All Forum Posts by: Glenn Mayo

Ok, so, this may seem a little odd, but I was having a discussion with my mother about how you'd calculate your net worth with your real estate. Now, I understand that the basic formula for net worth is Net Worth = Assets - Liabilities, but the question was, in what way do you use your real estate as assets? The way I see it, there are 3 main ways to look at an income-producing property as an asset: 1. you could count the amount of income it's producing as the value of the asset, 2. you could count the amount of equity you have in the property as the value of the asset, or 3. you could count the fair market value of the property as the value of the asset. I suppose there are also hybrid ways to do it, and you'd probably use different ways for different circumstances, but when sitting down, for yourself, to calculate your net worth, what is the PROPER method? Is there a proper method? Kind of a strange question, I know, but I figured it never hurts to ask.

 Justin, this is very interesting. My wife and I would be first-time buyers. Does this type of loan offer anything for that? What about down payment assistance?

Hi all. New Here. I had some questions about wholesaling, because I was planning to start out that way as a way to learn what makes a REALLY good deal, and as a way to earn a little cash to save up for a nice down payment. I was hoping I could learn from people here, so that, before I go running off half-cocked, I understand what makes a good deal. I'm an honest man, and I have ZERO desire to make money on "suckers". When I go to an investor with a deal, I want to know that he's actually going to be getting the best deal I could possibly bring him, and only then do I want to get paid. I'm also not looking to make grand amounts of cash on each deal. I don't make a whole lot of money with my full time job, so even an extra grand or two would be a godsend. The real "money", so to speak, for me is in the knowledge. I'm basically trying to get paid to learn, so that when I'm on the other side of the coin, and looking for great deals for myself, I really know what I'm looking for. So, for me, ANY solid, actionable advise I can get from real investors is welcome. I don't ever want to be "That Guy"; I just want to be someone who, when investors see me coming, they think, "He's got a decent deal, otherwise he wouldn't be darkening my doorstep". So, how, EXACTLY, do you identify a good deal? What, SPECIFICALLY, are you looking for? When it comes to estimating repairs, what are your best practices? Any help you can give would be great.

Yeah, that's exactly what we were thinking. It's not an ideal situation for the long term, especially since we have a toddler and one on the way, but for a couple years? Yeah. We were thinking buy a duplex, or a tri or a quad, live in one, let the tenants pay the mortgage, and save what we would normally have spent on rent toward a down payment on the next one. The difficulty is in finding the duplexes, though, and for us, since we're just starting out, getting the money for the down payment. We were thinking of working through FHA, since they'll guarantee some pretty decent loans for duplexes to quads in Tarrant County. Do you have any suggestions for us on this?

 Boyd. That coffee we were talking about? We should discuss duplexes. That is EXACTLY what my wife and I need.

 That would be great! It's nice to know I'm not alone in this market. Have you had any success here yet, Boyd?

In addition to being part of BP, I recently signed up for the free Lifestyles Unlimited class, and I'm thinking about joining that organization as well, for all the contacts and educational opportunities there, too. I've heard good and bad about LU; mostly good, at the level I'd be joining, and mostly from BP. I'm hoping to avail myself of as many educational and networking opportunities as possible, since my initial plan (wholesaling) is going to require me to REALLY know what a good deal looks like and then to know, or quickly be able to locate, investors who can close on a good deal. Thoughts?

Also, I see that some people on here have real estate licenses. Long ago, I considered getting a real estate license, but I was talked out of it on the grounds that you only get paid commissions. I know that a real estate license isn't necessary to invest, but, aside from access to the MLS database, are there any major advantages to having a license that make it worthwhile to pursue? I'm REALLY interested in everyone's thoughts on the matter. Thanks!

You know, as a newbie here, the very fact that you all were unafraid to put up this post and let the answers fall where they will is encouraging. I bet there are other "guru" sites that would never do this, because they are making all the money, while their students are donating to their income. I haven't been here long enough to have benefited from BP yet, but I'm hoping that, one day, I'll come in here and say, "I remember when I was first starting out here and I had lint in my pockets. Now...."

Well, fortunately, time isn't too much of a problem for me. My schedule is somewhat flexible, and I'm able to adjust it as needed right now. My real concern is this: without much money, I'm kind of stuck. To that end, I was just talking with my wife, and we both agree that, right now, our two best options are A) go through FHA, if possible, and get a two-family home (we'd be first time buyers), that way we can live in one side and have the other pay our mortgage, and we'll be able to save what we would have spent on rent toward a decent down payment, and B) spend some time REALLY learning how to identify darn good deals, so that, even if we can't buy them, we can wholesale them and earn a little money that we can, again, sock away toward a significant down payment. We figure that, with our credit, we're going to need to walk in with some cash, no matter how we end up buying our first property, and the more the better. So, what we're hoping is for as much advice as possible toward those goals. Honestly, our income and our bills are such that it won't take a tremendous amount of passive income to replace our current income and keep us living at the level we're at now, which, while not great, isn't horrible, either. And once we get there, we plan to do this full time. I'm hoping to learn that what I want to do is possible, and how to make it happen.

Hi. My name is Glenn, and I live in Fort Worth, Texas. I'm new to real estate investing, I suppose. I say "I suppose", because 9 years ago, I bought the Carlton Sheets real estate program and went through it. I found that there was what I THINK is some good information, but I was never able to make a go of it, and before long, I put it aside and went back to slaving away. Last year, though, things changed for me. My son was born December 6th. And then, this year, we found out we have a daughter on the way (due in March). This has lit a fire under me. I want to be there for my kids, and so does my wife. I don't want to spend 40 - 60 hours a week away from my family, while my wife does the same, and others raise our kids. I don't want to put my kids in public school; I want to teach them myself, the way I learned. I want my kids to grow up in an environment where they learn that it really is possible to make things happen if they work hard and put their mind to use. I want to pass on to them valuable skills that they can take with them throughout their lives, and I want to leave them a good inheritance when my time comes. My wife wants to work, but she also wants to be home with the kids and be a mom. She wants to do something that puts some money in her pocket and lets her feel like she's not only contributing, she's an equal partner. And we both want to work together on building a solid life for our family. That's why I'm here; to learn where things went wrong 9 years ago. To fill in the gaps and gain the confidence I need to properly evaluate a deal and then pull the trigger. And, honestly, to get advice on how to start with VERY little money (a couple thousand at best) and iffy credit. So. There it is.