Hey there BP members!!!!! (LA County)

Hey there BP members!!!!! (LA County)

Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes

Hello! My name is Eric and I finally decided to introduce myself after a few years of occasional visits to the site. I love all the information that is made freely available, the community atmosphere, and real estate investing of course!

Anyways, I'm basically here because after flirting with the possibility of getting into the real estate business, and making the mistake of attending ridiculously expensive guru courses, I STILL want to get into the business.

To make a long story short, I grew up in blue collar suburbs just north of Philadelphia. I had a decent paying job in NJ while living at home on the cheap, and wanted to use my money to invest in real estate. I was seduced by a real estate guru into attending courses costing thousands of dollars, at which point I realized the value of money and that there were better, more dollar efficient ways to learn what they were teaching. ENTER BIGGER POCKETS!!!!!

To continue the story, I moved to SLC and attempted wholesaling on my own until money ran out and debt ran high. I looked for a job but found nothing worthwhile. I ended up finding good work in LA so I moved again. Now I'm 23, making the same money I made in NJ, everything is much more expensive, a few hard lessons learned, aaaannnnnndd I want to get into real estate FOR REAL and actually MAKE MONEYYYYY!!!! =)

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Real Estate Coach · Venice Beach, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
11y

Wow, all before you hit 23?? You are going to kill it (the good kind of killing!) in REI if you have all that experience under your belt already! It's the only way to learn.

I fly over the San Fernando valley all the time...was buzzing it quite a bit today actually. I'm down in Venice.

Good luck to you, and good for you for getting started so early!

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  • Manchester, CT · Member since 2014 · 14 posts · 5 votes
    11y

    Welcome to BP!!  I loved your post and back story!  I'm a newbie too and I recently just finished a Bootcamp and I figured the best education is action, mistakes and all.  So I'm ALL IN too!  Good luck to you!

  • Specialist · Rockland, MA · Member since 2010 · 7k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    11y

    @Eric Magray 

    Welcome. Time to build the foundation below.

    Two Great reads, I bought both J. Scott The Book on Flipping Houses,The Book on Estimating ReHab Costshttp://www.biggerpockets.com/flippingbook

    Locate and attend 3 different local REIA club meetings great place to meet people gather resources and info. Here you will meet wholesalers who provide deals and all the cash buyers (rehabbers) you will need.

    Consider checking out HUD homes for small multi's owner occupied gets first crack.

    You might consider Niche or Specialized Housing like student housing. Rents can be 2-4 times more. Remember you don't have to own a property to control it.

    Download BP’s newest book here some good due diligence in Chapter 10. Real Estate Rewind Starting over

    http://www.biggerpockets.com/files/user/brandonatbp/file/real-estate-rewind-a-biggerpockets-community-book

    Good luck

    Paul

  • Contractor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2015 · 4k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    11y

    Ouch, i have had that road before but in a different business. History cannot repeat itself on me. Anyway, welcome to BP, lots of lessons here, just absorb all advises from free gurus here and you will be fine. if you are cash strapped, go with wholesale, thats for little or no money (hardly). if you can get a loan, do a house hack. if your credit is great, flip a house. my understanding to it is, you work for money (wholesaling), or money works for you but you need good credit (rental properties), or a mix of both, credit and money (about 50-70k in bank) for flipping.

    Good luck!

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    Thanks for the warm welcome!! @Zandra Thomas @Paul Timmins 

    I will definitely be looking into those books Paul, and thanks for the advice!

    Manolo, I actually do have a decent chuck of cash saved and have good credit. I also have a connection with much more cash and credit than I have who wants to partner up! I'm looking at doing a combination house hack / flip / refi money out and make a student rental haha. We'll see though! Gotta do some research and get connected with some wholesalers and agents asap =)

  • Real Estate Investor · Redondo Beach, CA · Member since 2015 · 34 posts · 3 votes
    11y

    @Eric Magray 

    Hello Eric and Welcome to BP!!

    I am a wholesaler who is also located in LA.(North Hollywood). I have a similar story but i came from MI. I am attempting to use the same strategy but having trouble finding good deals in CA. Where are you looking specifically?

    Look forward to working with you.

    Justin

  • Investor/RE Broker · Eugene, OR · Member since 2014 · 3k+ posts · 968 votes
    11y

    @Eric Magray 

    Hi and welcome to BP! Are you looking to do REI local to LA or reaching out of state. There are some great turnkey opportunities for buy and hold cash flow properties if you look elsewhere, including in Philadelphia your old stopping grounds.

  • Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2010 · 804 posts · 230 votes
    11y

    Welcome to BP, the right to be.  No more boot camp price here.  We are here to help each other succeed.  This is the BP way.

