All Forum Posts by: Account Closed

I don't want a million dollars... I want the income I can get from a million dollars. :)

With $900,000, I'd probably buy a commercial property or two, or an apartment block or two and some SFH so I could live easily off the cash flow.

With the remaining $100,000, I would "go to flipping school". I've always wanted to embark on this. Being able to buy rundown and beat up houses for cash will put me in a strong bargaining position. I'd be able to get houses for cheap and start fixing them up. Maybe just 1 or 2 to start with until I gain confidence and feel like I know what I'm doing.

@Henry Le 

Since you're living at home with the parents, why not offer to take over one of the utility bills in your name. That would benefit your credit score as well.

@Henry Le 

Getting a loan where you pay even 0.5% more in interest because you don't have a credit score will cost you $1000's over the life of that loan. Rather just start by building your credit score

Like @Amanda Hoening says, just open a credit card or two. Like you I live without any debt (and I like it that way) but opening up a few credit cards and using them for day to day expenses while paying them off in full a couple of times a month means you pay no interest at all. I have a cash back rewards credit card and even pocket $20 to $30 a month in rewards.

@Nick B. 

Another possibility regarding the reason for stating "no brokers" could be that the listing broker doesn't want to share commission. If it is FSBO, and you brought your broker along for advice, then your broker would want to get 50% of what the commission would have been (unless you have another arrangement for how to pay your broker?).

If the seller is represented by a broker, they may be stating "no brokers" simply because they don't want to share.

Brokers may know the rules and ethics in these situations, maybe someone will chip in.

@Alex Tijerina 

welcome! You're in the right place. We're happy to have you here. There are definitely forums where you could share your knowledge of construction. And there are forums where you can learn about investing. I have really benefitted from the insight of my colleagues on this site. See you around the site.

Great blog post by @Joshua Dorkin 

http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/2014/08/30/simple-action-millionaire/

Pay yourself first, save money. It doesn't matter how small the amount but spending less than you earn and putting money aside gives you power and you move in the right direction.

Another option is to get a second job. If you can't get into the game on your own right now, see if you can become part of someone else's team by offering sweat equity. Do you want to be a flipper? Offer your free manual labor on weekends to understand how a project flows and what is involved. Do you want to be a landlord? Work with another landlord. Help with doing get readys, help doing cleanouts after tenants leave, ask them to teach you about tenant screenings.

Those would be my two suggestions for getting started.

@Sam M. 

Nice! Perfect for when family comes to visit for the summer holiday.

@Tony T. 

I'm going to go with @Pete T. on this one. either could be better depending on your goals. So figure out your goals first. If the question is: "is A better than B, if my main goal is problem free landlording"? then the answer is neither. If the question is: "is A better than B, if my main goal is appreciation? then you would have to analyse the past appreciation of A and B and the math will tell you (bearing in mind that past appreciation is not an indicator of future appreciation). You get the drift.

What's better for you will also depend on where your heart lies. Find what you like. I could tell you that the way to make the most money is by doing A, but if A bores you and you hate the idea of it, then find other ways to make money.

"Of the wealth of the world each has as much as they take. What else could make sense? There is no way money can know who is handling it, what their qualifications are, what ambitions they have or what class they belong to. Money has no ears or eyes or senses. It is inert, inanimate, impassive. It hasn't a clue. It is there to be used and spent, saved and invested, fought over, seduced with and worked for. It has no discriminatory apparatus so it can't judge whether you are 'worthy' or not." - Richard Templar, The Rules of Wealth

@Tony T. 

You may also want to look into the forums for posts about the pros and cons of factoring in appreciation as the primary objective of investing. Although, I do see that you're in California. Most of the threads that are along the veins of "don't factor in appreciation in your analysis... except if you live in markets like New York City or parts of California". If you're in one of those "parts of California", then your post makes sense.

I agree with the others, beware the sharks...