All Forum Posts by: Paul Moore

Hi @Kelly McClellan. I have searched far and wide for a great real estate CPA and tax strategist and it turns out that I found one in right in your area, in a suburb of Columbus. Reach out to me if you want to connect to them. 

It's great to get a good community when transitioning to passive investments.  It turns out one of the best communities is right there in your area, in Dublin, OH, Left Field Investors.  I highly recommend that you connect with Left Field Investors and @Jim Pfeifer to learn more about passive investing and to strengthen your knowledge, community, etc.  I also recommend getting @Brian Burke's excellent book The Hands-Off Investor. Good luck!

Hi @Jacob Rosenkranz. Great question! The problem with answering this is that we have been in a record-long bull market for real estate. As a result, it's really hard to tell who the great operators are and who the lucky or skilled amateurs are. We won't really know who the best syndicators are until there is a downturn.  That is when we will find out who is protecting the downside and who has been taking risks that have been covered up by a rising tide. 

We all know the famous saying from Warren Buffett: "a rising tide lifts all boats.  But some day that tide will go out and we will see who is skinny dipping." So as you make this analysis, make sure you are investing with syndicators who are doing a great job protecting the downside. Sometimes they might even have lower returns but it will be worth it when the tide goes out. I say they have lower returns because just like insurance there is a cost to taking lower risks but someday those of us who invest with conservative syndicators will be glad we had that insurance. Good luck! 

@Sean Barber great question. This is certainly an unintended potentially negative consequence of investing in commercial real estate or other real estate that generates losses from depreciation. I spoke to a high up at Fannie Mae and they said "you can't have it both ways. If you're going to get these losses you're probably not going to get agency debt from Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae."

This is why it is important to develop great relationships with local bankers and credit unions. The smaller the bank the better.  You will probably not get the same low rate and terms you would with agency debt but I would guess you will have some options. Especially if they see and can understand that your top line revenue is not reflected in your bottom line income. Good luck!

Great points, @Michael Plaks!  

Outstanding @Chris Levarek!  

Hi @Mona B. you got some great replies above. In my years in the commercial asset space I noticed it is hard and confusing to know where the on-ramp is.  That is why I dedicated the last 1/3 of my new BP book on self storage, Storing Up Profits, to this topic.  It's not just about storage, but the concepts I lay out here are how to get into any commercial real estate asset class. That last section of the book covers 7 different on-ramps, including:

1. Stair stepping your way from small to large
2. Capital raiser (be careful!)
3. Deal finder
4. Start off big (with a lot of help)
5. Get a job
6. Find a paid coach or mentor
7. Invest passively and learn your way into the business

Good luck!

Hi @Michael Ede @Matt Faix is right. Radius + is the definitive tool to help you evaluate self storage. You can get five free hours, if I am not mistaken.  Each block of time that you log in counts as an hour, so use your time wisely. In other words, 1 minute or 59 minutes counts as one hour.  But 61 minutes counts as two hours. 

My new BP book on self storage, Storing Up Profits,  lays out a lot of criteria for finding the right location as well as different strategies to succeed. As far as location, here are 4 significant criteria: 

1. Number of square feet per person in a 3 (for example) mile radius. The national average is about 7-8 square feet so you should try to find a place that is less than that. 

2. High VPD (vehicles per day) count. That is relative to the location and you should be able to find that information online. 

3. High visibility at that location.  I just met with the U-haul representative for this part of Virginia and he says they always want a 4-star location as far as VPD and high visibility. 

4. Medium or high income area. You want to invest in a place where people with decent income are happy to come. 

I hope this helps. I made quite a few BiggerPockets videos on this topic and you should be able to find them online. Happy investing! 

Hey BP world. I manage a fund of commercial real estate assets and we only allow accredited investors in the fund. Its frustrating for a lot of potential investors we would love to help. I like to have a place to send people but I don't know very many. Can anyone comment and tell me some crowdfunding websites, 506b, or other opportunities I could have on hand to tell non-accredited investors? Thanks! 

Hi @Brock Mogensen I get this question a lot. Our fund only allows accredited investors but I like to have a place to send people. Can you tell me any places you recommend? 

@Dylan H. I am fund manager and I totally believe in passive income through syndications as @Taylor L. l said above. However, if you want to be more active there are some great AirbnB deals out there. I am particularly inclined towards Gatlinburg, TN which is largely recession resistant and has pretty amazing cashflow on their AirBnB cabins. One issue is that Gatlinburg lost a few thousand cabins in a large fire about 5 years ago and the supply and demand is still out of whack. Let me know if you would like to meet somebody in Gatlinburg who puts together these deals. Good luck!