All Forum Posts by: Samuel Baskin

So here's my story. Last year I lost my job along with 160 other people due to our company being bought out and sold. After going through the struggles of unemployment and job searching for almost a year I finally found work with my current employer.  During my "time off" my personal home started the forclosure process and my credit went from 720 to a 480, OUCH!!!  
Before I found employment I passionately wanted to find information about how people got wealthy (not rich).  Like most people I came across the book Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki. It completely changed my mindset on gaining a healthy financial IQ, wealth building, & personal development.  Shortly after I started gaining an interest in real estate & was seeking as much information on the topic as possible.  Much to my surprise I came across Biggerpockets and it's had a MAJOR impact on my life.
My job has demanded alot of my time (10-14hrs/day). I never complained, I used the money to catch up on things in my home (which we got out of  the forclosure process).  But the time at work was the most valuable aspect of the job.  I was able to listen to the Biggerpockets podcast, averaging 2 per day, listening to them twice just to make sure I didn't miss anything.  Between the combination of the podcast and reading over 20 books suggested from the "Famous Four" I've managed to gain a considerable amount of information that has helped not just myself, but others also. 
It hasn't quite been a year yet and since I've been introduced to Biggerpockets and a few interesting things have occurred.  1. I've helped a guy find a good deal on a duplex, the numbers were great!! He got it for 27k, it needed 2-3k worth of work, he rents both doors for 650 (good schools & good tenants). 2. I assisted a guy with the selling of his home. I advised him to do a 1031 exchange since it would be more beneficial for his plans of scaling up & save him about 40k in taxes. 3. I've managed to live off  of 70% of my income & putting the rest into savings for investing and charities  4. I've gotten at LEAST a dozen other people to listen to the podcasts because they think I've been investing in real estate for years, & when I tell them that I've l only been a student for  less than a year & have only purchased my personal home, they're shocked. But I send them all to Biggerpockets.  Because I know what I know all from the podcasts and it's resources. 
I've recently gotten two promotions and my work schedule should be tamed down a bit.  I plan on going to some local CIREIA meetings to meet some local investors & do some networking & hopefully get in on some "hands on" investing strategies. My plans are to buy 2-4 multifamily units in 2017 & begin scaling my long term buy&hold portfolio. And if the opportunity comes along to venture into some flips I'll look into that as another stream to feed into my long term plans.   I'm 35 now and have every intention to retire from the workforce completely within 10yrs ( the numbers say it'll be sooner but I'm leaving room for unexcpectancies)
Thanks for all that you guys continue to put out there.  You are truly impacting lives. And even though I've not gotten my first investment property yet, I've seen proof positive that BIGGERPOCKETS WORKS!! 
Wishing you bigger and better deals, Samuel Baskin 

Sent from my Sprint Samsung Galaxy S® 6 edge.

Welcome to the BP community @Jackie Musselman!! You're definitely off to a good start networking here at BP. The great news is that you really don't need that much money to get started. But I can't stress enough how important it is to educate yourself in the different strategies involved with "low & no money" investing. There's some REALLY good podcast on the topic. And you should also look into going to a local REIA group or just meeting up with or talking to someone whose currently investing......I wish you the best on your journey to financial freedom!!

That's great news!  It's always nice to close with tenants in place so you can start cash flowing from day 1.  Keep us posted on #6!

Welcome to the "newbie" club Tiffani Ballinger!! You're on the right path with educating yourself. I totally agree with Adrien, you should look into finding a local REIA. And mentorship would be a great thing to look into. There's alot of knowledge to obtain as we're getting started, and finding a good mentor for help enlightenment & guidance would be great.

Thanks for the warm welcome and points of direction.   I totally agree on the education aspect.  Shawn,  Ive got  4 of the ten books u mentioned under my belt & I'm currently reading "the ultimate beginners guide to real estate investing".  I listen to at least 3hrs of podcast/day & I'm evaluating at least 10 properties per day.   It's kinda tough because they got me workin 12-14hr days at work,  but I'm pretty sure that if I put in the time & work at the beginning, it'll pay off in the end

Congrats on the deal Jack! That's solid confirmation on the title Co. 

Thanks guys, I'm definitely interested in meeting up at sometime.  I've been trying to find a local group or info on meetings. 

Hey guys, I'm a new member from indianapolis Indiana. I've been following the podcasts for a couple months now & I've really been impressed with all the information that's offered here. Last year I got laid off of a very promising company I thought i would retire from. That was a real eye opener for who's really in control of my financial future. I've just gotten in with another company Feb this year but this time I'm not planning on retiring from them, but rather investing & building a good size portfolio (100+) & setting up my family & giving back to the community. The only deal I've closed so far is my current residence. But after educating myself a little I've learned the true difference between "my assets & the bank's assets". Im really interested in long term/buy & hold for passive income. I'm originally from the StL MO area and can see myself investing in that area down the road also. My wife and I are really looking to dive into this within & hopefully have our 1st unit(s) within 6mo. I look forward to growing inside the BP community. I've already met an accountant and another more seasoned investor by just talking about BP prior to joining!! So here's the 1st step into my journey of real estate!!