Michael West

Hello everyone, my name is Mike West and I'm a Real Estate Agent and Investor from Dearborn, Mi. I've been with Bigger pockets for about 2 years now and still learning a tons about the network and investing. I have to say that listening to the podcasts and reading all of the BP books was life changing for me in my mindset and my goals. I would love to network with other seasoned and even brand new investors in my area and other markets where I'll eventually look to expand. As a realtor, I really love helping First time home buyers and brand new investors learn about the benefits (and risks) of homeownership and RE investing and love walking through the whole process to help educate those who may not have realized the opportunities in front of them. Although, my full time job is as a licensed Realtor, I am also an active Union Carpenter out of the Detroit local 687 with 15 years of service mostly working in the commercial and industrial field, with some residential experience as well. I love construction and have always had a passion for the idea of creating something that can be seen and can be useful to others for a long period of time. It's always been a fantasy of mine since first getting into the Union of being able to drive somewhere with my son and futures children saying "I helped build that." I've learned so much about construction over the years and have been happy to apply this to my own home renovations and various side jobs furthering my passion for rehabs/remodels and real estate in general. I first began thinking about investing in real estate when the market crashed and houses near my area (Detroit) were becoming incredibly cheap. I knew of a few co-workers who owned rental properties and I loved the idea of being able to earn passive income, experiment more with residential construction rehab on my own terms, and invest better in the future for my family and self. At the time, I had the money to get started, but was paralyzed by the fear of just not knowing enough. Not knowing enough about being a landlord, holding costs, laws and regulations, risks, marketing, etc. I began looking at properties, put in a few very low offers, but never acquired a property. I knew I was competing with other investors and believe that I ultimately sabotaged myself in many of these situations, because I was too scared to really pull the trigger. Several years later, I made my first investment in a buy and hold property in 2017, which I manage, and I truly feel it's my calling to grow this business. I now find myself binge listening to all of the BP podcasts and I try to get involved with the website and social media groups in an attempt to better educate myself and grow my own business. I only wish I had done this years ago. I want to learn EVERYTHING! I want to know every aspect of real estate investing and I'm excited to develop the systems for a smooth operation of building my own little empire/portfolio. I look forward to the world I'm helping to build my family.