All Forum Posts by: Omar Khan

@Ben Leybovich Comparing a high-volume business (SFRs) with low-volume (syndications) is like comparing a Toyota (I'm a proud owner) with a Mercedes. Both are cars, they are just at different price points and the companies have a different business model.

Syndication or real estate private equity is a pretty solid business model. @Brian Burke is a good example, so is Sam Zell and other real estate investors. They don't seem to be complaining too much about "only" doing a few deals a year. 

@Account Closed I'm sure Bezos, Zuckerberg, Buffet and Bill Gates are crying... Only if they'd bought some single family homes/multifamily (FYI: I'm a multifamily syndicator) cash-flowing properties! Will anyone think of their poor children? Only a measly quarter of a trillion $$$ between them :(

Just check the list of richest people in the world. Very few made their money in real estate.

Think you're missing the point of how markets work.

To each his own ;) 

P.S. Glad to see so many folks chiming in and saying the same thing (albeit more eloquently). 

@Giridhara Gowdra chandranna Most colleges/universities offer extensive courses on real estate. The majority are way better than the average "guru" sells in seminars. 

Honestly, your best bet is to actively network, read books (boring and interesting alike) and listen to podcasts to develop your knowledge.

@Darlynn Bailey Depends on what investors you're looking to target. In our case, I usually vet my number crunching analysts on how detailed their model (including waterfalls) are. Most experienced investors can figure out in less than 5 minutes by quickly scanning through the model. 

Alternatively, I have analysts that focus on market research and business development. It all depends on where your strengths lie and the needs of the investors you're targeting.

@Sandy G. Best bet is to contact local brokers. The "getting in touch" with tired owners part is becoming hard to do. Brokers, property manager and local investors will be the best in finding out about deals. 

I would also suggest attending local meetups and REIA meetings as these are a great way to connect with like-minded individuals.

@Eric Thornton Regardless of the financial information, most properties are valued off comps. This is why the typical broker pitch is: "The property has low NOI but all the other properties around it sold for XYZ. Hence, this is worth ~ the same amount."

I would urge you to network with local investors to better understand the intricacies of investing.

@Michael Stanley Nino There is no right answer because this is dependent on the market and the price you purchase the asset. 

Nonetheless, purchasing smaller properties can turn into a bigger property management problem especially as the PM is more expensive. One can't just look at the returns on paper only. Consider operational headaches like PM, tenant management plus due diligence costs associated with purchasing a single family home from out-of-state.

@Nick Gray You'll have to take a haircut on your income now for the possibility of a higher income/profit potential in the future. Essentially, real estate - sales, investing, lending - is all about networking. Unless you're working in a top-PE shop, nobody cares about your degree (painful, I know... I thought my CFA was worth a lot as well... lol). 

If you're looking to invest long-term, the shortest path to getting there is working a high-paying job, saving aggressively and investing every last dollar. You don't have to like your job to avail the benefits you accrue from it. That's it! Easy in theory, hard in practice. 

@Thomas S. You should either have a solid balance sheet, amazing connection and a lot of times to be able to generate reasonable income returns in the SFBA area. Capital appreciation will be your biggest friend as you live in a very desirable part of the country with a strong economy. 

Nonetheless, if you're starting out I would suggest networking with local investors to develop your network before deciding to invest.

I'm ready to follow all your advice if each posts brings 24 upvote (including mine)!