Entrepreneur at heart...looking for a new start

Entrepreneur at heart...looking for a new start

West Metro, MN · Member since 2009 · 5 posts · 3 votes

I figured it was time for me to introduce myself to the BP community. So here I am. 

Background:

I am currently 30 - living in a cold, non business friendly state. I am spending my time and energy operating three separate businesses - one seasonal service business, one retail, and one e-commerce website. I am also married and own a SFR that I built when I was 19 - thanks to easy credit and sweat equity. But needless to say I am exhausted with the pursuit of making money. I don't enjoy or take pride in any of my current three businesses, but they make money - easy money. But I want to focus my energy on something I enjoy, and make an attempt at creating more passive income. Not that renting or flipping homes is easy money, but it's a lot easier to do something you enjoy rather than despise.

So earlier this year I decided that there is no point in working my life away anymore for the sake of easy money. Plus I've realized that with my time and attention split how many different ways, my quality and attention to detail is lacking in all areas of my life. So this year (2014) I will be ending my one seasonal business and selling it off. The other retail business will be liquidated in the spring of 2015 when our lease term ends. I will keep the e-commerce website for now so I still have some income. 

Come Spring of 2015 my life and finances will look like the following:

Me unemployed. My wife unemployed as she runs the retail store. We also plan on selling our primary residence and moving far, far south to a more business friendly state and warmer climate. Did I mention I want start investing in real estate? That is all well and good, but without any W2 income, I doubt many lenders will want to talk. Our credit scores are both 750+, and we have zero debt (wife has some student loans). 

Financially:

$100k from the sale of our house

$100k in liquid savings aka cash

$30k in retail store liquidation

$10k in additional savings and sale of personal items before moving

---------- Liquid Assets = $240k

$50k sale of business/structured owner financing $5k down/$2500 per month for 18 mos

$30k avg on e-commerce website per year

---------- Non W2 income per month = $5k for at least 18 months

A lot of personal info there, but I need all the details to formulate a plan. Ideally I would like to buy a cheaper house, fix it up and live there while we find a more permanent home. Then eventually just rent that out. However with interest rates so low I would like to scoop up ten properties and rent them all out. Maybe flip one house per year. 

Perhaps my first question should be....who will lend to me with decent rates but no guaranteed income? Sure I could pay cash but I really want to take advantage of low interest rates. 

Anyhow any feedback/questions are appreciated. I hope to really make some life changes in the very near future.

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Real Estate Agent · Addison, TX · Member since 2015 · 20 posts · 6 votes
10y

Hi @Steve Dorman Welcome back to Bigger Pockets and to the Texas Investing forums, Bigger Pockets has a wealth of information for new investors and offers lots of support for those just getting into real estate investing, especially in Texas. Make sure you check out the BP Beginners guide and start listening to the BP podcasts. I have learned a lot from reading and listening to both of these.

I specialize in investing in distressed property and providing distressed property leads. If you need any help with getting involved in distressed property investing let me know and I can try and point you in the right direction.

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  • Mike HurneyPro Member
    Real Estate Investor · Boston, MA · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 542 votes
    12y

    @Steve Dorman Welcome.

    You read the Emyth yet?

    The grass is always greener in the other fellows yard;-)

  • Waukegan, IL · Member since 2014 · 75 posts · 35 votes
    12y

    I was in the same boat 4 years ago. Just sold a minority interest in a company…residual payments from that, had some assets to invest and half a plan. Currently own and manage 120 units, mostly SFR. Will have completed 9 flips by the end of the year and looking for more. You have to have some guts to take the leap at first, but once you do, it works.

    Good luck.

  • Real Estate Broker · Cleveland Dayton Cincinnati Toledo Columbus & Akron, OH · Member since 2013 · 30k+ posts · 20k+ votes
    12y

    @Steve Dorman welcome to the site.

  • West Metro, MN · Member since 2009 · 5 posts · 3 votes
    12y

    @mikehurney I have not read that book but have heard it brought up in other forums. 

    In regards to getting started...I am not worried. I work best under pressure. However I wonder what type of lender to look towards in the beginning. Thanks

  • Real Estate Agent · Phoenix, AZ · Member since 2014 · 33 posts · 4 votes
    12y

    Steve, I have traditional lenders who will lend 70% ltv in your current situation with still very low interest rates.... I also have private money guys who will do 80-90% ltv but 12-18% interest. We have a plethora of good properties here in Arizona still if you have interest. There are also some smaller bulk portfolio deals out there that may interest you... Best of luck!

  • Dave VisayaPro Member
    Moderator
    Audio Engineer and Investor · Cebu City, Cebu · Member since 2013 · 7k+ posts · 881 votes
    12y

    Hey @Steve Dorman welcome to BP! it's great to have you!

    BiggerPockets
  • Real Estate Broker · Naples, FL · Member since 2013 · 9k+ posts · 6k+ votes
    12y

    @Steve Dorman 

    welcome. Come on down to Florida! You will love the weather, no state income taxes, and business climate.

