All Forum Posts by: Valerie Hiscoe

Hi @Jack T

Welcome to BP! Have you had a chance to look at www.biggerpockets.com/starthere yet? That's one good place to start. If you're thinking of really learning about flipping, get the book 'The book on flipping' (How straightforward is that? Lol) If you get it from BP from the menu above rather than from Amazon, you'll also get 'The book on estimating'. They're like buying self confidence. One of the biggest things you'll need to decide though is What kind of real estate investor do you want to be? Do you actually want to do flips with its focus on construction and resale? Would you prefer to start a portfolio of rental properties where you slowly but surely increase your income? Or do you want to be "the shark" - hitting the streets looking for owners who want/need to sell cheap and fast and to resell the properties for a quick profit? Maybe you want to be a gambler just waiting for the price to go up?

There are a lot of strategies and niches for investment, but you need to take the time to not only understand them but, more importantly, to understand yourself. How much time (and money) do you have? How much risk do you want to subject yourself to? Do you have the people or connections you trust yet?

It is just my opinion but, one of the things you might want to do is start by talking to a lender (after you've made some local contacts in clubs etc to immerse yourself in 'the culture' with the experienced). The way you set up your finances is quite important. (And of course you need to know how much you can spend). I made the big mistake of straight-out spending cash, whereas I could have benefited from more borrowing. So get advice on your options and approach a lender without pre-conceived ideas. Make absolutely sure you ONLY deal with lenders who specialize in dealing with investors, and let them know you want to be able to keep building - that this is not a one-shot deal. Money people will really help you decide how to set up your business and they've got the experience in things you wouldn't even think of yourself. So don't spend a penny without a plan.

Other than that, I wish you the best of luck, that you thrive with your new associates, and that you profit and have fun.

Congratulations on getting this going! I hope you have a great response. Wish I was close enough to attend.

Best wishes!

It will be difficult to find people to invest in you for a flip without a proven track record. What are you offering that they need? Maybe you meant you were planning to wholesale to investors and I misunderstood. The message that seemed clear to me is that you don't have money. There's a book available from the menu above called 'How to invest with low or no money down' which might help. Also, if you haven't already, go to Biggerpockets.com/starthere. If you decide that flipping will be your strategy, get 'The book on flipping' also from this site.

Good luck with everything!

It's super fun! I've lost thousands and thousands of dollars but I've learned a lot. You might want to do the learning before you do the losing and BiggerPockets.com/starthere is a great jumping off point. From the menu above you can get the books 'How to invest with little or no money down' and 'The book on flipping' as well as podcasts and webinairs and you'd be a fool not to start with those kinds of things.

I personally would not invest far from home again and unless you're thinking of a turnkey investment with lots of referrals, I'd reconsider leaving yourself open to getting ripped off when you don't even know it.

And then you might have fun too. Good luck!

An extremely important part of investing in real estate is doing your due diligence. That means if an agent or whoever brings you a deal and points out all the ways it's a good one - you need to do all your own research to confirm the facts. You also need to be very clear on your focus - flip or rental, single or multi, etc.

If you haven't already done so, I'd start taking advantage of the resources in Bigger Pockets to learn what you need to know. A great place to start is biggerpockets.com/starthere. There's also an article by @Brett Alpin called 'Too good to be true? - a flip analysis' for an interesting overview that might help. And look for local meet-ups too for info on your area specifically.

Hope that helps Pierre. Have fun with it! and best of luck.

How much of an investment is reasonable for the amount of rent you're getting? Will the occupants consider moving out if something's not done? Will you be able to increase the rent because of what you've done with the sink if they do move? When they do move (for whatever reason) will you then be considering replacing the countertop etc?

I'd fix a leaky pipe, replace a broken fridge and invest in maintenance of a heating/cooling system - a chipped sink, not so much.

Depending on the importance of repairing the sink and the cost of reglazing, taking into account whether or not you'll be replacing the whole counter in the forseeable future, I'd either get it reglazed (do it again if it wears out incredibly in five years) or buy a do-it-yourself kit and touch up the chips, scratches, or whatever is bothering you. Then again, maybe for the market you're serving and for keeping the tenants you have in place, it's really a necessity to replace the whole counter with granite or something. 

The return on investment is your best deciding factor. Don't be taken advantage of.

@Dolly Caswell

Hi. I read your post the other day but it was a bit confusing - I guess I got as overwhelmed as you must be feeling - so I've gone back to read it twice to try to understand your question and the challenges you're facing.

I have no idea what the waterfall thing is you mentioned but it seems to me that you should look into a 'joint venture' if or when you find someone you need to work with.

I think your bigger problem is that you don't know what you're doing so you're at the mercy of others. It doesn't matter if you have a contract or not if you don't know the processes and procedures that go into the end product. You can't go out and become a plumber AND an electrician, so what I'd recommend is to get yourself 'The book on flipping' (which comes with 'The book on estimating' if you order it on this site, from menu above, instead of on Amazon  - although I'm not sure if BP delivers to Alaska - they don't to Canada). It will be more difficult for others to exploit you, if you know what needs to be done. (Been there, done that. Both of us.)

The other thing is that, if it's someone you're just beginning to work with - you need to check on the work constantly. Unless you have someone more qualified, that you trust, to check on the work.

Which you don't because otherwise they'd be doing the work. 

So, to close, I'll just say that I've had the same experience with contractors (and it's not even just because we're women). You need to educate yourself. You need to protect yourself (with a detailed contract). And you need to manage your projects. OR You need to find another investor (not worker) who can look after that part of the business. Someone who has their money on the line the same as you.

You can do this.

@Bill Schacht

If you order it from Amazon you have to pay for it but if you order 'The book on flipping' through Bigger Pockets, 'The book on estimating is included free.

If you want to paint, I'd try the shellac-based Zinsser primer available most places.  I painted shower tiles where I lived using that as a base, and, to my surprise, it lasted years

Another option is glue, as in gluing on tile etc.

Hi Brian. Welcome to BP. You'll love it. It sounds like you've been steadily building a strong financial foundation and real estate will be your best method of maximizing returns. People will always need somewhere to live no matter what the ups and downs.

Besides, it's interesting and fun and you can keep in contact with lots of people and platforms for general advice and specifics.

I have a triplex in Glendale and probably wouldn't do long distance investing again because I like a more hands-on approach, but your area is a great place to invest in with steady growth and potential, so you won't need to look far. 

Definitely take advantage of all the resources available on BP and you can't go wrong.  Find out where that meet-up is that @Bob E. suggested and start to surround yourself with inspiration and experience. You won't regret it.