Pleasure to meet you all!

[Alex Madrid]

Hey everyone! 

My name is Alex Madrid and I am a Realtor starting my personal investment journey :D

I hope to, not only make great connections with you all but, also help provide value. I am huge on experiences and love to surround myself with like minded people... hens why I am here XD

A little bit about my personal self:

I am the oldest sibling out of 3 and, like many other older siblings, get looked up to by my brother and sister.

I was born in Guatemala and moved to the United States with my mother, father, and grandmother when I was about 3 years old back in 2002-2003. Like many immigrants, we moved to hopefully live a better and safer life compared to our home country.

Starting a new life in a new country was definitely not easy, and required a lot of sacrifices from my parents. Fast forward a couple of years, my mother and father were working long and difficult hours every day. My mother started off working at a packing/shipping facility, where she spent the entire day standing and earning minimum wage. My father was working as landscaper and had to be up before the sun rose. Although he made more money, the physical workload was a more as well. We had to constantly move due to rents being increased, property conditions not being good, and trying to save money. In addition to that, it felt like no matter how hard my parents worked, money was always an issue. 

Fast forward to today, My family and I have our own home, which we helped build ourselves from the ground up. My dad has a great handyman/construction business. My mother is a stay at home mom, who is absolutely AMAZING, SUPPORTIVE, and LOVING! From time to time she works with my dad and does 100x better job than some of the workers my dad has hired in the past. 

I am now 23 years old, I've been working as a Realtor for a couple of years now, and have continued to grow my experience and knowledge in the world of real estate.

Joining the BiggerPockets community is the next step for me to achieve financial freedom, and not only support myself, but also my family. I want to be able to help my parents retire NOW and not have to work more than what they have already worked. I credit all of my past, present, and future success to them. I know that no matter what I do, I'll never be able to repay them for being the amazing parents that they are, so I'll at least make sure that they never NEED to work another day in their life. If they decide they want to, by all means, but never again because they are short on cash.

Again, I look forward to meeting as many of you as I can and thank you for taking the time out our your day to read my post :)

Let's continue the grind!

[Wale Lawal]

@Alex Madrid

Welcome to BiggerPockets!

As a novice investor, you will probably make a few mistakes of your own, but you can minimize the struggle by learning from others’ mishaps. Below, I’ve outlined my top five pitfalls to avoid so you can help ensure your investments pay off to the fullest.

1. Failing To Make Goals
A common error new investors make is not setting specific goals from the start. Not setting goals after buying a property is a guaranteed way to lose money. Prior to the house hunt, create a list of goals for your future investment property. To help you get an idea of the goals you would like to achieve, ask the following questions:

• What type of property would you like to purchase? Are you looking for a single- or multi-family home?

• Where would you like to purchase your property? Is it in a vacation destination?

2. Skimping On Research
When buying a car or even just a television, people often compare different models and prices; plus, they ask a lot of revealing questions to determine if the purchase is worth the money. These same research methods should be applied to real estate investment but should be twice as meticulous.

3. Buying The Wrong Property
While buying the wrong property can be a symptom of the previously mentioned mistakes, I think it’s one of the biggest mistakes you could make as an investor. Anxious buying can lead to overspending, and emotional attachment can cause you to buy with your heart rather than your head. Both scenarios could leave you with the wrong property. To avoid a dud investment:
• Think like a tenant.
• Avoid properties that require extensive maintenance.
• Invest based on your goals.

4. Underestimating Expenses
In a dream world, our only investment expense would be the mortgage. But on top of a mortgage lies maintenance costs, appliance and yard upkeep, and HOA fees, along with property taxes and homeowners insurance. And this isn't an exhaustive list! If you end up buying a property that you ultimately can't afford, you will constantly be worrying about whether you can sustain your investment.

5. Doing Everything On Your Own
We’ve all imagined it — becoming a successful do-it-yourself property investor with little to no help. But, I’ll let you in on a little secret: Even the DIY landlords who claim they’ve built all of their success on their own had help.
Smart investors tap into every resource they have to glean property investment knowledge. This includes establishing a network of supportive professionals like real estate agents, home inspectors, attorneys and insurance representatives. Utilizing experts’ knowledge can prevent you from buying the wrong investment property, one with maintenance, location and even legal issues.

Read this article for detailed information https://www.forbes.com/sites/f...

All the best!

[Jack Mawer]

Welcome to Bigger Pockets Alex! Thanks for sharing your backstory. Real estate is definitely a good place to gain financial freedom, I wish you luck in your journey! 

[Douglas Carp]

Hi Alex, I'm a Boston-based agent as well. I specialize in off-market properties. I'd love to sit down and talk so we can both pick each other's brains.