Newbie with Cash to invest in Real Estate

[Kai Soremekun]

Hi 👋🏽 My name is Kai.

I'm a content creator based in Los Angeles.  I've never owned property but was recently given $500k for a downpayment. It came unexpectedly as a no strings attached gift from a very rich friend and I'm a bit overwhelmed. Currently the money is in a high-yield savings account getting pummeled by inflation. :)

My income as an artist makes it very hard to qualify for any kind of loan. Plus Los Angeles is not a friendly first time property buyer town.

I'd like to leverage this unexpected money coming my way to start wealth building. It feels like a life changing opportunity.  I want to be smart in my choices.

Ultimate goal is to have income properties that support my life as an artist.

I keep my bills really low thanks to a rent stabilized $590/mo  1b/1b apt.  where I also manage the quadplex.

I have an 800 credit score but like I said doesn't seem to matter with my crazy fluctuating income.

My work as an artist makes most of my days flexible so I have time to devote to learning.

One thing I'm looking at is house hacking by taking advantage of the new SB1079 law as an eligible bidder. This involves bidding on a foreclosure which comes with its own set of risks. *sigh*

I've been researching the eligible bidder approach since July and have a pretty good handle on it and ALL the risks but also exploring what other options might be open to me.

So that's my current story. Happy to be here. Hoping to learn lots and open to any thoughts people have about next steps I should consider.

Yay for opportunities.