are tight on cash and do not want to risk your credit, I would probably move towards wholesaling then. It's still going to take money, but there are ways to market and get your first deal with a little amount.

Real estate is a people business. We look for motivated sellers, and then we help find a solution to their problem. With this thought, you must begin to change your current mindset of your self-value and believe that you offer a value and you are a people-person. You offer an incredible amount of value through your hard-work, your honesty and it seems that you can write well, which means that you can communicate. 

Main thing with REI is to stay consistent, network and always be learning. You have a great start by joining the forums, so feel free to reach out and ask any questions that you may have.

Best of luck,

George 

@Bradley Smotherman I would say that the easiest way is to go with a 3rd party service. One that I have used is www.PropertyRadar.com, however, I do not think they are available in Tennessee, but I sure a quick search should bring up similar services available to you in your area.

Thanks,

George