RE Newbie. Vagabond in Detroit

[Zachary Allen]

What's up BP? My name is Zack and I'm completely new to the world of real estate. I'm a former college athlete and I've spent most of the last 6 years traveling and living as cheaply as possible. Just started teaching in charter schools throughout Detroit and I've realized that if I want to continue my current lifestyle or being able to jump on a plane at a moments notice, I may need to start making some passive income. 

I've worked with a startup in San Diego and I've coached American football in Knoxville, TN and Grenoble, France. I've lived in several other cities for short stints and just moved to Detroit less than 2 months ago. Fast forward to my current obsession with the BP podcasts and my ever growing obsession with reading (I consider myself a writer more than anything), and I'm reading to jump into real estate. And when I say jump in, I mean building relationships, connecting, and continuously learning through BP. For the short-term, I'm interested in multi-family properties (and a good book).

Looking forward to learning from everyone here!

Peace and love

[David Fitch]

Be careful of those anecdotal stories of people killing it ($6k purchase, $1k/mo in rent). If you don't know the area yet, you're likely to end up getting fleeced. Not saying the above didn't actually happen, but there are far more stories of people losing their shirts than the other way around in Detroit, because so many out of town investors were trying to cash in on the low prices, and they relied on infrastructure they couldn't fully vet. 

You might be better off looking in places just north of Detroit (Eastpoint, Hazel Park, Ferndale, Oak Park, Royal Oak, Madison Heights, Warren, etc.) or south west (Dearborn, Wyandotte, Allen Park, Inkster, Taylor, Westland, etc.). Once you have a good sense for what it takes to do your own due diligence, then maybe revisit Detroit proper.