  • FL · Member since 2009 · 2k+ posts · 357 votes
    12y

    @Steve Dorman,

    To make the @ work, do the following:

    Hold down the shift key and type @?

    Look below this Window, and you will see a list of names of people that have posted in this thread.

    Click on the name of the person that you want notified via an email, that you responded to them.

    If you are a Colleague with anyone that has NOT posted in the thread, and you want them to see your post, hold down the shift key, type the @ and the first 4 letters of their First or Last Name.

    Then look below this Window and click on that person's name.

    Raymond

  • Real Estate Investor · Sebastian, FL · Member since 2014 · 812 posts · 432 votes
    12y

    @Steve Dorman 

    Flips are lucrative but carry a certain amount of risk and a large amount of work. It also does not have the same tax advantages of other investments. 

    Buy and hold is less risky but also a fair amount of work. But at least it does qualify as passive income and has tax advantages.

    With the amount of cash you will have available why not look into one of the more passive investment platforms? Something like note investment, tax liens, or hard money lending. 

  • Queen Creek, AZ · Member since 2014 · 2k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    11y

    Find and finance a rental property before you give up your w2 income.  Then look for owner financing going forward.

  • Solo 401k Expert · Anaheim Hills, CA · Member since 2012 · 18k+ posts · 6k+ votes
    11y

    Welcome to BP community @Steve Dorman  It is a great place to meet new friends and learn about various aspects of real estate and more. Here are a few recommendations for you:

    Find and connect with other BP members that are in your area: http://www.biggerpockets.com/meet

    Set up keyword alerts to be notified of the topics that interest you: http://www.biggerpockets.com/alerts

    Read Beginner’s Guide: http://www.biggerpockets.com/real-estate-investing

    Check out BP Podcasts: http://www.biggerpockets.com/renewsblog/category/podcast/

    If you wish to tag someone in the conversation on the forum, type @ followed by their name and then select that person below. He or she will be notified of being tagged so that the conversation will continue.

    Wishing you the best! 

  • West Metro, MN · Member since 2009 · 5 posts · 3 votes
    10y

    Well I figured it was time to check back in to the BP community. 

    As it all turned out we went ahead with our plans. I sold my seasonal business in the beginning of 2015 ( around April) . It probably wasn't the best financial move but with the phone starting to ring I had to make a decision and a company came along that was manageable at best. 

    We closed and liquidated our retail business in June of 2015 at the end of our lease. We still are in the process of selling off assets from that company (inventory) on craigslist and other outlets.

    I am still operating my e commerce site. Might I add that it is a TON of work just to close or sell off a business.

    As I mentioned before we built our first house when I was only 19, I think I was actually 18 but signed the paperwork right around my 19th birthday. We structured that deal when anyone could qualify for a house and we basically worked with a builder to finance the construction and we did a lot of sweat equity as down payment. Sweat equity included - framing, windows, siding, roofing, concrete flatwork, painting, trim, etc...Of course it was a lot of hard work building a house and working fulltime but we managed. The downside was he had a lot of "free" help and many aspects of construction were already builder grade products but they were also installed poorly. Nonetheless I have spent the last year now remodeling and fixing things in preparation to sell. Oddly enough it might have worked out as the market is really strong in our area right now.

    I figure we will list our SFR house within the next month or two as we are completing everything.

    So my numbers have changed a bit from my first post as I have been spending money on remodeling while supporting both my wife and I.

    Projected financials April 2016: 215k liquid with approx 4k per month residual income.

    Now once we sell our house and sell/store our personal belongings we are going on a 2-3 month road trip. Mainly to investigate where we would want to relocate to. I'm thinking Texas or Florida, maybe even rural Washington state. Worst case scenario we end up back in Minnesota, but I want to see what's out there. Also I would like to restart my seasonal business in a more accommodating climate whereas in Minnesota we only had about 7 months to make our money.

    On the plus side we won't be needing much money for living expenses for a little awhile. I always use to joke about being house poor for so long.

    I am still unsure where or what we will be doing professionally, but I do know for sure that I want to build a buy and hold portfolio in residential real estate. It seems like no matter what new venture I get into, I somehow get drawn back to this market.

    In a perfect world I would like to relocate to a warmer climate and buy a cheaper/fixer upper house in my name only. I would like to open up the idea of my wife qualifying for a 4 plex fha loan if it's even still an option down the road - I think we would have to wait three years for her to qualify? Could I build a 4 plex and sell it to her under FHA? I guess now I am just rambling but my brain is full of ideas. I ordered some books today off of amazon and will be doing a TON of reading and researching to begin the next adventure.

  • Real Estate Agent · Addison, TX · Member since 2015 · 20 posts · 6 votes
    10y

    Hi @Steve Dorman Welcome back to Bigger Pockets and to the Texas Investing forums, Bigger Pockets has a wealth of information for new investors and offers lots of support for those just getting into real estate investing, especially in Texas. Make sure you check out the BP Beginners guide and start listening to the BP podcasts. I have learned a lot from reading and listening to both of these.

    I specialize in investing in distressed property and providing distressed property leads. If you need any help with getting involved in distressed property investing let me know and I can try and point you in the right direction.

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