Hello from Santa Cruz, California

[Omi C.]

Hi all..

I’m a newbie from Santa Cruz, CA!

A few months ago I realized that my retirement plans (stock, 401k, etc) would have me working for far longer than I’d like to. I had always been interested in real estate, and with some encouragement from a couple of friends I started reading investment books and doing some research. Didn’t take long to find BP and this incredible community. At this point I’m totally hooked, and am looking to start investing.

My goal is to replace my income with rental cash-flow in the next 5-7 years. The longer term goal is to become a part time investor (4hrs / week sounds about right! :-), and have more time for my family, and hobbies!

My strategy so far:

• Buy and hold. I want the regular passive income
• Multi-unit. Reduce the risk of losing all income if I lose a tenant.
• Hire property managers. I have a family, and a demanding full time job. Don't want to create another job for myself.

The big question is where to invest. Cap rates in Santa Cruz and the surrounding Bay Area in general are horrible. Also, for my first market I’d like to be able to visit it (investigate neighborhoods/properties, interview PMs, agents, etc) without incurring a huge cost. So I’ve been looking at other cities in California - Bakersfield, Fresno, Modesto, etc. This is where I’m a bit stuck in my analysis. I’ve found individual properties which *could* work in each of these cities, but don’t understand how to ultimately pick a market and get going. Any advice for me?

I’ve got some seed money put aside for investing and I’m eager to start building a portfolio in the next few months. Really looking forward gaining some experience, and being able to contribute back into this community!

Omi