Student of Real Estate Analysis and Investment, Los Angeles, OC

[Edgar De La Torre]

My name is Edgar De La Torre and I am currently a student at the University of Southern California. I am originally from Orange County, but plan to stay in the Los Angeles market upon graduation, December 2017.

I began my real estate experience in multifamily interning as a commercial real estate broker’s assistant at Marcus & Millichap in the Long Beach office. This is where I learned the brokerage business pipeline; methods of generating leads, creating and preparing proposal packages for investors, coordinating the due diligence process, being exposed to 1031 exchanges, etc.

I am currently interning at a real estate development company which specializes in modern design, new construction residential small-lot subdivisions in the Greater Los Angeles area. In this position I have been learning about the entitlement process of a development project, project management, as well as seeking projects to acquire that fit the business model.

I have been expressing much interest in the acquisition side of the business. I have become very intrigued with the underwriting of an asset from a development and value-add point of view. My exit strategy from this internship is to position myself as a candidate for a commercial real estate analyst or acquisitions analyst position. My mid-term goal is to partner with business professionals, peers, and alumni for investing in real estate and obtain a Master’s degree. And my long-term goal is to become an investor / syndicator / and own my own firm.

I heard about BiggerPockets from my current boss. He suggested I listen to the podcasts on my downtime / drive to and from work. That was about two or three months ago, and have now made the transition to become involved with the forums, posts, meetups, and such. BiggerPockets has been key for a great deal of my knowledge, thoughts, and motivations.

I drive down to Fountain Valley, Orange County area every now and then, and am very active with meeting USC alumni and business professionals here in the Downtown Los Angeles / West Los Angeles areas.

I would be interested in meeting and or speaking with any individuals who would like to share about themselves, feel they have been in my shoes at some point in their career, feel they are in a current situation such as mine, have current goals that align with mine, or just want to meet and create relationships that will last long-term in this game we all love called real estate.

I hope this has given a good detail about myself and look forward to hearing from all of you soon!

Thanks,

Edgar

[Ron B.]

Hi Edgar,

Welcome to the BP. I am also a new investor here and have learned a lot from experienced folks on BP. You will definitely find this site very rewarding.

Modative, is one of the well known companies in Los Angeles that does a lot of work in small-lot subdivisions. In fact, I have learned quite a bit from their published reports.

I have been trying to invest in that space too and have been talking to some partners. I had a few friends who invested in some SLS development about 1-2 years back( around USC) and are still looking at a few deals there. I know the zoning for these properties need to support these development. Have you been involved with any such development in LA? Which areas do you see the most development in? In your experience how has this space changed in the last few years w.r.t deals, competition, areas of development, prices etc?

Welcome again and all the best in your future endeavors !