Starting out in commercial real estate

[Kenzie McIlvoy]

My husband and I have been spending the past three years doing everything we can to  learn about investing. (Reading books, listening to every BP Podcast episode, YouTube videos, meeting with investors, etc). We are about to close on our first investment which will be a house hack / short term rental on the lake while we use our current house as a long term rental.

We have said from the beginning that our long term goal is commercial real estate but wanted to start with small residential and stack up to more passive investing. We also have been trying to convince my aunt and uncle, who are extremely wealthy, to invest with us for the past year. We’ve had conversations here and there but really haven’t pushed it further due to their hesitation.

This past month they have approached us and let us know that they want to invest in commercial real estate and want to partner with us. They want to do storage but do not know exactly what kind. They have also said they’re ready to retire so would like to be pretty hands off, which we’re excited about. We are very much the real estate “experts” of our circle due to our education but lack actual experience.

We’ve suggested that we partner together in a small deal like a flip to learn how we work together and so they can gain confidence in our ability before jumping into a larger commercial project.

The reason they want to get into investing is because last year they paid $270K in taxes alone for their business. They also have $30-40K/month they’re looking to invest. We are all very excited about this opportunity but I want to make sure I steward their money well and set us all up for success. Our timeline is to begin investing in commercial real estate summer of 2023, a small flip fall of 2022 and have a formal meeting to discuss details within the next few months. We’ll have time to plan and discuss but I’d like to make sure I make good use of this time. I’d also like to be prepared going into this meeting (what split we should take, a business plan that clearly defines roles, budget, what capital we will contribute to the deal, etc).

Does anyone have any book recommendations, podcast recommendations, expert on the topic, words of wisdom, ideas? I’m really looking for anything anyone is willing to throw my way. I know this is a huge jump from managing a SF long term rental and short term rental and I want to do whatever I can to mitigate the risk that comes along with that.

Thank you!

[Taylor L.]

IMO - skip the flip and just go for storage if that's what you want to do. The flip is a distraction that won't teach you much about self storage investing. Once you make the shift to storage I bet you'll look back and conclude that spending a year on one flip was not an optimal use of time.

If you want to go into self storage, definitely check out @Michael Wagner's Storage Rebellion group. You may find other folks who you can partner with to find and/or run the deals.

If you're dedicated to doing the flip first and are planning on doing it locally, go to local in person real estate networking events to find the folks you need on your team.