Atlanta or South Florida? First road block

[Ramonater Ramo]

Hi Everyone,

My name is Tony and I just joined today after listen to a plethora of the Bigger Pockets (and others) on YouTube. I’ve been looking to get in to real estate for a while now and I am finally ready to take that step. So, here’s my situation. I live in Irvine, CA where any and all real estate in my area or even around is CRAZY EXPENSIVE. I have 2 brothers, one lives in West Palm beach, FL and the other in Roswell, GA. I have pitched the whole real estate idea and they are both on board however, they know almost nothing about real estate (which is fine) and they are both willing and committed to learning. Given the huge price difference between where I live and they do, I have decided to begin in one of their areas (or both). While the 3 of us are still learning I recently ran in to my first road bump. I called a very close and extremely trustworthy family friend that’s also a realtor (over 25 years of exp) in West Palm Beach and explained to her what I am looking to do. To make long story short she basically said “there aren’t any good deals on the market at this time”. Given our long history with her and all the business she had done for many family members I believe her but, I don’t want to let this stop me but at the same time I don’t want to make a bad deal/purchase. I am looking for a duplex (rent) , 4-Plex (rent) or a single family home that can be flipped or rented out, based off that she said there’s nothing right now and the prices are high relative to that market.

So, what can I or should I do now?

I will be calling the real estate agent my brother recently bought his house from to talk to her and get her insight on the Roswell/Atlanta real estate market as well.

[Matthew Brill]

Not all Realtors are created equal. I would recommend seeking out some that are used to working with investors. And have a narrow criteria to best guide them. It is possible is West Palm but my guess is the Roswell area in GA will be easier to find something that cash flows. The properties in West Palm that are cheaper with better RV ratios are going to be in areas that are D class and management intensive. I think most local investors down here in the single family and small multifamily space are currently looking elsewhere to find that kind of inventory.