All Forum Posts by: Stephen Leblanc

I'm finding myself in a tough spot. Here is a little history. I'm 31 and a buy and hold investor. I currently have 20 units which are doing quite well, and are not taking up too much of my time (2-4 hrs a week).
I have a full time job at the local credit union and I'm close to being topped out in my pay scale, and it's the highest paying job in the organization, without becoming management. It has a great health plan and a fantastic pension plan. I don't hate my job, but I don't love it either. In my city there is a lot of unemployment and lower paying jobs like Walmart and call-centers.
I would love to quit and take a carpentry trade and get into new home construction. I think I could get a job in this industry but this doesn't seem to pay very well. I would be doing this job strictly for the love of the work.
On my current path of grinding away a life at my 9-5 job I could work till I'm 45, sell my rentals, and live off my investments. I really like the thought of not having to work when I'm 45 and being able to travel and do thing I am passionate about. I am in a very good position in my life right now.
If I change my current path and look for a job I love, I am risking financial security, for day to day happiness. It seems very easy to tell someone else to quit their job and do what they love, but it is very hard when it is your neck on the line. The fact that I have a good job makes the decision much tougher. I realize no one can tell me what to do in my situation, but I would like to hear your thoughts on it. Has anyone else found themselves in my spot and how did it turn out for you. I guess I'm just wondering if I should just suck it up for the next 15 years to be financial sound enough to enjoy the rest of my life.

Steve

I'm 31 and have owned rental properties for about 8 years. Just trying to get some input on what my future would look like if I quit my job and had to rely on the rental income. Would I be able to leave the rental business for a period of time, or would I be chained to them for the rest of my life?

there are people who I could leave in charge, but I was hoping not to have to bother anyone to babysit my business. I don't see any other way to do it though.

steve

I'm taking my wife on a 2 week cruise and I'm not sure what to do with my rentals. The only contact my tenants have with me is by calling my cell phone. My cell won't work where I'm going so, I'm not sure what to do. Do I tell them I'll be away for a couple of weeks and to manage the best they can when I'm gone. This seems like the time a pipe will break or something will need immediate attention. The other option is to leave my phone with a friend or relative and give them contact info for repair men. The only problem I have with this, is the burden I put on someone else to deal with the tenants. What do you guys do when you are unavailable for a couple weeks at a time.

steve

ha ha, he wrote the book, I'm guessing he thought it was a good book. I also read the book and it is well worth the money.

steve

I guess this will be a boring year for me. I'll see if I can go a whole year without buying any properties. Use extra money to pay off debt. Good time to stabilize. Pay off 2 loans I got buying up properties which will leave me with enough cash flow to retire from 9-5 at 31. Not going to quit the 9-5 just yet, but it will be nice to know I can.

steve

Thats a good point jon. I have yet to sit down and figure out how much time I spend in the run of a week doing rental business. With a 9-5, most of the work is done on the weekend. I do always have something to do, so I'll have to start tracking my time and seeing what jobs would require me on site and what I would trust someone else to do.

What I mean by cheap is, the typical property manager around here charges 10% of rents. That's over 1K per month to field phone calls and call repair men.

I currently have a full time job and I have 20 rental units. I manage these units myself and do most of the maintenance myself. I do hire out when time is a factor. I find the hands on approach to work best for me, to keep an eye on my units and make sure everything is running smoothly. I can replace my 9-5 income with the cash flow of the 20 units. I am currently looking for more deals and figure I can look after about 40 units before I will need to quit the 9-5 job, for time reasons. My question is.... how do you have time away from the business when you have 20-40 units. If I want to travel for a month, is it reasonable to think I can manage the business by phone, or is this just dream land. Do you hire someone to look after them for you. I think I'm too cheap for that. What do you guys do?

steve

I'll second the plug for mike's book...sorry to take this a little off topic.