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    @Justin Wragg Thanks for the welcome! I'd totally be down to talk real estate over coffee sometime if your up for it. I've narrowed down the areas in which I want buy as those along Ventura Blvd. Mainly looking at the Encino, Tarzana, Valley Village, Studio City, and Woodland Hills neighborhoods.

    @Larry Fried I'm not really interested in turnkey investments at the moment. I'm still pretty young and have plenty of energy to get **** done! But I do see you're located in Oregon, and may be interested in some property up there in the next year or two.

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    Thanks! @Joe Moore I agree with the win-win-win philosophy =) where in LA are you located?

  • Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2010 · 804 posts · 230 votes
    11y

    @Eric Magray I am in the Crenshaw area, Koreatown.

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    @Joe Moore Cool! I instantly thought of Samuel L Jackson in Jackie Brown when you said Koreatown haha. Hopefully you've seen the movie, and I'm not a weird Quentin Tarantino fan making lame movie references all the time...

  • Rental Property Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2010 · 804 posts · 230 votes
    11y

    @Eric Magray All three are some of my favorites.  Fan of all three.

  • Investor · Fayetteville, NC · Member since 2014 · 916 posts · 190 votes
    11y

    Welcome to Bigger Pockets @Eric Magray ! Its always a good feeling to see younger people like myself (27) on BP. Don't let your pass determine your future bro. Let bygones be bygones, and make your future what you want it to be.

    Check out my first blog posting (Blog posting), it might be inspirational to you. We both come from some what of the same background so I know the struggle, trust me! 

  • Rental Property Investor · Beverly Hills, CA · Member since 2014 · 472 posts · 272 votes
    11y

    Hi @Eric Magray - Welcome to BP. 

    I'm really glad you finally decided to poke your head out and make yourself known the community. Whenever I talk to folks new to BP, they're often intimidated by the amount of information and the really successful members that are here. Everyone has to start somewhere and this is a great place to start.

    There are so many ways for you to get involved in real estate and make money. Just know that success doesn't happen overnight and that it is important to maintain a "growth-oriented mindset" along the way. Understand that failure is par for the course amongst entrepreneurs and that each bump in the road is mile marker on your destination to success.

    Listen to the podcasts, network - network - network, educate yourself, and get hands-on as soon as possible. Keep at it and you'll be a winner for sure!

  • Contractor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2015 · 4k+ posts · 1k+ votes
    11y

    @Eric Magray I love people who out action first before words, since you have your financial network already, and i have my construction background and license, then @Justin Wragg has his own wholesale system, maybe the three of us could do coffee. ive been waiting to get somebody to be those two. im in sfv also, so its easy for me to go to those areas you mentioned as target areas.

    What do you guys think?

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

    Welcome to BP community @Eric Magray  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

    Wishing you the best! 

  • Real Estate Coach · Venice Beach, CA · Member since 2012 · 6k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    11y

    Wow, all before you hit 23?? You are going to kill it (the good kind of killing!) in REI if you have all that experience under your belt already! It's the only way to learn.

    I fly over the San Fernando valley all the time...was buzzing it quite a bit today actually. I'm down in Venice.

    Good luck to you, and good for you for getting started so early!

  • Brandon TurnerPro Member
    Investor · Maui, HI · Member since 2009 · 13k+ posts · 3k+ votes
    11y

    Hey @Eric Magray welcome to BiggerPockets! You've definitely come to the right place to learn more about investing. If you haven't yet, be sure to check out the The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing and The BiggerPockets Podcast. They are both great at learning the fundamentals.

    Oh - and don't forget to set up your Keyword Alerts!

    See you around the site!

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    @Chaz Reid @Joshua McGinnis @Dmitriy Fomichenko @Ali Boone 

     Thank you all for the warm welcome, tips, advice, and acknowledgements! I really appreciate it =)

    HA! Get it?!! Real estate.... appreciation! Ahhhhaha =P

    Corny jokes aside, I am truly grateful for the hospitality.

    To the SoCal locals, I am very interested in meeting up and seeing how we can help each other! I'll be contacting you guys via PM for sure =)

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    Thanks! @Brandon Turner I've been binge listening to the podcast this past week ;) keep up the good work!!

  • Residential Real Estate Agent · Lakewood, CA · Member since 2008 · 96 posts · 31 votes
    11y
    Eric, Welcome to BP!! It's a great web site. I feel like I'm actually new as well even though it's been a number of years being off I just got back on tonight, and Wow a lot has changed. There are a lot of successful people on this site that are willing to share some valuable insight to real estate investing. I'm also in Los Angeles County, so reach out to me as well.
  • Real Estate Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2015 · 166 posts · 19 votes
    11y

    Cool are you coming tonight?

  • Pottstown, PA · Member since 2013 · 10 posts · 4 votes
    11y

    @Bernie Germani Thanks! I am definitely interested in connecting with investors, we should arrange/attend a local meet soon!

    @Sebastia H. I'll be there!

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