Bye Boston, Hello State College

[Josh Parra]

It's been almost 2 years since my first new member introduction on BP. In that timeframe, I've been lucky enough to meet so many great people in the Boston area, including Mr. @Brandon Turner himself when he was passing through with his wife. Through BiggerPockets I've been able to meet many experienced investors and I'd like to thank them. 

First there is @Ann Bellamy and @Nick Aalerud that host free, fantastic, informative meetings called Black Diamond. I found out about these on BP, attended a few meetings and learned a lot about different subjects but also met a ton of players in the industry while networking before and after the event. One of these players is @Justin Silverio who is successfully renovating properties just North of Boston. Justin actually had a mentorship program that I took part in where we would bird dog for him in exchange for his knowledge and monthly mastermind calls. I learned a lot from Justin about finding properties and successfully marketing to homeowners. He has a great blog called The Boston Investor which I suggest you check out. Justin would also host quarterly investor meet ups, where we'd network, share projects, and ask questions. It was here that I met two investors that were active in the actual Boston neighborhood that I lived in. @Daniel Rubin and @Ray Hurteau were just finishing up a condo conversion in Dorchester about 5 blocks from my house. Once we connected, I knew that I could learn a lot from these two. We have a great rapport with each other and have the same design tastes. Dan & Ray brought me on board their team as their acquisitions manager. Here I learned a lot about their deal analysis and how being conservative with your numbers pays off. I also learned how to take a beating over the phone from disgruntled homeowners that were receiving their marketing materials. HAHA No one said it was going to be easy! I was also able to help them with deals in Somerville and South Boston (Southie) and what I learned from these two is invaluable.

Although I never pulled the trigger or got around to getting my first deal in Boston, I am able to bring everything that I learned into a market that is much more affordable here in State College. I was able to capitalize on the Boston market though, a house hack if you will. We purchased our home in an up and coming Boston neighborhood at the end of November in 2012 for $359K. We used FHA financing with 5% down. The house was in great shape but a little dated. We ripped down 3 floors of wallpaper, patched and painted the walls, updated light switches, fixtures, converted heating from oil to gas, put on a new roof, and created an outdoor area. Yesterday we sold the house for $685K, $60K over asking. So I guess you can say that our home was our first deal in Boston :)

MANY THANKS to everyone that I met while living in Boston, especially those mentioned above. I wish all of you continued success. Onward & upward!