All Forum Posts by: James Basile

As a licensed Real Estate Agent, I would agree with the responses so far and would not recommend getting your RE license. My PA State/National licensing material did not cover any investment real estate topics. My REI education has come from networking, education forums(BP is a great place to learn!), and experience as a full time wholesaler in Philly. Connecting with a real estate agent who has strong market knowledge and connections is much more valuable than getting licensed on your own.

If you're planning on starting a career in real estate outside of being a real estate investor, getting licensed through an online vendor (I used the CE shop) is a great option.

I typically always advice against panic-selling any investment asset. Especially assets that are cash flowing! 

In Philly we've seen a huge uptick in crime in the last 2 years. Some neighborhoods in the city vary block by block whether it is considered a "good" or "bad" location but doesn't necessarily determine whether or not an investment property has value. I'm not familiar with the Virginia market but I would advise you to keep an eye on overall trends to determine whether to keep or sell rather than a 96 hour window that may be a random occurrence. 

If you anticipate this will be a trend that will effect rent, appreciation, vacancy, etc, and you think it would be beneficial to swap out/diversify your assets, it might be in your best interest to move your investment into a different area. 1031 Exchange is a great tool for swapping out investment properties while deferring capital gains tax. I would look into that if you are planning on moving your portfolio to a different area.

1031 Exchange is a great tool for investors to utilize when scaling their rental portfolio. It allows investors to sell one investment/business property and purchase another while deferring capital gains taxes, freeing up more capital for the investment in the replacement property.

There are some restrictions that can make this difficult- such as having to locate a replacement property within 45 days and once the replacement property is identified, you have to close on that property in 180 days. When used correctly, there is no limit on how many times you can do a 1031 Exchange- so keep on deferring!

I'm from Philadelphia but my first investment property was in Margate, New Jersey. My brothers and I went in on the project together. A bunch of factors went into the decision to buy in Jersey rather than in PA. The main reason we chose this property was that the Jersey shore charges a premium for rent. We haven't had any issues with vacancy (we mainly rent it out through airbnb). It's also in an area I'm familiar with and close enough for me to get there in an emergency (or to go take a trip to the beach). 

Looking to add some properties in Philadelphia to my portfolio in the next few years. I've been a wholesaler in the Philly market for a few months now and see a ton of potential in some up and coming neighborhoods around the city.

Hey Eric! I'm a wholesaler from Philly. A big portion of the investors that I work with use BRRRR(buy, rehab, rent, refi, repeat) as their investment strategy. For them, as long as the rent is breaking even with the monthly payments on the mortgage, they'll take it. It's not as flashy as the flips you'll see on HGTV but for those looking to build equity and wealth for the future while staying cash-flow positive, it's a great "base hit".