All Forum Posts by: Kelly O'Quinn

Hi @Nicholas Jackson! Welcome to BP!

Hi @Westley Douglas! Welcome to BP! There's an OC BP meetup the third Wednesday of every month at the Round Table Pizza in Lake Forest at 7 pm. Here's the official meetup site: http://www.meetup.com/Orange-County-Real-Estate-Investor-Networking/

See you around!

Welcome to BP! @Joe Homs does fix and flips in North OC. He may be a good resource. 

Also, there's a monthly BP meetup on the third Wednesday of every month at the Round Table Pizza in Lake Forest. Here's the official Meetup page: http://www.meetup.com/Orange-County-Real-Estate-Investor-Networking/

Hi @Aarin J.! Welcome to BP and congratulations on your upcoming nuptials =] 

Hey @Adam Schumacher! Welcome to BP! 

Hi All,

I'm looking to work for a property management company in North Orange County, CA or Corona. My goal is to learn property management in a hands-on environment while I take the PMC courses through CAR so that I'm prepared to manage my own properties in the future and possibly help clients with their PM needs. Do you know of some great PM companies in this area that I should reach out to?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Hey @Andy M. I grew up in Fullerton, lived there until I was 23, now live in East Placentia (about 10 minutes away) and go to Cal State Fullerton and Fullerton College. The neighborhood you're looking in is generally lower-income than the rest of Fullerton with a slightly higher crime rate. The area along Valencia Ave. near the train station was known as Fullerton Tokers' Town when I was in high school - some gang activity, crime, and drugs - but they've been cleaning up in recent years. That said, there are pocket neighborhoods that are pretty safe where you're looking. The demographics and safety can change on almost a street by street basis there. I recommend driving the area on a Saturday or Sunday when everyone's home or out walking about and find areas with homes that show outward signs of pride of ownership, then drive your choice neighborhoods at night to see what kind of people are out. Also, there are a lot of infill development projects planned for Fullerton, and both population and job growth are expected to outpace housing over the next 10 years, so multi-family is a good bet. If you have more questions about Fullerton, I'm happy to help. Just send me a colleague request or PM. 

Also, you should check out Mas Islamic Chinese Restaurant when you're in town. They have the best family-style Chinese food around. Make sure to get the naan with green onions, it's fantastic. They're at 601 E. Orangethorpe, Anaheim. (I'm not an affiliate, just a fan).

Hi BP'ers!

I have a client who just closed escrow on the sale of one of their rental properties as part of a 1031 exchange. We need to locate a replacement property for them in the next month. They're looking for 2-4 units, preferably in the Orange area, but are willing to consider North OC and parts of LA county that are close by to here. They don't have a specific cap rate or COC return they're looking for; they like to see pictures and go from there. They're not thrilled with what's currently on the MLS, so thought I'd reach out and see if any of you are thinking of selling a small multi or know someone who is. I am not looking for a birddog or anything like that. Please email me at [email protected] and put "BP 1031 Response" in the subject line if you have a small multi you'd like to sell or know someone who does.

Thank you!

If you have a brokerage relationship with another agency, this is not intended as a solicitation. All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Equal Opportunity Housing Provider. CalBRE# 01958085

Welcome! Small multi-families are a bit harder to come by in the North OC area than in other parts of the country, but it's not impossible. Some cities that have more inventory of small multi's are Orange, Long Beach, Santa Ana, and Anaheim. Any others you BP'ers know of?

Yes, I definitely worry about safety. In addition to everyone's responses above, my partner and I have a system where I text/call him every 30 mins to let him know I'm ok when doing an open house or showing. I also use a safety app called B Safe You (I'm not an affiliate) that enables you to broadcast your location at all times to your friends/family and has an alarm feature that, when pressed, sounds an alarm, immediately calls your #1 contact, and records video & audio of what's happening. The video and audio recording is saved on the app's cloud storage so you can access it later if necessary for dealing with police. 

Lastly, don't be afraid to be "rude". If you're uncomfortable about someone, listen to your intuition. One time, my open house had finished about 30 mins earlier and I was putting the lockbox on the house when a couple pulled up. The wife kept the car running in the street while the husband got out to ask if they could take a look at the house. I told them I was sorry, but the open house had ended and I could not let anybody else in (I was alone). He kept insisting and explained that they drove from a few hours away just for this open house. I kept telling him I was sorry, but there was nothing I could do that day and if he'd like to set up a showing appointment, I'd be happy to do so for him. He insisted more, I told him I couldn't and the owners would be home soon and expect to have the home to themselves. He then said, "Oh, it's not vacant?" I told him no, offered my card so he could set up a showing appointment, he turned it down and left. There will always be another buyer. Your safety is more important than being accommodating.