All Forum Posts by: Brandon Snyder

Oh, that's a good suggestion, Wes.  I'll learn more about Excel too.

Thanks for the welcoming everyone.  The first thing I'm going to do is thoroughly read the Ultimate Beginner's Guide to real estate investing.  

After that, I think a great way to get my feet wet is to do some bird-dogging to help build a nest egg and learn about the business.  I actually tried doing that in Lincoln Heights for a mortgage broker in Echo Park, Los Angeles a year ago.  I actually knocked on strangers' doors asking them if they were interested in selling their house, but no one owned the homes they lived in.  They were all home renters.  

If I go bird-dogging again, I'd like to find a more efficient way of doing it.

I think to start, I'll have to read up on all the knowledge I can. 

The thing is, there's so much to learn, it would probably take years to know everything before I start making moves.  

I think to begin with, I'll start bird-dogging, which from what I understand is searching for deals to give to investors and/or real estate brokers.  So first I'll search BiggerPockets to find out how to be a good bird-dogger.

Thanks, John.  I appreciate it.  And if you're looking for a blog about teaching English, I have one up.  I hope it's okay for me to post it here.  It's called The Adventures of the ESL teacher (esladventurer.blogspot.com)

Thank you very much for welcoming me.  I have a lot to learn.  I think I'll start with the free PDF for beginners.

Hey everyone, my name is Brandon, and it's great to be here!  

I'm really looking forward to learning a lot, to meet some great people, and to change my life. 

From 2004 until 2012 I taught English as a second language in Japan and Korea.  I spent five years in Japan and three in South Korea.  In August of 2012, I returned to the states, and moved to California to pursue a freelance writing career.

I'm not married, no kids, and I have a girlfriend.  Currently  I reside in Torrance California just six miles East from Manhattan Beach.

I've looked at the guidelines on how to make an introductory post, and I think that the best way for me to do it is to ask myself questions and then answer them.  So here we go!

1. Why are you here?

My current lifestyle is not getting me the results I want.  When the life you lead becomes unbearable, it's time to make a change.  I don't like struggling to pay my rent and bills.  I want a lifestyle where it's easy to live within my means and want for nothing.  

Of course this leaves the question, why real estate?  

A year and a half ago, I attended a Rich Dad/Poor Dad free seminar.  It sounded like a lot of shortcuts, but still, it got me interested.  

So I picked up a good book on flipping houses called, "Flip: How to  Find, Fix, and Sell Houses for Profit" by Rick Villani and Clay Davis.  I found I was able to follow it, and even hold a semi-intelligent conversation on the subject.  So I thought, maybe it's possible.  But then life happened, and I got wrapped up in my freelance writing and editing career.  

Like I said before, my current lifestyle is not getting me the results I want, so it's time for a change.

2. What do you intend to get out of biggerpockets.com?

The resources I have may be a little outdated, so I want to learn up-to-date information on how to succeed in real estate.   I want the freedom to ask any question, no matter how dumb, or basic, or how self-evident the answer should be.  

I also want to network with other like-minded individuals who are just starting out and who are further down the road.  Together, we can build a stable future for ourselves!

So I guess that's about it.  I'm looking forward to learning a lot, and networking with good people, and I hope that BiggerPockets can help me change my life!