All Forum Posts by: Medi Sarwary

@Arlen Chou Hey Arlen, nice to see your post. Can you expand on the bit about not telling your tenants that your the landlord? 

Since the bankruptcy was from last year I would say no. However, I've noticed the tenants who filed for bankruptcy during the recession have been some of the best 

Hey Eric, before you go out of state I would consider inland California markets like Sacramento, Stockton or Fresno. Even some parts of LA have a lower cost of entry and cash flow. 

The valley is tough right now so I feel for you. 

As an investment in my area, RE has already "failed". My stock returns the past couple years far out weigh what I would have achieved in real estate. In the short term RE was a less than ideal investment when you consider your ROI and just as importantly, return on time! I'm not so naive to think this will continue but in this low interest environment its tough to find other avenues for growth.

I feel bad for the folks who a few years ago used their 401K's for investment properties. 

 For new buyers in the bay, the risk outweighs the appreciation potential since its so heavily priced in..which contributes to  the recent Cali capitol in other states.
Not to say that there aren't opportunities everywhere, but when you look holistically at least in the Bay area, the markets past few years have outperformed RE for the layman. That said every investment has its time. If you're buying to hold for 10+ years, your likely very happy with equity you have achieved.

The Black Swan: The impact of the highly improbable

Its written by Nassim Taleb and it explores the impacts of outliers

@Jonathan Greene

While I agree that the ignorant posts by some people are silly, I think you are way overvaluing the "bro investors" national impact.

I think Russell hit it on the head,  there's just a lot of capitol with nowhere to go. The bro investor story of overpaying for multi's is anecdotal.

On the flip side this is probably a great time to raise money.

I had the same experience as Nicole. It truly shaped who I am today and many of the decisions I made after are attributed to my experience during the recession. 

In general, the entire millennial generation was profoundly affected by the recession and this is portrayed in their spending habits and life choices. 

A lot of headache with very minimal reward for the owner

Still matters in certain areas. 

In the suburbs of the bay area for example, the school district is commonly the top priority for potential home buyers. Parents do everything they can to obtain a local address for their kids. I've seen cases where parents use a relatives or friends home address just to be able to send their child to that school. Folks who have the capability to buy in most areas but lack the funds to buy in a good school district choose to rent in that area just for their child's future. 

A friend of mine explained the rationale and it makes a lot of sense. Your child has a brighter future if she/he goes to a great University. The best way to get them into said University is with a good high school education with a track record. You have two options at that point, a great private school or a high ranking public one. In the Bay, sending your kid to St.Francis will run you 25k a year and 100k by graduation (minimum). A public school will be a fraction of that. 

If your child's education is important to you, that 100k will be either paid to a private school or you would factor that into the price of a home in a top ranked school district. Most choose the latter.

Hey everyone! I had a great time at the last meetup and wanted to see if there is some interest in doing this again?