Newbie looking for advice... I know "typical newbie"

[Casey Nordendale]

Hello everyone. My wife Julie and I are newbies and are interested in residential real estate investment in Asheville, NC. We plan to move to Asheville in Q1 2017 but are worried about whether or not it will prove to be a difficult city to find properties that cash-flow. In an ideal world, five years from now we would own five, or more, residential investment properties in Asheville. For those unfamiliar with Asheville, it is a wonderful and beautiful place. Not coincidentally the real estate market there is hot, hot, hot… but seemingly not all that big. We are newbies and have not purchased real estate other than a condo we lived in in Chicago, and our home in St. Paul, MN, where we live now, so this freaks us out a bit.

We had planned to move to Asheville prior to being bitten by the real estate investment bug. Since being bitten, we have been doing our due diligence educating ourselves. We each have a stack of books that we are reading. So far I am have read: The Wall Street Journal. Complete Real-Estate Investing Guidebook, by David Crook, Rich Dad Poor Dad, by Robert Kiyosaki, Real Estate Investing for Dummies, By Eric Tyson, Buy it Rent it Profit, by Bryan M. Chavis, and I am at the end of The Ultimate Beginner's Guide to Real Estate Investing, by Bigger Pockets. I have a lot more books on the book shelf ready to go and additionally we have been listening to Bigger Pockets Podcasts, watching Bigger Pockets Webinars, and going to REIA meetings. During our crash course we have learned a ton but two big themes seem to have immerged: 1) Buy properties near your home (especially if you are a newbie) and 2) Do your math correctly and only buy properties that meet the 70% rule.

I know nobody knows the future, and nobody can really offer more than an opinion but among the more experienced of you out there, will Asheville be a hard place to accomplish our goals? Is it too competitive there? We have great credit but will it be harder to get financing in such a hot market? Will we need to put more down when we buy properties? In short, would it be smarter to buy less expensive properties in a more affordable location? Would we be smarter to buy in nearby Charlotte? Or is two hours away too far for the newbie? 

[Michael Lee]

Hello and welcome to BP!  You will find that BP is a good place to learn and is with those that are like you and contributors to a good knowledge.  If the economy Is diverse where you are moving and the population in growing you should do fine even in it seems like there is a bunch of competition.  Just go where real estate is popular and look at getting into small mult-family projects when you feel like you are ready.  Real estate may not be going that well in your neighberhod. Since inventory in most places is kind of low right now so you may have to hustle a little bit more.  I heard that mistakes and fear are kind of normal.  Learn from your mistakes and turn your fear, if any, into a positive thing.

Education is one of the major keys in real estate investing to assure your business.  Know the market you select and know where it's best locations are.  Find/Get a local Team put together that is full of people that will help you.  The typical Team members are Attornies, real estate Agents (that will help you sell and give you good referals), CPA's, Inspectors, and General Contractors.  Always do the numbers to make sure you have a good deal and try to look at the property before you make an offer or at least have a clause that will allow you some time (usually 15 days) and possibly back out of the deal without penalizing you a bunch of money.

I am 59 years old and dont know anything about your part of he country but I found BP about 8 months ago and I am still trying to decide what to do while I am recovering from a stroke.  I went to college, not that it is mandatory, and I got a business degree that emphasized real estate.  Since I was in Texas and planned on staying there I found out that I was qualified for taking a real estate brokerage test so I got one.  I kept that license for about 30 years and I closed a few deals for other people.  Regardless of what I had I felt more comfortable with the construction business.  I have been in the construction business since I was 17 including while I went to school.  My father has been in real estate sales for about 40 years and he has taught me a little bit.  If you think I can help you please contact me through BP at any time.  Good luck to both of you,