New Nor Cal Real Estate Investor developing my 1,3,5,20 plan

[Kyle McCane]

Hello BP community, 

I can say that this site has already been a huge benefit for me. Let me pause now and say THANK YOU. What a great source of information this has been as I started researching getting into real estate investing. 

A little about me. I'm a regular working stiff. No direct experience in real estate investing except the purchase of my own home and also my parents were real estate agents about 35 years ago. 

My goal is to ultimately get to a "work-optional" financial position in my life. Not saying that REI isn't work. From what I've seen so far there is a lot of work involved. So maybe I should say "shift my focus to a more potentially profitable outcome for my efforts".

I'm in the process of creating a 1 year, 3 year, 5 year, 20 year plan. I had listened a  podcasts that talked about how much of an important step this was...wow, it definitely has been for me. It was just a fantasy before I started typing the plan. Then it got real! Holy crap, I'm putting goals down! I'm getting specific on how to achieve them. I'm understanding that I've got so many holes and so much to learn. I'm starting to spend actual money on marketing materials. All I can say is I'm SO EXCITED TO START.

Though I don't have real estate investment experience I am a career sales person dealing with complex sales, marketing, negotiating, reviewing contracts, etc. Most importantly I understand that putting in the work to build a funnel of leads, qualify, qualify, qualify, and close is critical to my success. That's the part I feel comfortable with...not giving up and continuing to market even if the results are not immediately there.

However, the uphill battle for me is learning the "product". Assessing what is a good deal and what isn't. How to conservatively approach opportunities to minimize risk. What are the gotcha's. Understanding the true anatomy of a deal. Getting the REI lingo down with potential sellers and buyers. Developing my network. And all the other stuff I don't know.

Add on top of that I'm in California where the weather is beautiful and property prices are super high. 

My goals are to start out with wholesaling as I develop my network then move into fixing and flipping. Ultimately checking out what it feels like to be a landlord of multiple properties. The one thing I do know about my plan is that it will change as I learn more and go through real deals.

I'm looking forward to contributing to this community. I'm sure I will have many more questions than answers!

Kyle

[Kyle McCane]

Thanks for the welcome. 

@Colin G Murphy  Thanks for the tips. I did get a chance to attend a local event last week (my first). It was a little intimidating honestly. I sort of felt like a high school football player walking into a room of NFL superstars! I must say, however, what an amazing group of people. Everyone, and I mean everyone I spoke to was so nice and accommodating and encouraging. I'm looking forward to the next event.

BUSINESS CARDS! I was just listening to a podcast about creating business cards and how effective they can be. As far as getting the word out I've got a dentist appointment this morning. My dentist and I alway have a good conversation about random stuff. Well I can't wait to see him today!

@J. Martin  I definitely like the idea of local events. If I wasn't going to be out of town I would definitely go to the SF event next week. I agree with you. I think there are still some profitable gems in the local area and I don't necessarily have to go to Fresno to find a deal (not that I'm completely opposed to that). Right now I'm looking to get ONE deal! I think there will be a ton of learning in finding, crafting, negotiating, and closing the first deal. 

Kyle