All Forum Posts by: Stefan Fabry

@Stefan Fabry episode 886 addressed this exact item. Great listen, check it out

@Stefan Fabry episode 886 addressed this exact item. Great listen, check it out

 Hey Stefan, welcome to BiggerPockets!I suggest that you tune in to the BiggerPockets podcast as it could prove to be beneficial to your learning. The first step is to identify a strategy, choose a market that aligns with it and establish a team that will be your core 4 to real estate investing. The main challenge I observed is that individuals often lack a clear end goal or strategy or they select a market that doesn't align with it. Utilize tools such as market data and the BiggerPockets calculator. Begin with something manageable to gain experience and build your confidence. Learning how to analyze potential returns, cash flow, and profitability is essential to reaching for your goals. Hope this helps!

This question can be answered at the "macro" and "micro" levels.  

First you need to figure out what your budget is and your investment strategy.  If you want to buy an hold a 3 bedroom, 2 bath and your budget is $200,000 then you know to completely stay away from certain markets.

Then start researching general markets/regions/cities.  Look for population and job growth.  Multiple industries in that area is also a plus.  Once you find a general market, you can narrow your search further by looking at crime rates, school rankings, etc.  As you get more granular, then you can start looking at actual listings.  Start comparing the rent to value rations and make sure a property in that area will even cash flow.  There is nothing for frustrating than finding a great property that meets all your other criteria, to only then discover that rent in that area will not cover your expenses.

I would first find a market that is suitable for you and showing signs of potential market growth. 

I think Columbus is a great option to consider. Multiple, billion dollar companies are investing substantial amounts of money into our area, such as Intel, Google, and Amazon. Which in turn will bring plenty of other investors and general business to the market. I am looking at the Cincinnati area as well. 

A strategy that has worked really well for us in building a strong portfolio:

My wife will drive the neighborhoods and look for areas she would want to raise kids in (ours are all adults now). This includes schools, neighborhood feel, whether the houses in the neighborhood are well maintained and whether the specific house is one she would want to raise kids in. 

We have found that our properties reliably attract families with children who stay for years. If you are married, try leveraging your wife's intuition on this a bit.

I like to be within an hour or so of our properties so that I can manage them easily myself.

@Stefan Fabry Hi Stefan, I know it’s hard to get out of analysis paralysis but just remember one thing.

It’s not what you do. It’s that you do something.

So get a notebook and write down your goals for real estate for 2024. Write down your real estate goals for 3 years, 5 years, and 10 years. Make them big and crazy. If they don’t seem impossible they’re not big enough.

Then divide them up 2024 for each quarter of 2024. And then set out to meet the goals for the first quarter. You’ve got almost 2 months left. Get started.

Maybe for the end of the first quarter you find your location and build your Core4, your team.

Then second quarter you Figure out how many properties you’re going to analyze per day. And how many offers you’re going to make per week. And it better be at least 10. And you get after it. And buy your first property.

And then what’s your 3rd quarter look like? Rinse and repeat. You get your second property.

Then the fourth quarter.

Maybe it doesn’t look so hard like this.