Real Estate Isn't Rocket Science! Newbie from San Diego, California (also Bakersfield)

[Christopher Covell]

Hi all, my name is Chris Covell and I'm a born and bred San Diegan. I am an Aerospace Engineer and chose Engineering for my passion for the practical application of numbers. It turns out investing falls right in line with that passion (though the numbers are far more straightforward!).

San Diego is a tough market for a young family to own in, but my wife and I managed to buy our first home here eight years ago. Since then we have been building our savings, equity and investments but the sky-high prices of San Diego have prevented us (or scared us) from further investment in real estate. Our long-term goal is to build cashflow through rentals so I can spend more time with my family (instead of 50+ hr weeks in the office).

I believe San Diego is a tough market for a beginner investor like myself (feel free to chime in on that!). As I have read and studied spreadsheets and strategies (remember, I love numbers), I keep coming to the conclusion that San Diego is generally priced well out of being reasonable for rental investment. Plus you're definitely not going to find a fourplex for $100k or even $200k.

My biggest roadblock is I just don't see the kind of deals and opportunities others on BiggerPockets have posted about. I am certain they are out there, but due to my inexperience I'm just not finding them. I have moved my search to Bakersfield where I lived during high school and where my wife grew up and has family. I'm not sure if it's smart for a beginner investor to start out by investing in a city 200 miles away but I just don't see San Diego working as a start!

Thanks for reading my long intro. I look forward to meeting many of you and hearing your thoughts on SoCal investing!